Imli ki Chutney [Indian Tamarind Sauce]

Some facts about Tamarind:

• Tamarind is native to Sudan and was introduced to India centuries ago.
• It is known to have some antiseptic, mild laxative and digestive properties [even for elephants :))]
  
• It is an excellent polish for copper and brass items.
  

Ingredients:

Imli [Tamarind Paste] - 1/4 cup
*Jaggery[gur] - 1/4 cup [depends how sweet you want]
Water - 1.5 cup
Red Chillie powder - 1/2 tsp
Salt - to taste
Black salt - to taste

Roasted cumin seed powder - 1/2 tsp
Oil - 1tsp
Cumin seeds - 1/tsp

Method 1:

1. Dissolve imli paste in water and keep it aside
2. Heat oil and when it is hot enough add cumin seeds and let it splutter
3. Very carefully pour the imli-water mixture in the hot oil [Caution: keep your face away from the pan to prevent from getting burn. Water added to hot oil leads to spluttering]
4. Bring the mix to rolling boil
5. Add jaggery, spices and salt
6. Boil for some good 10 minutes (in the event water starts to evaporate, add more water to keep the desired consistency) [A good boil helps to increase the shelf-life of the product]
   
7. Adjust seasoning according to your taste
   
8. Turn off the heat and let it completely cool to room temperature
9. Transfer to a glass bottle and refrigerate [it keeps good for 3 wks] [glass bottle is a better choice as its least affected by the acid of tamarind]
10. Its a great chutney for alloo chaat, samosa chaat, dahi vada and bhelpuri

Method 2 (updated Oct 04/2011)

1. This method does not need oil and cumin seeds.
2. Dissolve imli paste in water, add sugar or jaggery, salt, and rest of the seasoning and boil till it reaches the desired consistency. 
3. I normally make it like this. Its easy and quick
4. Resins/ dates (Khajoor) can also be added along with other ingredients. However, an additional step of blending will be required to get smooth chutney

Notes:
*You can use table sugar instead of jaggery!
The measurements are just guidelines here, adjust sugar and spices to your taste