Chutney Podi made with coconut is a staple in my home and is often called Thavana Podi. It's quite similar to the Kerala Chammanthi Podi that's mixed with rice but this Chutney Powder recipe has an Andhra twist to it too.
Every visit back to Kottayam sees amma cooking up masala podis, dosa and idli podi, pulusu podi which I use for vatha kuzhambu, and this Thavana Podi or Chutney Podi which TH loves with curd rice. I can eat it with pretty much everything - dosa, idli, wheat dosa, and even chapati. Since the coconut releases oils when roasted, it's not necessary to add more oil to it while serving.
Amma says this chutney podi was surely invented to use up large amounts of coconut in the house. She uses week-old grated coconut for it when a fresh batch is grated for the following week. Of course, you can use freshly grated coconut for this Chutney Powder but the larger amount of moisture in it will take longer to roast.
If made correctly and roasted perfectly, this chutney podi will stay fresh for 1-2 months with no need for refrigeration. I bring back about a large packet and keep some out and refrigerate the rest since we don't consume chutney podi in large quantities. I haven't had issues with spoilt chutney powder so far even in very humid Singapore weather.
Make sure you set aside time to do the roasting since it's not ideal to leave the pan on the stove and wander around. The roasting needs to be uniform and done well so that the chutney podi tastes good and lasts longer.
CHUTNEY PODI {CHUTNEY POWDER} RECIPE
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 20 minutes
Makes ~ 2 cups chutney powder
Recipe source: Amma
Ingredients:
- 2 cups of grated coconut
- 15 dry red chillies
- 2" piece of ginger, sliced
- 3 strands of curry leaves
- 2 teaspoon of urad dal / ulutham paruppu / uzhunnu parippu
- 1 teaspoon of black pepper
- ½ cup of shallots / chinna vengayam / ulli, sliced
- ½ teaspoon of hing / asafoetida / kaayam
- 1 small piece of tamarind
- 2 teaspoon of salt
How to Make Coconut Chutney Powder:
- In a heavy-bottomed pan, roast the coconut, red chillies, ginger, shallots, urad dal, curry leaves, and pepper without any oil.
- The coconut should turn a dark brown and the red chillies should glisten and turn a darker shade (refer picture above)
- This will take about 10-15 mins. Keep flame low and stir continuously.
- When done, turn off flame and add the salt, hing, and tamarind. Mix and let cool completely. The coconut will be brittle to touch and almost-black.
- Once cooled, powder as fine or coarse as you prefer and store in an airtight container.
- This coconut chutney powder can be served with dosa, idli, rice, chapati, wheat dosa, etc.
LOTUS
We also brought chammanthi podi and kept in the refrigerator.my Mom always prepare it..she adds lemon leaves to get nice aroma n flavor..yours looks really yummy n delicious..will try this before April 15 and will post it...
Vijayalakshmi Dharmaraj
wow very flavorful podi... can't beat home made podis...
prathibha Garre
Nice pudi recipe Nags...looks perfect,must be great with idli/dosa
Sri Nagalakshmi Karumuri
Can we make it with desiccated coconut as well ? let me know..
Nagalakshmi V
if that's the only kind you get, sure, try that. in that case, fry it in a little oil since desiccated coconut won't release much oils of its own.
Sri Nagalakshmi Karumuri
oh cool...I will try it then....of course i get fresh coconut, but grating is a problem :P....lazy me..
Nagalakshmi V
try to buy grated coconut then 🙂
Rafeeda AR
this is something very new to me! i guess i'l make half the quantity and try for dosas... 🙂
Wer SAHM
spill some podi here Nags.... looks very appealing ... would like tove it with hot rice....
Veena Theagarajan
looks good.. this is new to me
Hasna
nyc pictures... hw to add tamarind in ur coconut mixture?? jst as it is??
Nagalakshmi V
yes as it is. after turning off flame, before grind. then grind everything together
Hari Chandana
Aaahh.. I can smell the aroma from the laptop, Nags.. Love it 😀
APARNARAJESHKUMAR
best keeper nags ! i love it to have with Rice !