Avale Chutney (Pickled Gooseberry Chutney)

Avale Chutney is a very simple recipe. In konkani, avalo means gooseberry. This chutney  requires very few ingredients and can be made within 10 minutes. I got this recipe from my amma. I have used the brined amlas to make this chutney.

This chutney is very healthy as amlas are rich in Vitamin C. Gooseberries are not available through out the year. Hence these are generally preserved in salt solution and they remain good for a year.

Ingredients:

• Grated Coconut, fresh/frozen- 1/2 cup
• Brined Amla (gooseberry), large sized*- 2
• Green chilli- 2-3
• Garlic pods- 2-3

*The amount of brined amla depends on the the sourness of the amla as well as how much sour you want. So adjust it accordingly.

Procedure:

How to Brine: Wash the amla (fresh and frozen both works) and then place them in a glass jar. Add couple of spoon of salt. Then add water till the top. Close it with its lid and let it sit for more than a month. This is how mine looked-

Then remove the brined amla from the jar and wash them. This is how they look.

Break them open and discard the seeds (you can as well leave them in cold water, to remove the excess salt)

Now grind the brined amla pieces along with grated coconut, green chillies, garlic to get a semi coarse mixture. Add few table spoon of water, to ease the process of grinding (I didn't add salt as the brined amla has enough salt). At this point, check for the salt, sourness as well as spiciness. If everything is good then transfer it to a bowl.

Avale Chutney is ready!!

Serve it as a side dish to rice. I would suggest you to serve this chutney with rice and a spicy curry like Batate Vaagu, Batate Song or any other curry of your choice. Above measurement serves three people.