Food Venture into Sweet & Spicy Flavors of life

The Flavorful Indian Food

The beauty of Indian food is that it is multi-faceted and taste differently in every bite.  Yes, Indian food is an amalgamation of conflicting tastes like hot and sour, sweet and spicy, and even contrast with warm and cold flavours in one single bite.

Talking about the contrasting flavours, one of my favourite such contrasting flavour is “sweet and spicy”. Yes, that flavours not just represents a one of its kind cooking concept but also sums up our journey called life. Remember our jest for all things sweet yet spicy which starts from the humble tamarind that we used to eat post school hours, much against the chagrin of our parents. Humble Tamarind yes, cause Tamarind has this unique ability to retain its deepest flavours for ages and amicably transferring it to the food it gets infused with without losing the original flavour.  Ummm, the mention fills me with thoughts of the amazing flavour and childhood memories.

Another fruit that reminds me of this tangy, sweet and spicy flavours is- Mango.

My love for mango is widely known. Probably Mango is the only reason that I love the summer season. Well, since summer is onset, how about me sharing one of my favourite quick sweet &Spicy recipes? Game?

Aam Ki Launji [ Mango Indian Marmalade]

This is one of the simplest recipes that is quick to make and goes well with all the meals. To make this, all you need is-

2 Raw Mangoes [washed, deseeded and diced]

Roasted Spice mix including- Fennel [saunf], Kalonji [Black Cummin Seed], Fenugreek [methi]

Red Chilly Powder,  Salt and Sugar

Instructions: Wash the mangoes well, peel them and dice into wide cubes. Take a bowl, add the mangoes and Turmeric, a little salt, sugar and marinade for 1 hour. The sugar will eventually melt into the syrup.

Now take a wok and heat it on medium flame. Add the marinade mangoes and stir. Now add the coarsely grounded roasted spices to it. Once the mango starts mellowing, add a pinch of asafoetida and red chilli powder [as per the spice level you prefer]. Allow it to cook till the mangoes are cooked.

Haute Kutir Tip: Do not overcook till syrup dries else it will lose the taste. To check the consistency, spoon out a mango cube, press gently with your fingers to ascertain. The mango needs to be mildly mellowed.

Take it off the wok and allow it to cool. Serve with Rice, Paratha or Plain Pancakes.

Umm, I love this version of Mango Marmalade that I picked from my mum’s kitchen. She smiled mischievously and said- Not fair that you have taken a recipe from me without giving me another. I love this naughty avatar of my Mom and redirected her to this beautiful adventure by Axis Bank. Called- #Foodventures. 

Initially, she dismissed checking it out, thinking it as just another website but when we switched on to the web, she saw her favourite chef Vikas Khanna and got hooked on. Well, you too can try this out. Interestingly, Foodventures are inviting food fanatics to get featured in a video with the celebs. How? Check them out to know more.

In the meantime, let me soak into the sweet and spicy flavour of my Mango Marmalade. Ummm