Navratri fasting: Healthy dry chutneys to try

The festival of Navratri is being celebrated with much joy. Besides observing fast during the nine-day, people prepare a variety of food and it is no less than a feast. If you closely look at the food consumed during Navratri, you will realise how important it is to eat mindfully.
I have been sharing a lot of Navratri recipes here and this time I tried a few dry chutneys that became a wonderful accompaniment for me during my 10 days millet protocol. There are many ways you can make your everyday meal yummy and interesting instead of eating processed and packaged food. These dry chutneys are a win-win in terms of shelf-life, taste and health. Do read for the step–step recipes and try them whenever you have diet restrictions or you want to increase your nutritional quotient.
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These dry chutneys go perfectly well with almost anything. Also, do try dosa with barnyard millet and many other Navratri recipes.

 
Dry peanut chutney
Ingredients:
· 1 cup peanut
· 1 tsp cold pressed sesame oil
· 1 tsp cumin (jeera)
· 1 tsp Kashmiri red chilli powder
· 1/2 tsp asafoetida (heeng)
· 1 tsp jaggery
· Rock salt as per taste
Method:
1. Dry roast peanuts and cool them
2. Coarsely grind and keep them aside
3. Heat oil in a deep pan, add cumin, asafoetida followed roasted and ground peanuts, red chilli powder and salt
4. Mix it well and let it cool
5. Store in an airtight container.
6. Please note you can also add some curry leaves, some lemon juice and fried garlic chunks on days when you are not observing Navratri fasts. This chutney can be your favourite all through the year.

Coconut sesame chutney
Ingredients:
· 1/2 cup sesame seeds
· 1 tbsp cold pressed coconut oil
· 1/2 cup grated coconut (preferably dry)
· 7-8 whole red chillies (dried)
· 1/2 tsp asafoetida (heeng)
· Rock salt as per taste
Method:
1. Heat oil and saute all the ingredients together except for salt
2. Cool it and transfer into a mixer jar
3. Blend to a coarse powder and add salt as per taste
4. Store in an air-tight container.

Amla mint chutney
Ingredients:
· 1 cup fresh mint leaves
· 5-6 Amla (Indian Gooseberry) deseeded
· 1 tbsp pomegranate seeds
· 1/2 tsp asafoetida (heeng)
· 2-3 fresh green chillies
· Rock salt as per taste
Method:
Blend all the ingredients together. Store in a glass jar. This chutney stays fresh for 2-3 days inside the refrigerator. Always make a fresh batch.
(Shalini Rajani is a Millet Coach, the founder of Crazy Kadchi and holds innovative Millets Cooking Workshops and Gluten-free Sourdough Baking Workshops for all age groups)
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