Coriander Coconut chutney | Green Coconut chutney

Coriander Coconut chutney – a refreshing twist to the classic white coconut chutney. This vibrant green chutney is popular in Karnataka.

With this green coconut chutney recipe, you have the perfect pairing for South Indian tiffin delicacies like dosa, idli, vada, rava idli, chow chow bath, uttapam, rava dosa, masala dosa, and so on.

While coconut chutney is pretty common at home. This coriander coconut chutney was never made at home.

First time I had this green chutney in Bangalore. I was blown away by the refreshing coriander flavor in the chutney.

After exploring the iconic breakfast joints in the city, I noticed that no two hotels or even roadside food carts serve the chutney the same way. Some places serve vibrant green and thick chutney. Some places serve a runny consistency with speckles or coriander and green chilies.

The recipe I’m sharing today is different than the regular nariyal chutney made at home. Make it once by following my simple recipe and it will become one of your favorite chutneys. The taste may not be exact but definitely close.

About Coriander Coconut chutney recipe

Over the last few months, I have posted a number of chutney recipes. More than the main breakfast items, I get excited to make the side dishes.

Coriander Coconut Chutney (Coconut Cilantro Chutney) is a spicy, tangy, herby, refreshing, nutty, and delicious Karnataka-style chutney.

The key ingredients in this coconut coriander chutney are fresh coriander leaves and coconut. But it has a lot of other ingredients such as mint leaves, cumin, ginger, green chilies, and tamarind pulp that add a subtle flavor to this chutney.

This chutney does not need cooking of the ingredients, instead just grind the key ingredients and add the tempering.

I prefer to saute green chilies to get rid of the raw flavor. If you do not mind the raw taste of green chilies, you can skip sauteing and directly grind them along with other ingredients.

The best part of this recipe is that you can modify the quantity of the ingredients to suit your family members’ tastes.

Reasons to make

Super easy to make.

Takes just 20 minutes to make.

Easy side dish recipe for South Indian breakfast items.

Need minimal ingredients.

Coriander leaves elevate the taste to a whole new level.

Start your day on a great note.

It is a treat to your taste buds.

Ingredients to make Green chutney

Coconut: I always use fresh coconut to make the chutney. For chutney, a little tender coconut is better than mature/old coconut (dark brown in color).

If fresh coconut is not available, you can use frozen grated coconut from the freezer section of an Indian grocery store. Thaw it and use.

Coriander leaves (cliantro): Use fresh leaves with tender stems. If the stems are thick and fibrous, then discard them. I add a few mint leaves for extra flavor and bright green color.

Roasted chana dal (dalia): It acts as a thickening agent. Apart from adding flavor, it gives the chutney a perfect texture – smooth and thick. You can replace it with roasted peanuts.

Green chilies: To add spiciness to the chutney. I like to add more green chilies to balance the sweetness of coconut. However, you can adjust as per your liking.

Cumin seeds: It adds an earthy aroma and flavor.

Ginger: It gives a nice sharp flavor to the chutney.

Tamarind: To add a tang and also balance the spiciness. It is a must ingredient for authentic taste. If you do not have tamarind handy, replace it with lemon juice, or curd.

Tempering: oil, mustard seeds, urad dal, curry leaves, dry red chili, and asafoetida. You can also add chana dal, and jeera.

Other ingredients: salt and water.

Pro Tips

Use fresh leaves and discard the wilted and spoiled ones.

Wash the leaves thoroughly 2-3 times in water to get rid of all the possible dirt and grit.

If the leaves are really muddy, you can keep the leaves in a bowl of water for 5-10 minutes. The dirt will settle to the bottom of the bowl. Remove the leaves and lightly squeeze to remove the excess water.

Use the tender stems as they are more potent than the leaves.

Consistency: It’s a personal choice. I like to keep it slightly thick for dosas and runny consistency for idlis and vada. To make it pouring consistency, add extra water and mix.

Grind the chutney to a smooth texture: I prefer to grind the hard ingredients first and later add the leaves. This step helps to get a smooth texture. Because of coconut, grinding all the ingredients at once can take a long time and heat up the machine, and discolor the chutney.

If your blender is powerful, grind all the ingredients together.

Always keep the tempering ingredients ready within the reach.

While preparing the tadka, keep the flame on medium. Never keep the flame high, the ingredients may and you will have to start again.

I did not add garlic to this chutney as the pungent taste will mask the coriander flavor. If you like the garlic flavor, add 1-3 garlic cloves to the blender.

Roasted gram absorbs the excess water separating from the coconut.

Compared to coriander leaves, the quantity of mint leaves is very less. Mint leaves have a sharp minty flavor. Increasing the mint leaves will dominate the coriander flavor.

Green chilies used in this recipe are less spicy. So, I added more. You can adjust them as your spice level and the type of chilies you are using.

Start grinding the chutney by adding little water at a time. You can adjust the consistency later.

If the chutney has become too spicy, grind coconut, roasted gram, and little tamarind to a smooth paste. Mix it with the chutney. The same can be followed if the chutney became too runny.

How to make Coriander Coconut chutney

Soak the tamarind in hot water for 5-10 minutes. If the tamarind is seedless and soft, no need to soak it.

Heat little oil in a pan on medium flame. Add the green chilies and ginger. Saute for a minute or two.

Take a blender jar and add coconut (chopped, sliced, or grated), sauteed green chilies, ginger, tamarind, cumin seeds, roasted gram, and salt.

Add water and grind to a smooth paste.

Next, add coriander and mint leaves. Add little water and grind to a smooth chutney. Remove it to a bowl and prepare the tadka.

Tempering

Heat oil in a small frying pan over medium heat.

Add mustard seeds and urad dal (split white lentils). Let the mustard seeds splutter and the urad dal get light golden in color.

Add dry red chili and a few curry leaves. Fry them for some seconds until the leaves turn crisp.

Add a pinch of asafoetida (hing) and fry for a few seconds. Turn off the stove.

Pour this tempering mixture along with the oil, over the chutney. Stir well.

Tip: If you like the tempering to be crunchy, add the tempering on the top of the chutney and do not mix. Or, pour the tempering before serving.

Coriander Coconut chutney is ready to serve.

Serving Suggestions

Coriander Coconut chutney can be served as a condiment with South Indian breakfast items like dosa, idli, paniyaram, uttapam, upma, pongal, vada etc

Without tempering you can use it as a spread in your sandwich, kathi rolls, wraps, burgers, etc. You can also it as a dipping sauce with snack items like fritters, pakoras, samosas, batata vada (potato bonda).

Storage Suggestions

Because of coconut, you can not store the chutney for long. It will stay good for 2 days when refrigerated in an air-tight container. Store it without tempering.

Before serving, thaw the chutney by keeping it on the kitchen counter for a few hours. Do not heat the chutney, it will spoil the taste. If the consistency is thick, add little water and mix well. Add the tempering.

As chutney takes less time to make, I haven’t tried storing the chutney beyond 2 days or freezing it.

More Chutney recipes to try

Coconut chutney

Peanut Coconut chutney

Spicy Peanut chutney

Roasted gram (Dalia) chutney

Andhra style Peanut chutney

If you’ve tried this Bangalore hotel-style Coriander Coconut recipe, then don’t forget to rate the recipe and leave a comment below! Feedback and suggestions are highly appreciated. Also, please share the recipes with your friends and family members.

You can also follow me on Instagram to see what’s latest in my kitchen!

Recipe Card