Chutney

Chutney(also called chatney) refers to a wide-ranging family of condimentsfrom South Asian cuisineand Indian cuisinethat usually contain some mixture of spice(s) and vegetable(s) and/or fruit(s). There are many varieties of chutney.Chutneys may be either wet or dry, and they can have a coarse to a fine texture. The Anglo-Indian loan word refers to fresh and pickledpreparations indiscriminately, with preserves often sweetened. Several Northern Indian languages use the word for fresh preparations only. A different word achār(Hindi: अचार) applies to preserves that often contain oil and are rarely sweet. Vinegaror citrusjuice may be added as natural preservatives, or fermentationin the presence of salt may be used to create acid. In the past, chutneys were ground with a mortar and pestlemade of stone or an ammikkal(Tamil). Spices are added and ground, usually in a particular order; the wet paste thus made is sauteedin vegetable oil, usually gingellyor peanut (groundnut) oil. In the present era, electric blendersor food processorscan be used as labor-saving alternatives to the traditional stone grinding