Cilantro-Date Chutney Recipe (2024)

By Samin Nosrat

Cilantro-Date Chutney Recipe (1)

Total Time
About 15 minutes
Rating
5(277)
Notes
Read community notes

Inspired by two classic Parsi recipes from the chef and anthropologist Niloufer Ichaporia King, this sauce introduces the toasted cumin and medjool dates from her date and tamarind chutney into her classic green chutney, full of fresh ginger, jalapeño and lime. The ginger and the sweetness of the dates echo many of the flavors already present on the Thanksgiving table, and the cilantro, chiles and lime bring a much welcome vividness. It’s a delight! This sauce is also fantastic on leftover turkey sandwiches, and, other times of year, it makes for a great condiment on rice, fish, chicken and vegetable dishes alike.

Featured in: How to Make Your Thanksgiving Dinner Less Boring

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Ingredients

Yield:1½ cups

  • 1teaspoon cumin seeds
  • 10medjool dates, pitted
  • cup freshly squeezed lime juice, plus more to taste (from 2 to 3 limes)
  • 2jalapeños, stemmed and thinly sliced (remove seeds if desired for a milder sauce)
  • 1tablespoon finely grated fresh ginger
  • 6garlic cloves, finely grated
  • 1teaspoon fine sea salt, plus more to taste
  • 4cups loosely packed cilantro leaves and tender stems (from about 2 large bunches)

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)

187 calories; 0 grams fat; 0 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 0 grams monounsaturated fat; 0 grams polyunsaturated fat; 50 grams carbohydrates; 5 grams dietary fiber; 41 grams sugars; 2 grams protein; 252 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Cilantro-Date Chutney Recipe (2)

Preparation

Make the recipe with us

  1. Step

    1

    Place cumin in a small skillet and set over medium-high heat. Toast for 2 to 3 minutes, or until seeds just begin to change color and emit a faint aroma. Immediately dump seeds into a spice grinder or mortar, and grind to a powder.

  2. Step

    2

    Place dates, lime juice, jalapeños, ginger, garlic, salt and cumin into the bowl of a food processor and pulse, stopping periodically to scrape the sides with a rubber spatula as needed. Try to get this mixture as uniformly puréed as possible, though a little texture is fine.

  3. Step

    3

    Add the cilantro and continue to pulse to break it down. Then, add as little water as possible — about a tablespoon — to get the blades moving and turn the mixture into the sauce. Continue scraping the sides and pulsing until no large bits of stem or leaf remain and the sauce is a lovely, almost-but-not-quite-smooth texture. Taste, and add lime juice and salt as needed. Cover and refrigerate until serving. This sauce will keep for up to 5 days in the fridge.

Tip

  • This sauce can be made up to 1 day in advance.

Ratings

5

out of 5

277

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Private Notes

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Cooking Notes

Prakash Nadkarni

A quick culture/history refresher: Parsis are Zoroastrians who originally fled Persia after the Arab Conquest and settled on India's west coast (initially, Gujarat state: most now live in Mumbai). Well-known Parsis include Freddie Mercury of Queen (originally Farrokh Balsara), conductor Zubin Mehta, and Mahzarin Banaji of Harvard, co-creator of the Implicit Association Test.Parsi cuisine is one of India's great sub-cuisines, possibly the most friendly to meat-eating Western cultures.

Prakash Nadkarni

The recipe will work well with parsley, mint, or a combination.

Prakash Nadkarni

Ms. King's "My Bombay Kitchen" (U.Cal. Press) is a very good book on Parsi cooking: Jeroo Mehta's "101 Parsi Dishes" (also in Kindle format) is even better. The two recipes Ms. Nosrat cites, however, are widespread throughout North and West India (Parsis adopted them from Gujarati cuisine). See indianhealthyrecipes.com/tamarind-chutney ("jaggery"=raw brown sugar; regular's OK) and vegrecipesofindia.com/coriander-chutney. Ms. Nosrat's fusion is interesting, though I like the two separate.

Jas

I could be wrong but it may be because a single garlic clove in the US is probably equal to 2-3 of the garlic cloves in India. Try 1/3 of what the recipe calls for and go up from there.

Padmaja Patkar

You can also soak the dates in little water for half an hour to one hour. It make blending them easier.

Alessandra

Great combination of flavors. Next time I'll reduce the garlic -- I do love garlic but it dominated in a way that didn't work out. Definitely agree that Thanksgiving could use some spice!

Prakash Nadkarni

@jas - RE: size of garlic cloves - you're absolutely right; the garlic varieties grown in India have much smaller cloves than the colossal garlic you get at Costco; recipes written for Indian audiences will typically specify garlic by measures other than number of cloves. See, for example hebbarskitchen.com/dry-garlic-chutney-recipe-dry-garlic/ (When, after coming to the US, I first saw Marcella Hazan's recipes, which called for a solitary garlic clove, I thought she was nuts.)

Dan

Definitely consider 1 jalapeño over 2 especially if serving westerners - served this at thanksgiving with two peppers and my in laws could barely taste it it was so spicy. I love spice so I was happy to have this spicy treat all to myself - also makes an amazing topper to a breakfast sandwich for the ages!

Mikko

Loved the flavors in this recipe. Bright with a mild sweetness from the dates, balanced by the acidity of the lime juice. It all comes together to support the cilantro and keep it the star. We participated in the holiday in a new way this year. Celebrating foods from other cultures instead of the usual turkey, cranberries, stuffing. We made Samosas from the book, "In Bibi's Kitchen". This chutney was the perfect compliment.

Kelly C-R

This is absolutely the most delicious thing ever. I could eat it every day.

Matt Smith

Thank you for the great recipe!

Laura O

Great flavors! Used date syrup instead, added homemade breadcrumbs I had on hand, and then mixed all in a pound of impossible burger for meatballs. Fantastic hot or cold

Colleen Trang

I made this for a holiday party and it was a banger! So so delicious. I will be making a lot more.

becky

Liz loves this

Gurukaram

Made this with 1 large Serrano chile that I seeded and de-ribbed, 10 soft fresh Barhi dates (smaller than medjools and super soft) and no garlic.( I try to avoid garlic and don’t cook with it). Everything else was per the recipe. It was delicious!!! Super easy and soooo good!

Kate

If it's available, try adding some pomegranate molasses.

Lisa

What would happen if I froze half the recipe for later use? Would it be ruined?

Noelle

So delicious! We loved it with Thanksgiving turkey and are going to love it with Christmas ham (and Easter lamb and…)

Valerie S. Androutsopoulos

How do you serve this? As a sauce on turkey? Or is it / can it be a dip?

Lisa

We would normally present it as a condiment at the table served in a small-ish dish. Folks can then spoon it on the turkey and whatever else they are inspired to try it on.

SGS

"This is...", and I'm quoting a Thanksgiving guest,"the bomb!"

Mikko

Loved the flavors in this recipe. Bright with a mild sweetness from the dates, balanced by the acidity of the lime juice. It all comes together to support the cilantro and keep it the star. We participated in the holiday in a new way this year. Celebrating foods from other cultures instead of the usual turkey, cranberries, stuffing. We made Samosas from the book, "In Bibi's Kitchen". This chutney was the perfect compliment.

roundlake

This was a great addition to our Thanksgiving table. I reduced the amount of garlic because my cloves were large, and soaked the dates to soften, otherwise made it just as written. Will definitely use again.

Mukund Sibi

Made this for thanksgiving as per the directions. A big hit. Nice combination of sweet and spice.

Dan

Definitely consider 1 jalapeño over 2 especially if serving westerners - served this at thanksgiving with two peppers and my in laws could barely taste it it was so spicy. I love spice so I was happy to have this spicy treat all to myself - also makes an amazing topper to a breakfast sandwich for the ages!

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Cilantro-Date Chutney Recipe (2024)

FAQs

Why is my cilantro chutney bitter? ›

To avoid bitter taste we cut the coriander leaves before blending. This way you don't have to blend the chutney for long. Blending the coriander too long can make it taste bitter.

What is cilantro chutney made of? ›

It's a thick paste of cilantro, coconut, Serrano chiles, garlic and ginger. It's fridge-stable for… quite a long time, but retains a fresh, just-made flavor that wakes up anything you stir it into or dollop it on top of.

What do you eat cilantro chutney with? ›

Ideas to Enjoy Cilantro Chutney:
  1. Chutney Grilled Cheese.
  2. Samosa Grilled Cheese.
  3. Mexican Papdi Chaat.

How do you thicken cilantro chutney? ›

How do I thicken cilantro chutney? This recipe is quite thick and if you blend as explained you do not need any thickening here. However, you may add roasted chana dal or 2 tsp besan to thicken the chutney.

How do you balance bitterness in chutney? ›

Balance with Acidity: Acidic ingredients can help balance bitterness. Consider adding a splash of lemon juice, lime juice, or vinegar to the chutney. The acidity can help mask or minimize the bitter taste. Use Fresh Ingredients: Ensure that the herbs and greens you are using in the chutney are fresh.

How do you take the bitterness out of chutney? ›

How do you fix bitter green chutney? If you do end up with a bitter tasting green chutney, there are several tricks you can pull that'll balance out the flavor. First of all, you need to cut through the bitterness with a bit of sweetness. A tiny bit of honey or brown sugar should do the trick.

Does cilantro chutney go bad? ›

Store the cilantro mint chutney refrigerated in a glass jar for up to a week. For longer shelf life freeze the chutney 2 to 3 tablespoons at a time in silicone freezer trays. You can remove individual cubes when needed and thaw them in the refrigerator or at room temperature.

What is traditional chutney made from? ›

Chutneys are made by slow-cooking fruit or vegetables with peeled ginger, garlic, Korintje cinnamon, and chilies. Spices and vinegar are added to preserve the chutney and give it a tangy flavor.

Why put cilantro in water? ›

Experiment 2 tested how long cilantro would stay fresh when placed in water, covered, and refrigerated. Experiment 2 was the clear winner. The cilantro stems placed in water, covered, and refrigerated remained fresh for just over four weeks.

What do Indians eat with chutney? ›

This vibrant green sauce is often served with chaat or Indian street foods and is delicious in samosas. All four of Sukhi's samosa recipes call for cilantro chutney, adding moisture, spice, and flavor to every bite.

What is best to eat with chutney? ›

Ideas on What to do with Chutney
  • Spread on bread in grilled cheese sandwiches.
  • Add to stuffing for turkey.
  • Add to chicken salad.
  • Stuff phyllo or puff pastry with goat cheese and chutney.
  • Bake a brie with chutney on top and serve with toasted baguette slices.
  • Use as an accompaniment to cheese.

What is chutney best served with? ›

It is served with everything from basmati rice to breads like naan or dosa to curry dishes. Elsewhere in the world, you may see a variety of chutney paired with dishes, like onion chutney with roasted meats or a fruity apple chutney with buttery, creamy cheese like brie or goat cheese.

Why is my homemade chutney runny? ›

The most common method is to simply cook it for longer, until the excess water evaporates and the chutney thickens naturally. This can take a while, so be patient and stir the chutney frequently to prevent it from sticking to the bottom of the pan.

Can I freeze cilantro chutney? ›

Cilantro chutney freezes really well. To freeze this chutney, add it to smaller freezer-safe containers or ice-cube trays and freeze it. After a day, transfer the frozen chutney cubes to a ziplock bag.

What if I put too much water in my chutney? ›

If the chutney is too runny then in our opinion the best solution is to put it into a pan and bring it back to the boil, then simmer rapidly until it is the required thickness. If you can do this in a couple of deep frying pans (not aluminium) then it should help to speed up the process.

How do you make cilantro not bitter? ›

Once your plant is 4 to 6 inches tall, consistently harvesting and pruning the leaves can help your herbs produce for longer before flowering. When flower stalks begin to grow, removing them quickly might give you a bit more time before your delicious cilantro turns bitter.

What makes cilantro bitter? ›

Some people possess a genetic predisposition for detecting these aldehydes in minute concentrations, whereas other people are less sensitive to aldehydes." These sensitive individuals experience cilantro as being soapy and bitter.

Why is my cilantro plant bitter? ›

Cilantro thrives in cool climates, especially during the spring and fall. The first sign of hot temperatures, and the cilantro is quick to flower and set seed—this growth response is called bolting. This results in bitter-tasting leaves.

Why is my mint coriander chutney bitter? ›

It can turn bitter if you grind it too much of for too long in the electric grinder. The oils in the leaves start to turn rancid. The solution is simple. Whenever to make pudina chutney, combine the pudina leaves with coriander leaves too.

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