In one of the aimless trips and food forays in Karnataka, there was a chutney that was served as an accompaniment to Patravade.
A bland chutney at first taste, until the coarsely ground dhal brings texture into the chutney. And then the tanginess hits the tongue. Almost like a stain on the tongue that you are unable to remove. Added to that, the tamarind and chilly blends into the taste buds.
Upon questioning, the man proudly said: It is the Pumpkin skin chutney. A seasonal delicacy that has an easy recipe to follow but rather difficult to make, he says. The story goes that the left-over skin of pumpkins, peeled and boiled to make a sweet dish, was rubbed traditionally on a grindstone to produce this chutney.
The recipe’s ingredients: One cup of fresh and tender pumpkin (yellow) skin, half a cup of grated coconut, five red chillies, tamarind juice to taste, One teaspoon of urad dhal, channa dhal and salt.
Heat two teaspoons of oil and fry channa dal and urad dal until they are golden brown. Add tamarind and red chilly and saute for two minutes. Keep aside the mixture to cool.
Heat two teaspoons of oil and fry pumpkin peels with salt till the raw smell goes. Grind sauted pumpkin and dal mixture with grated coconut. Grind it until coarse to retain the texture of the dhals. Garnish it with coriander and curry leaves.
After cooling, the chutney is ready to be served with patravade.