Kerala Coconut chutney.

You must be wondering ,what’s the big deal in making a chutney!  😉  Yes there is , because Chutney is perhaps one of the easiest dish to make.

I have noticed taste varies even for simple coconut chutney. With the slightest change in  ingredients could make a lot of difference in taste.

My family eat dosa at least thrice in a week which calls for chutney as side dish 😉 .And with that I had to go for some variations in taste with no extra work involved.  Altering one or two  ingredients is a best way to  to bring variations! 😀

This recipe is the simplest of all, which requires no time to make if coconut grated is ready. I recommend to use fresh coconut grated to get the real taste.

Kerala Coconut Chutney: 

1. coconut grated                                                       : 1cup(250 ml cup)
2. shallots/small onions                                            :2-3
3. green chilli                                                              :1/2 of one green chilli
4. water                                                                        1/2 cup – 1/4 cup (refer notes)
5. salt                                                                             :as needed

tempering:

1. Mustard seeds                                                         :1/4tsp
2. urud dal                                                                    :2 pinches
3. dried red chillies                                                     : 2-3 no
4. curry leaves                                                              :2 spring

Method:

1. Take grated coconut ,shallots green chilli and salt along with 1/4-1/2 cup of water into the mixie bowl and grind for 2-3 minutes to a paste.
2. Transfer the chutney into a bowl.
3. heat a pan for tempering ,add oil to heat and add mustard seeds allow them to pop, once popped well, reduce the flame  to medium and add urud dal  followed by red chillies (break them into halves) to brown (less than 1 minute), Switch off the flame and add curry leaves.
4. Pour this tempering over the chutney and serve hot with set dosa/dosa/idlis

Notes:

1. Chutney is one of the easiest dish to make, but  it could deliver the best taste only with the right method and ingredients so use fresh grated coconut!
2. If using coconut kept inside fridge, microwave the grated coconut for 1 minute.
3. You could add less than 1/2 cup initially while grinding and later add little more  water according to the consistency you need.
4. For 1 cup of cococnut , you will need somewhere around 1/2 cup of water for right consistency.
5. Adding 1/4 cup of water gives thick chutney.
6. Do not skip adding Shallots, if you dont have them please do not alter with onion.
7. You can add 1 full green chilli ,if you like spicy.(but that definitely gives a chilli taste, which we dont like)
8. Tempering is the important step in this chutney.
9. For a different variation you can replace green chilli with a small piece (1/4 ” ) of ginger .

 

happy cooking,

lekshmi