Chutney

Bonnie Bit Hotter

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Happy tuesday again, everyone! Today, I’d like to welcome back to the stage The Bonnie Sauce Co., who previously wowed me with an excellent and unexpectedly herby Smoky Chipotle sauce.

This week, they return with something (or things) a little bit hotter. Two more products which, just like in last week’s review, highlight the difference between scotch bonnets and habaneros.

But, as you can see from the photos above, these are not the same yellow pepper sauces and their use of red chilli changes the equation quite considerably. Let’s give them a go and find out how, shall we?

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A Black Gem

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Hello again, everyone, and happy tuesday!

Just last weekend, we revisited an old friend of the site and had some fun with one of my favourites. But, today, I’m hoping to enjoy something new and special from another former feature.

This is “Blackman Eddy’s”, from Opal Sunshine. A company who I’ve not seen or heard from since she sent me her main line-up. But, when her fourth sauce appeared on my social media, I just knew that I had give it a go. Because it’s completely different from the pepper and carrot-forward blends that I’ve previously seen from belizean cuisine.

This is a black garlic sauce, with dates, tamarind and avocado oil, for flavour. And, while it does pack the hottest chilli of any of Opal’s products, it’s far from the first thing on her ingredients list.

So I’m really curious to see how such a unique and not so chilli-forward, belizean-style sauce will taste.

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Apple & Mango

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Hey there, everybody. It’s time for another review and, today, I’d like to try some more mango sauce. Given that I didn’t get my full fix, last week.

With that in mind, I’d like to crack open a couple of freebies that I recently received, from Chilli Bob’s:

His Spiced Sticky Apple, which is new to me, and his Burmese Mango, which is anything but.

I first tasted that second sauce back in february, during a brief stint of judging for the North East UK Chilli Heads Facebook group’s product awards. Twenty-something chilli condiments graced my desk, that month, all filled with fruit, but this one, in particular, stood out. And, if the company hadn’t sent me a bottle, I’d definitely have had to buy one.

Why? You’re going to have to read on to find out.

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Cauliflower Curry Bites

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Happy national curry week, everyone! It’s back around again and, oncemore, I really wanted to put together a topical recipe for the occasion.

But I also wanted it to be a bit different to my other curry recipes and, after a little deliberation, I figured that it’d be fun to try out something from one of my favourite producers – Daddy Cool’s.

Now, this little dish of his isn’t the main event. It’s not strictly a curry but it’s a pleasant side, made using his gorgeous Okra and Garlic Pickle, to carry its delicious flavour through these light potato and cauliflower bites:

A particularly delightful addition to your curry platter, if not a delightful recipe to follow.

Hopefully I can fix its issues for you.

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Honest Chutney

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Hey there everybody. Last week, we looked at what was supposed to be a smoky mango sauce and, while it was pretty tasty, it most certainly wasn’t what it said on the label. So, in order to get our fix of the fruit and celebrate national curry week correctly, I’m going to spend today’s post looking at a pair of chutneys:

MChutneys

A pair that promise the same product type, yet take it in completely different directions, with completely different chillies.

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South Indian Chutney

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Hello again, everybody. We’re finally nearing the end of my Reading Chilli Fest review backlog but, rest assured, some of the best are still to come. As well as one of the weirdest:

Manjira

Today’s product is a pachardi – Something that I’d never even heard of, before the event. Looking into it, though, it appears to be akin to a chutney or pickle and is traditionally either served as a side or used as the base of a curry. Much as an achari would use a regular chutney or one might use Mr Naga, if they’re looking for serious heat.

Where the pachadi sets itself apart, though, is in its high coconut content and the use of oil, rather than acid, for preservation. And, when made fresh, it’s often blended with yoghurt to form the keralan equivalent of a raita.

So, that’s what Manjira’s set out to popularise, here in the west – Quite literally a different side of indian cooking. But how does her “Hot Garlic” version of the “South Indian Chutney” hold up?

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Mano a Mango

Spicefreak7 Comments

Hello and welcome back to another Reading review. I honestly can’t believe I’m still doing these but there’re still plenty more to be uploaded.

It was a very fruitful festival and today, we have two very fruit-full sauces. If you’ll pardon the pun.

What I’m about to show you is a pair of products that share a single genre but take it in completely different directions. They’re both rather unique twists on the classic mango and habanero blend:

mangoes

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Seasonal Chutney

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Welcome to december, everyone – The real month of christmas content but also the last week of it on my blog, since there’s no point in me making recommendations if I can’t be sure that they’ll reach you in time.

Today is definitely a seasonal review, though, and it marks the return of Holly and the Ivy, who you’ve seen before under their other name as The Mini Jar Company. Before I try out their little freebie, though, I want to give you a bit of backstory.

I dislike brussel sprouts. I don’t find them bitter so, just as with coriander, I’m not genetically inclined to hate them. I just do. The same way that many kids apparently hate broccoli.

After all, all it takes sometimes is a single bad experience to put you off a food for life. And let me tell you, getting your packed lunch wrecked by schoolyard bullies, only to have it replaced with an almost indeterminable green mush, is definitely a bad experience. A terrible introduction to the traditional veg of the season.

So it’s entirely possible that I’m going to hate today’s product through no fault of its own but, when Holly and the Ivy asked if I wanted to try their Red Onion, Sprout & Naga Chilli Chutney, I realised that I haven’t actually given the vegetable a fair shot in my adult life.

And, since 📽️ Mushemi Fire 📽️ and Cowley’s Fine Food have both proven that I can like even mushrooms if they’re prepared right, I said “yes”. I decided to give their christmas special a go.

sprout

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Pineapple Joy

Spicefreak3 Comments

Welcome back, everyone.

Last week we looked at 🔥 a german sauce brand 🔥 imported into the UK by my friend Russell at Grim Reaper Foods. So, following on from that, I’d like to show you another of his recommendations. One that, this time, he isn’t the one selling:

joywala

Prices Spices’ fabulous Pineapple & Dorset Naga Chilli Chutney. Their “India Joywala”.

Apparently a great taste award winner back in 2014 and definitely a great taste, it’s one of the best items that I picked up from Reading but there is something about it that I’m not as fond of and I’d like to get into that first.

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More Minis

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Hey everyone, you remember The Mini Jar Company, right? Well today I’m featuring them and them alone, with a couple more little jars from Reading:

2018-05-18 13.27.49

To be more specific, I have for you their Pineapple, Chilli And Mint Salsa and their Ginger & Wasabi Chutney, the latter of which doesn’t actually contain any chilli.

Between the mint in the salsa and the rhizomes in the chutney, though, both of these items focus on the sensation they create, along with their flavour. These aren’t heatless like that one marinade that Mahi sent me. They’re just a little different from the norm.

And that, my friends, is what I try my best to represent. Spice products after my own heart.

So, let’s get into the review.

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