Thenga Chuttaracha Chammanthi

Hey Folks,

Chammanthi or Chutney is a common side dish in South Indian cuisine. Especially Keralites including me will finish one plate of rice just with a spicy, tasty Chammanthi. There are different varieties of Chammanthi based on the balance of mixing the ingredients. In Kerala, there are chammanthi's which can be liquid in consistency, thick paste, and in powder form. Today, I will be sharing The Perfect Cook Book recipe for Thenga Chuttaracha Chammanthi.

Thenga Chuttaracha Chammanthi - The Perfect Cook Book

INGREDIENTS:

1. Dried Red Chilli - 5 to 6
2. Shallots - 5 to 6
3. Curry Leaves - 5 to 6
4. Tamarind (Valan Puli) - a small sized
5. Coconut - 1 side
6. Rock Salt - to taste

PREPARATION:

Soak the valan puli in some water initially. Take valan puli as to a size of a gooseberry. Then, roast the shallots in fire or ember or we say it "Kanal" in our adupp. Roast them in Kanal. Followed by dried red chillies. Use one side of a coconut as a whole and roast it in the Kanal. Make sure it is not burnt. 

If you don't have an adupp, you can just dry roast the ingredients in a pan. You can slice up the coconut to pieces and roast it in the pan until golden brown in color. 

In an Idikallu or Ammikallu, which is a hand grinder made of stone, Add roasted red chillies and rock salt and grind it to nice powder form. Now add soaked puli to it and grind well. Now add roasted shallots and curry leaves. Grind every ingredients to a fine paste. Slice down the whole coconut into small pieces so it's easier to grind. To the above mixture, add our main ingredient coconut, and grind well to form so that we can make a ball shape out of it.

If you don't have an ammikallu or idikallu, use a mixer to grind the ingredients. But, the traditional method I explained enhances the taste of the Chammanthi. In old times, people used the ammikallu which gives a special flavor to the dishes they make. Whatever the dish may be, ingredients ground in ammikallu when added to the curry gives a nice aroma to it. 

This is a very simple recipe that can be tried out by bachelors, when you are running out of time for office. Quick, Easy, and Tasty. 

Enjoy the Thenga Chuttaracha Chammanthi from The Perfect Cook Book with some hot rice. 

Try out and comment your opinions in the comment section below. See you all in my next cooking blog!