Tempered Coriander Coconut Chutney

Learn to easily cook tempered coriander coconut chutney.

 

Isha teaches Hosh how to simply modify quantity & recipe of this side dish to suit different palates.

Previous Story: Coriander And Coconut Chutney

“This is a tempered version of the Coriander and Coconut Chutney we made last week,” Isha told Hosh, “but it will taste and look completely different to the last week’s preparation."

"I make it usually when I have South Indian guests. It looks and tastes restaurant style, but takes just five minutes to prepare.”

“Chutneys are sides, so you can easily modify the quantities and preparation methods to suit, as long as certain basic principles are followed."

"We’ll use chili today and coriander, but for our European guests, I generally leave these out, and use parsley instead."

"I came across this recipe originally in a cook book. But I don’t remember that original recipe anymore, as I’ve almost always improvised to suit my guests.”

She gave him the Ingredients List as usual, to file in his Recipes Folder. Together they assembled:

INGREDIENTS - Main:

• 2 cups fresh Coriander leaves
• 1 cup fresh shredded/desiccated Coconut
• 1 fresh small green Chili, chopped
• ½ inch ginger, chopped
• 1 teaspoon rock salt/salt (to taste)
• 2 tablespoon roasted Chana dal
• 2 tablespoon fresh Lemon juice (to taste)
• 4 tablespoon Water

INGREDIENTS - Tempering:

• ½ teaspoon Mustard seeds
• ¾ teaspoon Urad dal
• 5-6 Curry leaves
• A pinch of Asafoetida
• 1 tablespoon Oil

“How many people will it serve Ma, and how long will it keep?” asked Hosh.

“Should serve 3-4 people if used with mains. More otherwise,” she replied. “In the fridge, it will keep for 2-3 days.”

As before, Hosh put the fresh coriander leaves in a measuring cup, pressing gently. Then he put all the 'main' ingredients in a mini wizz (or food processor) and blended until smooth. He tasted it and beamed.

Isha tipped that he could add a teaspoon of sugar, if he ever had Gujarati friends. She heated oil in a small frying pan, and added mustard seeds and Urad dal.

“Stir well,” she said. “Do this till the mustard seeds splutter and dal gets browned. Then add asafoetida and curry leaves, and fry for a few more seconds. Pour this tempering mixture along with the oil, over the blend and stir well. You’re done.”

They served the chutney with idli, dosa, vada and snacks that night, and as expected, it was a hit. The little bit left over was used up with breakfast sandwiches the next morning.

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