Chutney

Tomato-basil chutney

| Rekha Vengalil
Chutneys are such an integral part of Indian cuisine. Back home, mom made chutneys every other day for breakfast and my favorite is her coconut and tomato chutneys. The best part is, every time she would take some left over rice and chutney; mix well and make a big ball and give it to me. Oh I love that so much. And that’s exactly what I do every time I make chutney and lucky my hubby also likes it. Old habits die hard 🙂

Over to the recipe, this one’s adapted from my mom’s.  I added paprika which gave a bit of smoked flavor to the chutney and of course the basil, which perfumed the chutney and was very refreshing.



You need –

Tomatoes – chopped and de-seeded, 1 cup
Sweet Basil – 3-4 leaves, minced
Onion – 1 medium, finely chopped
Garlic – 2 large pods, finely chopped
Chili powder – 1 teaspoon (I used Kashmiri chili powder)
Paprika – 1 teaspoon
Turmeric powder – 1/4 teaspoon
Ground pepper – 1/4 teaspoon
Mustard seeds – 1/2 teaspoon
curry leaves – 1 sprig
Oil – 1 tablespoon
salt to taste

How to –

Heat only in pan, add the mustard seeds. once the seeds start to splatter, add the curry leaves. Tip in the onion, garlic and cook till the onion is translucent. Add salt, all the powders,  except for pepper and fry till the oil start to separate.

Add the chopped tomatoes and basil. Mix well, cover and cook till the tomatoes are mushing. Uncover, add the ground pepper and mix well.  



Turn off the heat and serve with idly, dosa or rice.


Coconut chutney

| Rekha Vengalil


You need- 
  • Grated coconut – 1 cup
  • Dried red chillies – 5-6 or as per your palate
  • Onion – 1 medium, roughly chopped

For seasoning

  • Cumin seeds – ¼ teaspoon
  • Mustard seeds – ½ teaspoon
  • Curry leaves – twig
  • Dried chili – 1
  • Salt to taste
  • Oil – 1 teaspoon

How to –
  • In a blender, blend the coconut, onion, chilies with salt with enough water to make a fine paste.
  • Heat a oil in a pan, add the mustard seed and cumin seeds. Allow to splatter.
  • Add the curry leaves and dry chili.
  • Add the coconut paste. Heat through and turn off the heat.

Perfect for dosa and idlly.