Chilly winter evenings, with a spell of rain & misty mornings, are finally here in Bangalore.
Its the season to eat and relish something piping hot, spicy, deep-fried, and my personal favourite beverage on repeat - Ginger tea :)
I still remember wearing sweaters and monkey caps in Bangalore for winters, but now it ain't so cold. But then again the craving to eat something snacky and super hot lurks in once in a while and apart from my favourite Onion Pakodas, I do love a good plate of momos served right from the steamer : p
If you've been following my blog and stories/posts on Instagram @spicecharmer, we have been on an Indo Chinese cooking spree since the lockdown and mostly so because our favourite, small, hole in the wall type Chinese restaurant shut down :(
This Schezwan Chutney aka dip or thick sauce was a result of one of the recipes that I read from Ken Hom's recipe book - if you love Chinese and collecting cookbooks, you should own some of them that he has authored. And my bottle of Ching's was over !!
So, naturally, this recipe is tweaked basis what is available in a typical Indian kitchen, I mean I had the usual suspects Soy Sauce and White Vinegar of course. The rest is about using loads of Kashmiri Chillies, super finely chopped garlic and loads of oil :)
INGREDIENTS: (this makes a nice bottle of about 350ml)
30 - 40 Kashmiri Chillies (Sun dry them for a few hours, cut them in 2 & de-seed)
1 large cup of cooking oil (I used Sunflower oil)
20 pods of Garlic - finely chopped
2 - Star Anise
2 inch Ginger - finely chopped
4tbsp - Coriander stem chopped (not the leaves)
4 - Green Chillies, finely chopped (adjust as per your spice preference)
1 cup - Tomato Ketchup (I used Maggi)
4 tbsp - Red Chilli Sauce
1 tsp - Dark Soy Sauce
2 tbsp - White Vinegar
1 tsp - White pepper powder
1/2 tsp - MSG (optional)
1 tsp - Brown Sugar
1/2 tsp - Coarsely ground Sichuan peppers
Salt to taste
PROCEDURE :
Sun dry your Kashmiri Red Chillies for a min of 4hrs, cut them into 2 halves and de-seed. You do not have to remove each & every seed though :) Soak them in water overnight for best results OR boil them in water until they turn super soft, this should take about 15mins or so on medium-high flame. Drain completely & cool, then pulse into a fine paste & set aside.
In a deep pan, heat oil and add Star anise, let it infuse its aromas.
Add finely chopped garlic next and cook this on medium-low flame by stirring constantly, until its slightly brown.
Next add chopped ginger, coarsely ground green chillies, chopped coriander stem and cook for 3mins on medium flame.
Add in your finely ground Chilli paste & stir well. Remember the mixture needs to cook until the oil separates completely by constant stirring (like a pickling mixture). This should take about 15-20mins.
Stir in Red Chilli sauce, soy sauce, white vinegar, sugar & salt to taste. Cook on high flame for 5mins.
Add in white pepper powder, MSG & Sichuan pepper powder. Keep stirring to ensure the sauce doesn't stick & burn.
Cooldown completely and store in a sterilised airtight container, refrigerate until next use :)
