Indian Green Chutney

"Green Chutney" is not something you will mistake for "red." It is VERY green. The peoples of the Indian subcontinent make chutneys from all sorts of things, and they serve them as a spread or dip along side their wonderful flatbreads, samosas (fried or baked dough filled with assorted vegetables or meat), or other foods. There are variations to green chutney recipes, and I did articles on "Coriander Chutney"* (coriander is better known as "cilantro" in much of North and South America) and "Mint Chutney,** both of which certainly fall into the category of "green chutneys."

 

Ingredients:

 

1 cup fresh coriander/cilantro (no big stems or stalks)

1/3 cup fresh mint leaves

1 or 2 green chilies, like serrano or jalapeno (stems removed)

2 garlic cloves

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 inch piece peeled ginger

3/4 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon salt

(optional) 1/2 teaspoon sugar

few drops of water, IF NEEDED to thin the chutney

 

Put all ingredients, except water, into a blender/food processor. Process the ingredients until smooth, adding a few drops of water if needed to thin out the chutney, but not so that it's watery. 

 

 

* This is the link to the recipe for "Coriander Chutney": https://pontificating-randy.blogspot.com/2018/10/indian-coriander-chutney.html

 

 ** This is the link to the recipe for "Mint Chutney": https://pontificating-randy.blogspot.com/2017/07/indian-mint-chutney.html

WORD HISTORY:

Casual-This adjective is related to "case" (the noun form with the meaning "state or condition of something," also, "an event or happening," as in, "in this case, we mean this word"), a word of Latin derivation borrowed by English via French, and to "chance," another Latin word borrowed by English via French. "Casual" goes back to Indo Europian "kad/khad," which meant, "to fall." This gave Latin "cadere," meaning, "to fall, to sink, to perish, to die, to befall, to fall to or upon;" that is, "to occur, to happen." One of its participle base forms was "cas-," which served as the basis of the noun "casus," meaning more literally, "a falling down(ward)," but often used more figuratively to mean, "a mishap, a chance happening," as well as, "a grammatical case," as in "dative case." This then produced the Latin adjective "casualis," meaning, "(in reference to something) by chance, by opportunity," which passed to Latin-based French as "casuel," and this then was borrowed by English in the late 1300s with the same "by chance" meaning; thus also, "unpredictable." By the second half of the 1800s, the notion of "unpredictable" developed the use of "casual" for people who were "careless or undependable in their actions, work or attitude." Its use for clothing developed in the very late 1800s. (Note: "Casual" is a very close relative of "casualty," and I'll be posting its history soon.)

Kenyan-Style Tomato Chutney

Kenya has been influenced by the foods and flavors of the Indian Subcontinent going well back in history, from trade and by the settlement of people from the Indian Subcontinent in Kenya. I'm calling this "Kenyan Tomato Chutney," but it is really a recipe I devised myself, but it could certainly be similar to recipes from others, including by people from the Indian Subcontinent, as there isn't really any one thing that makes this "Kenyan."

Ingredients:

1 can tomato sauce, 15 ounces 
3 green chilies (jalapeño or serrano chilies are good for this), seeded and finely chopped
1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon lemon juice
2 to 3 tablespoons finely chopped onion
1/4 cup chopped cilantro (also called coriander)
 
Add all ingredients to a bowl and mix well. Cover and refrigerate for at least an hour or two before serving. Kenyans serve a similar tomato chutney with fried potatoes. (Note: for a type of fried potato recipe common in Kenya, and heavily influenced by people from the Indian subcontinent, here is the link:  https://pontificating-randy.blogspot.com/2020/03/kenyan-potato-bites-potato-bhajias.html  

WORD HISTORY:
Kitchen-This word is related to "cook," a word from the Germanic roots of English, but it was an ancient borrowing by Old Germanic from Latin. "Kitchen" goes back to Indo European "kwekwo," "perhaps" a variant form of "pekwo," which seems to have meant "to ripen;" the notion being to prepare inedible raw food until it is 'ripe;' that is, ready to eat. This gave Old Italic "kekewo," and this gave Latin "coquere," meaning "to cook," which gave Latin "coquus," a noun meaning, "the act or process of cooking" and thus, "a person who cooks." This gave Latin the adjective "coquinus," meaning, "about cooking or a cook." This produced "coquina," often rendered in Latin as "cocina," both meaning, "room or area for cooking." Apparently West Germanic (not Old Germanic) borrowed "cocina" as "kokina/kukina," and this gave Old English (Anglo-Saxon) "cycene/cicene" (kitchen), which then became "ky(t)chyn/kychene" before the modern version. Relatives in the other Germanic languages: German has "Küche," Low German has "Köök," but some areas seem to have "Köken,"^ West Frisian has "koken," Dutch has "keuken," Danish has "køkken," Norwegian has "kjøkken," Swedish has "kök." The Danish, Norwegian and Swedish forms are all from Low German, one of the West Germanic languages, along with English, German, Dutch and Frisian. As noted above, the ancestor of "kitchen" was borrowed by West Germanic, which explains to some extent why I could not find any reference to a form in Old Norse, from the North Germanic branch. Icelandic, a North Germanic language still often close in forms to Old Norse, and somewhat distant from its continental Germanic cousins, does not have a form either. This also explains the borrowings of forms of "kitchen" from Low German by Danish, Norwegian and Swedish, as all are from the North Germanic branch of the Germanic family of languages. 
 
^ Low German has no standard form and it is a series of dialects; thus, there are often various forms of words. 

Indian Onion Chutney

This is a common chutney with only minor variations in recipes from what I've found. Good served as a side to Indian meals or just along with Indian breads. 

Ingredients (quite a number of servings of varying size):

2 large white or yellow onions, peeled and chopped
3 tablespoons freshly ground black pepper
1 heaping tablespoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon salt
1 can (6 ounces) tomato paste
juice of 3 limes
1 tablespoon sugar (more if you don't like tartness)
1/2 to 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper or other ground red pepper (per your heat level)
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro

Add the pepper, cumin, salt, tomato paste, lime juice, sugar and red pepper to a bowl and mix well. Add the chopped onion and cilantro and keep folding until the onion is coated with the mixture. Cover and refrigerate the chutney for at least a couple of hours before serving.

WORD HISTORY:
Crag-Certainly not an every day word in English, the history of "crag" is shaky in spots, but it is related, through Indo European, to "hard," a word from the Germanic roots of English. It goes back to Indo European "khert/khart," variant of "k(h)rat," which had the meaning "strong, firm, powerful," which produced some unknown form in its Old Celtic offspring, which then gave the Celtic languages a number of words quite similar in pronunciation and meaning: Welsh "craig," Breton "krag," Manx "creg," Irish "carraig," all with the meaning of "rock," the "basic" meaning of the word in English, but more especially, "a rock protruding from a cliff, often by the seashore." English borrowed the word from one or more of the sources noted above, although Welsh would be a good candidate, in the early 1200s, initially in reference to places. Several such "protruding rocks" brought English to develop "craggy," the adjectival form for "rough and rocky," which came to be used for inland areas, as well as those near the sea.    

Indian Coriander Chutney

This chutney, known as (transliterated) "dhania/dhaniye chatni," can be easily made in a blender or food processor. Because of this, it is not really necessary to mince or chop the ingredients in some uniform way. Such "green" chutneys are a common part of the food culture of the Indian Subcontinent,* and they are used in a number of ways, including as an accompaniment for the wonderful and various flatbreads of the subcontinent.  

Ingredients:

1 cup fresh coriander (cilantro)
1 green chili pepper (jalapeño or serrano, you can seed it, or leave the seeds for heat), halved
1 1/2 inch piece fresh ginger, peeled
1 large garlic clove
2/3 teaspoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon black salt or regular salt**
1 tablespoon water (optional)
1/4 teaspoon sugar

Put all ingredients, except water into a blender. Blend until everything is well chopped, then, if you want to loosen the chutney a little, add water to thin the chutney, blend briefly.

* I also did "Mint Chutney," and the recipe is available at this link: https://pontificating-randy.blogspot.com/2017/07/indian-mint-chutney.html

** Indian black salt, which tends to be more pink or purplish in color, has a sulfur (British English: sulphur) content. It is fairly commonly used in the cooking of the Indian subcontinent. Indian black salt is available in "some" supermarkets, "some" herb and spice shops, Asian shops or Indian/Pakistani product shops, as well as online, but it is becoming more available in many markets and supermarkets. Hawaiian black salt has charcoal mixed in. Both Hawaiian and Indian black salts are believed by some to have health benefits.

WORD HISTORY: 
Brim (also Berm, see note below)-English has, or has had, more than one word of this, or similar, spelling, so here is what I've found. Old English once had "brymm," which meant, "surf of the sea;" thus also, "sea." There was also "brim," which meant, "edge of the sea, the seashore," but also, as with the "brymm" spelling, it meant "surf." The "brim" spelling and meaning of "edge of the sea" "could" have been from the notion of, "where the surf crashes to shore," and later the meaning seems to have broadened from "edge of the sea," to the more general "edge of any body of water," and then, to the even broader "rim or edge of something."^ These words "seem" to trace back to Indo European "bhrem," which had the meaning of, "whir, buzz, boom, hum, to make noise." This gave Old Germanic "bremmanan," meaning, "to rage, to roar, to make loud sounds;" thus the tie to the above forms, with these meanings providing the basis of "surf," from 'crashing' or 'booming' waves. The Old Germanic form also gave Old English (Anglo-Saxon) "bremman," with the same meaning as its Germanic parent. German has "brummen" ("to make deep sound with the voice, to hum, to growl"), and it was once spelled "breman" (meaning, "to roar, to bellow, to yell"), and it also produced German "brimmen" ("to roar, to make deep, dull sounds"), Dutch has "brommen" ("to hum, to grumble"). Old English also had the noun "brimsa," which meant, "horsefly," "perhaps" from the idea, "buzzing insect?" German has "Breme" (once spelled, "Bremse"), which also means "horsefly" (the female bites animals and humans to get blood). The "brymm" and "brim" spellings mentioned further above have a relative in Icelandic "brim" ("surf").

^ This form has relatives in the name of the German city of "Bremen," which is located on the bank (edge) of the Weser River, also related is "Bräm(e)," now only in German dialect (edge, border area), Swedish "bräm" (edge), Danish "bræmme' (edge, rim), and Dutch "berm" ("paved or grassy path or elevated embankment to the side of roads, highways or canals"), which has the "r" and vowel reversed. The Dutch form was borrowed by French as "berme," and this was borrowed by English in the first half of the 1700s.    

Indian Mint Chutney

Chutneys are common throughout the Indian subcontinent and this is another good one, featuring mint. As with other chutneys, there are variations to this recipe, with one variation being that some do not use yogurt, but use only water to make mint chutney.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup plain yogurt (Indian or Greek style yogurt, which are thicker, will make it more authentic)
3/4 cup fresh coriander
1  2/3 cups fresh mint leaves
1/4 cup chopped onion
1 serrano or jalapeno chili pepper, chopped
3 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 tablespoon fresh ginger
1 tablespoon Indian curry powder
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon salt (or black salt, if you have it)*

Because everything will be processed/blended, the ingredients do not have to be uniformly chopped/cut. Add all ingredients into a blender/food processor and blend briefly to form more of a chunky paste.

* There are a few types of black salt, including one used in black magic and is not for consumption. Hawaiian black salt has charcoal mixed in. Indian black salt has a sulfur (British English: sulphur)  content. It is fairly commonly used in the cooking of the Indian subcontinent. Indian black salt is available in "some" supermarkets, "some" herb and spice shops, Asian shops or Indian/Pakistani product shops, as well as online. Both Hawaiian and Indian black salts are believed by some to have health benefits.

Mint chutney with some Indian style flatbread

WORD HISTORY:
Cummerbund-This is a compound word, with the first part going back to Indo European "khemm," which had the notion of, "bend, twist, curve." This gave Persian^ the transliterated "kamar," which meant, "waist" (get it? "curved part of the body"). The second part of this word, "bund," is related to "bind," "band" and "bound." It traces back to the Indo European root "bhendh," which had the notion of "tying up something." This gave transliterated Persian "band," "something that binds." The Persian compound was thus, "kamarband;" that is, "cloth that binds around the waist." This passed into Hindi and Urdu^^ as the transliterated "kamarband," and English borrowed the term in the early 1600s. German later borrowed the word from English as, "Kummerbund."

^ Persian is from the Indo Iranian branch of the Indo European family of languages. It is related to English, but much further down the family tree.

^^ Both Hindi and Urdu are Hindustani languages from the Indo-Aryan part of the Indo Iranian branch of Indo European. They are related to English, but much further down the family tree. 

Indian Tomato Chutney

When I was a kid, there was something of a divide about the pronunciation of "t-o-m-a-t-o" in the United States. While most Americans said "toe-may-toe," with a long "a" sound, it was not uncommon to hear some pronounce it "toe-mah-toe," with a short "a." There was even a song about the difference in pronunciation, along with the similar difference in pronunciation for "potato."* In more recent times, there may still be a few holdouts for the short "a," but the overwhelming number of Americans now use the long "a" sound, although the overall pronunciation often tends to come out like, "tum-ay-tah." In England, and in the rest of Britain, the short "a" is the norm, as I believe it is in Australia and New Zealand. Now, I must admit, I'm not quite sure how they pronounce it in Canada, as Canadians have retained certain things from British English, like the spellings "colour, humour, labour, and centre," but as to spoken versions of various words, it "may" depend upon location, "perhaps" with the areas closer to the United States, and thus more easily able to see or hear American television and radio, being more influenced by American pronunciation, but that's just a guess.  

This chutney is a tomato relish. Of course, if you like heat, you can add more fresh or dried chili pepper. 

Ingredients:

1 cup fresh tomatoes, chopped
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, finely chopped or grated
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 fresh red or green chili pepper, chopped (or teaspoon chili flakes)
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon mustard seeds (yellow, brown or black)
1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon canola or corn oil
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon sugar
2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped

Heat the oil in a pan over medium heat, then add the mustard seeds, which will begin to pop in a few seconds, then add the ginger, chili pepper, garlic and salt, cook about 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes, cumin, turmeric, coriander, sugar and cilantro, cook until tomatoes "soften somewhat," but are not mushy. Use a stick blender, a blender, or a food processor and process to slightly chunky consistency. Great with Indian naan bread or other flatbreads, or with rice.

* The song title is "Let's Call the Whole Thing Off," made famous in a movie starring Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers.

WORD HISTORY:
Pedal-This word for "a lever operated by the foot to move, stop or shift gears, or to control sound on a piano or organ;" and in fact, distantly related to "foot," goes back to Indo European "ped/pod," which meant "foot." This gave Latin "pes," also meaning "foot," and its derived adjective "pedalis" (of the foot, having to do with the foot), and this gave Italian the noun "pedale" (pedal), which was borrowed into French as, "pédale," and this was borrowed by English in the early 1600s. The original meaning in Italian, and then French, was applied to pedals on an organ, then on a piano. The verb was derived from the noun, but not until the mid 1800s.  

Mango Chutney

For those unfamiliar with chutney, it is a type of Indian relish, or preserves. I'm using "Indian" in the broad sense, to include the people of former parts of India; namely, Pakistan and Bangladesh, although chutney is also made in the island nation of Sri Lanka (formerly known as Ceylon). This entire area was once under British colonial rule. There are many types of chutney, made from anything like mint or coriander, to apples, to apricots to tomatoes, but mango chutney is seemingly the best known type in "western nations," especially Britain, Canada and the United States. When I've had mango chutney in Indian restaurants, it has always been less sweet than store bought brands. An Indian restaurant owner once told me the British liked the chutney to be sweeter, and that British companies naturally made it that way to cater to the taste of their own market. These British brands then spread to North America, although, just a guess, I would bet at least 3 cents, that a fairly large percentage of Americans have never tasted chutney, and that many people have no idea even what it is. Besides the sweetened and spiced mango, there is often also a little "heat" from the addition of cayenne pepper or chopped hot chili peppers. Chutney is commonly served as a condiment for meat, including ham and sausage, or as a topping for sandwiches.

Ingredients:

2 large, somewhat less than ripe mangoes, peeled and chopped
3 tablespoons chopped red bell pepper
1 cup brown sugar (I use dark brown)
1/4 cup white vinegar
1/4 cup golden raisins
2 inch piece ginger, grated
1 jalapeño or serrano chili pepper, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon mace or nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon turmeric 
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon grated lemon peel
2 teaspoons curry powder

Bring all ingredients to a boil, stir well and lower the heat and gently simmer until the mango is just tender, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking. The chutney should be pretty thick and it will thicken further as it cools.

WORD HISTORY:
Chutney-The ultimate origin of this word is unknown. It goes back to Hindi "chatna," which had the meaning, "eat flavorful food." This then produced Hindi/Urdu, "catni/chatni," which was the name for "spiced or sweetened vegetables or fruits used to accompany other foods." It was borrowed into English in the early 1800s, although it likely was in use by British military and colonial authorities in India before that time. NOTE: Hindi and Urdu are Indo European languages from the Indo-Iranian branch of Indo European.