Coconut Chutney

Coconut Chutney is one of the most popular side dish made by grinding coconut and blending it with tempered spices & curry leaves. Coconut Chutney is a great accompaniment for Idli, Dosa, Vada etc. Let us learn to make Coconut Chutney Recipe with step by step pictures and video.

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Coconut Chutney is a sidedish for Idli, dosa, pongal, vada, oothapam etc. I have given both home style & hotel style variations here in this post. It is called thengai chutney in tamil and nariyal ka chutney in Hindi both translate to coconut chutney in their corresponding languages.

About Coconut Chutney

Coconut Chutney is a day in and a day out dish that is made at least thrice every week in South India. Partnered with sambar they make a great combo for idli, dosa, vada, etc. It is absolutely easy to make and a good dish for cooking beginners.

One of my close friend has a weird way of selecting hotels – yes – she will not go to hotels which does not serve chutney and will prefer hotels that serve two or more types of chutney along with sambar and podi.

Ingredients

• Coconut : Fresh grated coconut is recommended for this recipe though we can use desiccated coconut, grated coconut available in the super markets as well when fresh coconut is not available. Scrap the white fleshy part of coconut without brown part for better taste.
• Oil : Use regular cooking oil (refined sunflower / groundnut / sesame) for making coconut chutney. If you like the aroma of coconut oil, go for it.

• Tempering : A simple tempering with mustard seeds, urad dal and curry leaves is made for coconut chutney. However you can add red chillies too.

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Selecting coconuts : Select coconuts which weighs proportionately to their size or which is heavier. Heavier coconuts mean fresh and it is ideal for cooking. Coconut which are underweight might have become dry and the yield & taste may not be much. Coconut water sloshing sound should be heard when you shake it. Store coconut with eyes of the coconut facing upwards as they tend to breathe with it and shelf life will be more.

Coconut Chutney Video

Hotel Style Coconut Chutney Video

Find below the tools for crack opening coconut and scraping it. The first one is aruvamanai as we call it in tamil used for scrapping / grating coconut manually the middle small one is the grinder attachment for grating coconut and the long stick is the one used for crack opening the coconut shell and cutting coconut into pieces.

Coconut Chutney Variations

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Coconut Chutney Recipe – 2 Methods

I have given 2 methods of making this chutney – home style and hotel style. Enjoy both the style and continue cooking the style you like the most! Also see variation section to experiment varieties of coconut chutney & make your day!

• Home style : This version is a simple everyday chutney which uses just basic ingredients. This is the version I make often to accompany with tiffin items.
• Hotel style : This hotel style coconut chutney ues cashews for makeing it more white in color and rich in taste too.

Coconut Chutney Recipe Step by Step

1.To a mixer jar add coconut, green chillies, fried gram dal and required salt.

2.Add water to it. Add 1/4 cup first if needed while grinding you can add more.

3.Grind it smooth like shown below. Add more water if needed to grind it to a chutney consistency.

4.It should be smooth but you should be able to feel the texture like shown below.

5.Transfer the chutney to a bowl.

6.To a tadka pan : heat oil first crackle mustard seeds. then add urad dal let it become golden then finally add curry leaves and switch off.

7.Add this tadka to chutney.

8.Mix well and your chutney is done.

Chutney is ready!

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More Variations

Coconut chutney is a very flexible recipe which can be made in more than a hundred methods. Some of the variations are listed below

• Make this chutney skipping the tempering part
• Grind with little or no water to make it as a solid chutney with or without tempering
• Add  red chillies to coconut to make red chutney
• Add coriander or mint or green chillies or both to make green chutney
• Add ginger to make mild brownishginger chutney
• Add raw mango flesh to make coconut mango chutney
• Add tamarind to make Puli chutney or Tamarind chutney
• Add equal amount of roasted gram dal to make pottukadalai / roasted gram chutney
• Add onions while tempering to make an onion coconut chutney
• Add equal amounts of peanuts with coconut to make a coconut peanut chutney
• Using milk instead of water when grinding coconut to paste

Hotel Style Coconut Chutney

Hotel Style Coconut Chutney is best side dish for idli, dosa, pongal, vada etc. I have seen hotel chutneys with a nice white color and the taste is also different.

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The Hotel Style Coconut Chutney served in Hotel Annapoorna here in Coimbatore, I have tried quite a few times to get that same taste but could only go near to it though not the exact taste and that is the reason why I delayed this post .I kept trying with different possible combinations, but still I am waiting to get the exact taste may be someday.

Over the years I have tasted White Coconut Chutney in many hotels but still the one in Annapurna definitely stands unique taste wise,texture wise and color wise. I could give 100% to taste and texture for my chutney but then for the taste I can give only 90% but am sure to nail it soon.If I do, will surely update here .

Hotel Style Coconut Chutney Steps

1.To a mixer jar : Add coconut, cashews, green chilli, salt and water as needed.

2.Grind to a smooth chutney.

3.Transfer the chutney to a bowl. Heat oil in a pan add mustard seeds let it crackle add urad dal let it become golden then add red chilli and curry leaves.

4.Transfer the prepared tadka to chutney.

4.Give a quick mix. Hotel Style Coconut Chutney is ready!

Hotel Style Coconut Chutney is ready!

Serving & Storage Suggestions

Coconut chutney is a great side for Idli, Dosa, Vada, Bajji, Bonda, Sevai, Uthappam, Pongal, Kichadi, Upma, Poori, Chapati, Idiyappam, Vellapaniyaram, Kuzhipaniyaram, appam, Adai, lemon rice, tamarind rice, mint rice, curry leaf rice and curd rice.

Coconut chutney has more raw coconut and hence to be consumed with 8-10hrs of making it. If you have leftover, you can use it in the poriyal / curry cooking for lunch or freeze it.

How will I know if the chutney has spoiled? : Chutney will look fermented and gives a sour & salty taste which means chutney has become bad.

Increase the shelf life by following the below steps and freezing it for using it beyond a day.

• Adding a teaspoon of tamarind to the grinding mixture
• Cooking without touching the chutney or the ground paste to prevent chutney from getting spoil fast.

FAQS

1.What is Coconut Chutney?

Coconut chutney is a milk creamy side dish made by grinding coconut along with fried gram dal and blending it with tempered spices & curry leaves.

2.Can I use frozen coconut instead of fresh coconut?

Yes you can use frozen coconut too. It is always best to use fresh coconut but with frozen coconut there will a mild compromise in taste however you can use it.

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Tried this coconut chutney recipe ? Do let me know how you liked it. Also tag us on Instagram @sharmispassions and hash tag it on #sharmispassions.

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