Chutney Podi Recipe - Coconut Chutney Powder Recipe for Idli, Dosa, Rice

Coconut Chutney Podi 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 tsp of urad dal / ulutham paruppu / uzhunnu parippu
• 1 tsp of black pepper
• 1/2 cup of shallots / chinna vengayam / ulli, sliced
• 1/2 tsp of hing / asafoetida / kaayam
• 1 small piece of tamarind
• 2 tsp 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.

You may also want to check out this Andhra paruppu podi for a spicy podi to serve with rice.