Kachumber
India's table salad: finely diced cucumber, tomato, onion and chilli dressed with lime, salt and roasted cumin. The cold counterpoint to anything saucy.
Overview
A small dice of cucumber (seeds out), tomato (seeds out), red onion and green chilli, tossed with roasted cumin powder, lime juice and salt. A pinch of black pepper or chaat masala. Eaten within an hour, ideally within ten minutes.
Ingredients
- 1 cucumber (large, deseeded; small dice)
- 3 ripe tomatoes (deseeded; small dice)
- 1 red onion (small, small dice)
- 1 green chilli (finely chopped, optional)
- 2 tablespoons fresh coriander (finely chopped)
- 1 tablespoon fresh mint (finely chopped, optional)
- 1 lime (juice)
- 1 teaspoon roasted cumin powder (see Notes)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon Chaat Masala (optional)
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
Method
Stage 1 - Chop
- Dice cucumber, tomato and onion to a similar small size (5-6 mm cubes).
- Drain off any tomato juice that pools.
- Finely chop the chilli and herbs.
Stage 2 - Roast cumin (if not already done)
- Toast 2 tablespoons of cumin seeds in a dry pan over medium heat 90 seconds until aromatic and slightly darker.
- Grind to a powder. (Keep extra in a jar.)
Stage 3 - Combine
- Place cucumber, tomato, onion, chilli, coriander and mint in a serving bowl.
- Squeeze over the lime; sprinkle with roasted cumin, salt, chaat masala, and pepper.
- Toss gently.
Stage 4 - Serve
- Taste; adjust lime and salt. Eat within 30 minutes for the best crunch.
Notes
- Deseed everything: Tomato seeds bleed water; cucumber seeds are watery. Removing them keeps the salad crisp rather than damp.
- Roasted cumin powder: Make a batch by toasting cumin seeds; grind; store in a jar. Hugely better than ground-and-bagged cumin powder; lasts 2 months in a sealed jar.
- Chaat masala: Adds the unmistakable Indian street-food tang from black salt, dried mango, cumin and ajwain. Optional but distinctive.
Storage
- Eat fresh. Doesn't keep - the vegetables go soft within hours.
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