Fig and Pistachio Chutney

As promised, here's a chutney to accompany the Indian flatbread I made - see post for Dosas (Indian Rice and Lentil Pancakes).  My apologies that posts have been a little scrambled over the past couple of days while Blogger sorted out some technical issues!

Ingredients:

• 3 cups water
• 1 and 3/4 cups chopped dried figs
• 1/3 cup cider vinegar
• 2 tablespoons peeled and chopped fresh ginger
• 3 tablespoons agave nectar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon fennel seeds
• 1/4 teaspoon coriander seeds
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon black peppercorns
• 2 (2-inch) orange rind strips
• 1/4 cup chopped unsalted pistachios

1. Combine all the ingredients except the pistachios in a saucepan.  Bring to a simmer over medium heat, then cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 30 minutes.  Uncover and continue to simmer until the liquid becomes syrupy, stirring occasionally - it will take anywhere from 30 minutes to 1 hour for the chutney to reach this stage. Do keep in mind that the chutney will continue to thicken slightly as it cools, so you don't want to make it too thick during cooking.

2. Remove from heat and discard the orange rind strips; cool.  Stir in the pistachios.  As mentioned, you can serve alongside Indian flatbread such as dosa or uttapam.  If you don't want to make two recipes, however, this chutney is also great as part of an appetizer platter - try cubed vegan cheeses, rolled slices of Lightlife vegan deli meats, and little cornichons pickles. 

Nutrition Info:
6 servings (1/4 cup), Calories 165 

Tasting Notes:
Much as with the dosas I made, I found that the chutney was fine on its own - quite fig-y - but was even better when served as a condiment, and in conjunction with the dosas.  A real nice crunch from the pistachios.  The spice flavors were delicious, though you could easily increase quantities according to taste, depending how spicy you like things.

Rating:
3.5