What is Coconut Chutney?
Chutneys are a type of dips/condiments that originates in India and can be made from a variety of different ingredients like coconut, peanut, tomato, coriander, tamarind, onion etc. All of these delicious savory dips and sauces are used to enhance the experience of meals. Coconut chutney originated from the south India and has different versions from different parts of south India. It is most often served with breakfast or with snacks.
How to make Coconut Chutney
The easiest way to make it is by finely grinding fresh white coconut meat with either green chillie peppers or dry red chilie peppers and adding salt to it. Chillie peppers lend a bit of heat and flavour in the chutney. Garlic or ginger are also added for more depth of flavour. The final tempering of oil with crackled mustard seeds, dried red chilli peppers, some shallots, fresh (or dried) curry leaves and brings more flavor to otherwise plain coconut chutney. One can also add fried urad dal (black gram) and hing (asafoetida) for more depth in flavour.
Substitutions and tips
Coconut: You can sub with roasted peanuts and make a peanut chutney. You can also just use rehydrated dessiccated coconut but it wont be the same. Tempering: As mentioned before, tempering can be as simple or as elaborate as you wish it to be. You can skip out whatever is not available to you. Shallots: Shallots have a more subtle taste, so if you want to replace it with red onions then make sure to par-cook it on a skillet before blending it into the chutney to avoid a stron onion-y taste
How can I store coconut chutney?
Just store it in an air tight jar in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. It can also be frozen. Make sure to take it out of the freezer and place it in the fridge the night prior to usage. I hope you give this easy south Indian chutney a go and let me know! You are going to love it, I am sure of it! Other chutneys and from the blog: Enjoy this South Indian treat and follow @beextravegant for more delicious recipes!!
