Chutneys of India – Day 3 – Maharashtrian Mirchi cha Thecha

We had lost our way trekking the Sahyadri hills with friends, sometime in the early 1990s. We found our way down another side quite far away from where we began. Hungry and tired we found a little hut that served chai. We asked if she could give us lunch instead.

She quickly placed a tawa on fire and deftly made a pile of jowar rotis in a few minutes. After the last one, she tossed a handful of peanuts on the skillet. Then came green chillies. To the charred chillies she added oil to a sizzle and a little jeera. Then came some garlic and salt. What happened next was fascinating.

She took a small sized mud pot and crushed all these things on the skillet, with the bottom of the pot, moving her hands up and down in a rhythm. I was thus introduced to the fiery and satisfying taste of mirchi cha thecha, Maharashtra’s very famous chutney. It has remained a favorite at home ever since. Many of our friends love it.

I am not skilled enough to pound on the tawa like her, but I stone grind it in a mortar. Briefly pulsing in the mixer-grinder is also fine. Texture has to be very coarse with the chilly seeds, skin and broken peanut pieces still showing; no water is added. No tadka. No garnish. Only the plain goodness of chillies, garlic and peanuts.

Maharashtrian meals are always served with salt and a slice of lemon. Few drops of lemon juice is added to the Thecha while eating. Some also mix raw peanut oil to make it less pungent. Since it has no water, it stays good for a long time. Can be refrigerated after mixing a spoonful of peanut oil.