Ridge Gourd Peel Chutney

These days I have been saving vegetable peels, stalks and even leaves hoping to make edibile and delicious dishes from them. I have heard many a times from different people that vegetable and fruit peels, stalks and leaves have lots of nutrients in them. I agree, we can easily transform some of these veggie wastes which we usually toss in the bin into tasty delicious dishes. One such dish that I often make with vegetable peels is this Ridge Gourd Peel Chutney. I served this chutney with the Masala Dosas I made for dinner sometime last week. This chutney tastes just as good as regular coconut chutney and one wont be able to guess that it was made from peels that usually get thrown away!

Ingredients -
3 cups ridge gourd peels
3 green chillies
1 inch piece ginger
1 tbsp crushed peanuts
2 tbsps fresh grated coconut
1/2 cup grated raw mango (or tamarind to taste)
1 handful cilantro leaves
1/4 cup jaggery
Salt to taste
2 tbsps oil
1/4 tsp asafoetida/ hing

Method -
1.Heat a tbsp of oil in a pan and fry the green chillies and ridge gourd peels till they turn slightly brown and crisp.
2.Transfer this to the blender and add the remaining ingredients such as ginger, crushed peanuts, coconut, raw mango, cilantro, tamarind, jaggery, salt and some water. Blend this into a fine paste by adding some water as needed.
3.In a small kadai, heat a tbsp of oil and add hing. Pour this oil on the chutney and mix well.

This goes to Nithu's 'Best Out Of Waste' event.