Odisha's Tomato Khajur Chutney in 5 Minutes

Yes, you have heard me right. I have been trying out Odiya dishes ever since I started to cook post-marriage. It is not long ago! The transformation has happened only recently. Before I was not into cooking - not keen to, nor interested in cooking. But hunger brings the best in you, and when your health matters, there can be no excuses. Eating outside is not the healthiest of choices, but earlier, this wasn;t the case in my case. I would save cooking time and instead utilize the same for my projects. Perhaps, I was wrong. Health comes first, and it has to come first. You cannot live a healthy life if you eat outside frequently. Anyway, let's come to this tomato dates chutney. Well, yes, this is a specialty from Odisha and Odiyas are foodie. They love their food, tradition, culture, and everything about their rituals. Hubby being an Odiya is no exception, when it comes to food. He is not into tradition and culture per se, so only he married a Punjabi kudi.

tomato khajur khatta - dates chutney

Layer, heat, mix, and mash - the atypical tomato chutney with dates sugarfree

Let's come back to the tomato khajur chutney. I have tried this chutney many times, without ever learning it from MIL or SIL, not even food groups.

Perhaps not!
The Odiya cuisine is thousands of years old. It is bursting with flavors - mustard is a must-use in Odiya recipes. My MIL always makes sure she adds garlic to almost every single recipe. Onions ,too, are a crucial part of the Odiya cuisine. Chutneys or khatta, as they call, are a quintessential part of the cuisine on my in-law's side. The foodies that Odiyas are love to indulge in everything "food." Their typical day starts with Jalakhiya (breakfast), then they have their madhyan bhojan (lunch), with sunset comes their tiffin time (evening snack time), and then before hitting the bed, it is their usual dinner.

tomato dates chutney Odisha - sugarfree chutney

The Odiya chutney promises to give you is :

lip-smacking
quick
one pot one shot
healthy
flavorful

Ingredients for tomato dates chutney

4 tomatoes

6-8 dates or more for sweeter version (I like it sweet-cum-sour)

1 green chilly (optional)
1 small piece of ginger (I didn't add)

5-6 raisins

Black salt
Panch Phoron for tempering (a mix of cumin, black and yellow mustard, nigella, fenugreek)
Red chilly whole for tempering
4 tbsp- water (you may add little extra water if you want the chutney to be mushier)
1 tbsp-oil
black salt (I like to use rock salt in my chutneys- you may add common salt instead)
curry leaves - a few (optional)

How to make Tomato Khajur Khatta way

Chop tomatoes into small pieces.
Deseed dates. You may want to soak dates and raisins before using them. It's completely optional. I didn't soak.
Slit green chilly if you are using.
Take a 2 or 3-liter pressure cooker.
Add oil.
Throw in panch phoron. If you want a paste-like consistency, then you may add panch phoron as a tempering later when other ingredients are cooked.
Drop tomatoes, raisins, dates, and green chilly.
Add black salt and curry leaves.
Add water without disturbing the layer.
Cover the lid and cook for 4 whistles.
Open the cooker after pressure settles in.
Mash the tomato khatta with a laddle. Enjoy healthy yummy chutney from Odisha.
You may choose to blend it in a mixie. If you decide to do so, please do not add the panch phoron initially and choose to temper the chutney with these 5 masalas. You may also add whole red chilly to the tempering. I have not added it.

I have modified the tomato khaur khatta recipe as per my taste. Odiyas add additional jaggery or sugar to make the khatta sweeter, but I prefer natural sweeteners and try to substitute white sugar or processed sweeteners with the same.

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