Green Tomato Curry in Coconut, mustard sauce / Kayi Sasuve Gojju

We didn't have a very good outcome from tomato plants this year. I remember freezing lot more tomatoes last year. Couple of plants have started turning yellow - could be due to too much rain this year? And when the temperature dropped all of a sudden, I pulled quite a few green tomatoes to save them. If I leave them on the counter, they do get ripe, but why not use them when you can.

This dish is an authentic 'Kayi Sasuve Gojju' with green tomatoes that is local to the part of India I am from, namely Karnataka. You can make this with any vegetable. It tastes better with sweeter veggies like sweet potatoes, butternut squash, pumpkin too. At the same time, since these tomatoes have the tang, they work very well with tomatoes. I remember my mother making this with ripe tomatoes. And the color of it when you make it with ripe tomatoes is just awesome and appealing. Serve with steamed rice and this makes a great lunch menu.

 
One year back -  Whole Wheat Orange Cranberry Bread
Ingredients:
Green Tomatoes - 10 medium to large chopped
Oil - 3 TBSP
Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
Red chillies - 2 broken
Turmeric - a generous pinch or two
Jaggery - 2 TBSP (Or use brown sugar)
Curry leaves - a few
Tamarind - a lime size or about 1 tsp of paste
Asafoetida / Hing - a pinch
Salt - to taste

To grind into a paste:
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Coconut - 1/4 of one whole or about 3/4 cup grated fresh or frozen coconut
Red chillies - 5 - 8 as per the heat tolerance

Method:
In a pan, heat oil. When it is hot, add mustard seeds. When they splutter, add broken red chillies, asafoetida/hing and curry leaves. Now add the chopped green tomatoes and sprinkle some salt. Add turmeric, mix well and let it cook. When it is cooking, grind  the contents mentioned in 'To Grind into a paste' using very less water. Set aside. Soak tamarind in some water and extract thick juice out of it. Skip this step if using tamarind paste. Set aside. When the tomatoes are cooked and soft, add the ground paste, jaggery, tamarind extract or paste. Mix everything well and adjust the water to the desired consistency. Bring it to a boil and check the seasonings. This is one dish where you can adjust all the flavors. Add salt if necessary, more tamarind if not tangy enough, more jaggery or brown sugar if it is needed. If you feel it is not hot enough, you can sprinkle some red chilli powder and adjust to your liking. Bring it to a simmer and close the lid. Turn off the heat. Serve with rice.

Enjoy.