Take about 20 pieces of dry red chilies. Break each of them into half and soak them in water in a container for about 2 hours. (Pro tip: If you do not want your red chili chutney to be very spicy, you may remove the seeds from some of these chilies).

Take a strainer and strain the extra water when the chilies have soaked nicely and have swollen almost to double in size. Keep the water aside. You will need to use it later.

Now, take a wok or a frying pan, add 1 tbsp of white oil in it, and heat it on a medium to high flame on your gas stove.

When the oil is hot, add about 20 pieces of garlic cloves in the pan.

Stir it for about 1 to 2 minutes to cook it nicely over a medium flame until the color of the garlic cloves changes to slightly golden brown. (Pro tip: Make sure the color of the garlic cloves is not dark brown. Doing so will change the color of the chutney).

Now, add one and a half pieces of fresh ginger to the pan. (Pro tip: This is optional but adding ginger will help enhance the flavor of the chutney).

Cook the two ingredients nicely, and when the ginger turns slightly brown, add 1 tsp of cumin seeds and ½ a tsp of coriander seeds to it. Stir them for a minute to cook them as well.

Now, add the soaked red chilies to the ingredients. Stir everything for about 2 to 3 minutes more over a medium flame. Switch off the flame of your gas stove when done and let the ingredients cool down a bit. (Pro tip: Do not overcook the chilies as it will make the chutney very mushy. So, switch off the gas stove immediately when it is done).

Now, take a clean grinder.

Transfer the ingredients into the grinder when it has cooled down sufficiently. Now, add about 2 tbsp of water. Use the water in which you soaked the dry red chilies and kept aside after straining them. (Pro tip: If your grinder is small and cannot accommodate everything at one go, you can blend it in two batches according to your convenience).

Grind the ingredients to make a fine paste out of them.

Check the texture. (Pro tip: If you want it to be coarse, move to the next step. If you want something finer, churn the mixture a couple of times more. You may even add a few tablespoons of water to make it smoother as well, according to your preference).

Turn on your gas stove and add 2 tbsp of white oil to the same pan.

When the oil is hot, add ½ tsp of mustard seeds to it. (Pro tip: The mustard seeds will start to crackle immediately and sprinkle hot oil. Be careful when it happens).

When the mustard seeds stop crackling, add ½ a tsp of cumin seeds and let it cook for a while.

Next, add ¼ tsp of asafetida to the pan. Stir the ingredients to cook them nicely.

When it is done, turn the flame of the gas stove to low and now pour the red chili paste that you prepared earlier into the pan. (Pro tip: Add the red chili paste to the pan very carefully and slowly in small portions to prevent the hot oil from splashing).

Mix everything and cook them nicely over a medium flame for about 3 to 4 minutes. Continue stirring until the extra water from the red chili mixture evaporates. (Pro tip: When you see the mixture leaving oil from the sides, it indicates it is done).

Now, add ½ tsp of regular salt to the mixture. Mix it nicely. (Pro tip: You can increase or decrease the amount of salt in the mixture according to taste or your preference).

Cook the chutney for another 3 to four minutes, occasionally covering it if you want, until you are satisfied with its doneness and it gets its desired dark color.

Turn off the flame of your gas stove since your red chili chutney is done.

Transfer the chutney into a bowl or the container in which you want to store it.