Coconut chutney
A coconut chutney whose ground base is finished with a separate oil tempering of mustard, urad dal, curry leaves and spices; the author pairs it with South Indian breakfast foods and snacks.
Thenga chuttaracha chammanthi (Kerala roasted coconut chutney)
തേങ്ങ ചുട്ടരച്ച ചമ്മന്തി · Thenga chuttaracha chammanthi · Chuttaracha chammanthi · Roasted coconut chutney · Kerala roasted coconut chammanthi
A Kerala chammanthi of coconut and red chillies roasted over a flame, then ground with shallots, tamarind, curry leaves, lemon leaves and salt and shaped into a ball.
What it is
Thenga chuttaracha chammanthi is a Kerala chutney in which the coconut and the chillies are roasted before they are ground. "Thenga" is coconut, and the "chuttaracha" part of the name points to the roasting: the coconut and red chillies are charred over a flame, then ground with shallots, a ball of tamarind, curry leaves, lemon leaves and salt into a smooth paste. The page shapes it into a ball for serving.
That roasting separates it from the Tamil Nadu-style coconut chutney, which grinds raw grated coconut with green chillies and finishes with a hot-oil tempering. Here the flavour comes from the flame and from the tamarind and shallot, not from tempered mustard seeds.
The word and its context
Chammanthi is glossed in a Malayalam lexicon as a pounded and mashed mixture, and is believed to come from the Sanskrit sambandi, meaning an accompaniment. A Kerala food feature adds that chammanthi can be as simple as crushed chillies and salt, which predates ingredients like coconut and shallots, and that Kerala is the only state that adds fish to such a chutney. In Tamil it is popularly called karuthavaiyyal.
The same feature says that nobody knows for certain where or when chutney began. Food historian K T Achaya is quoted suggesting the Indus Valley, citing stone grinders found at its sites; a belief that chutney arose around 500 BC is only that, a belief. None of this dates the roasted coconut chammanthi.
Sources for this section
Eating it
In Kerala chammanthi is commonly eaten with hot kanji (rice gruel) and roasted pappadam, a pairing the feature says Keralites turn to for colds and seasonal flu. The Kerala Tourism page itself says only to shape the paste into a ball and serve.
What the source does not give
The Kerala Tourism page lists no yield, no quantities for the curry leaves, lemon leaves or salt, no roasting time and no storage period, and it does not name the grinding implement. None of these is guessed here. It remains a fresh ground preparation: the sources establish no preservation step, and neither the roasting nor the tamarind should be taken as one.
Sources for this section
History
Kerala Tourism lists the preparation without a history. A Kerala feature says nobody knows with certainty where or when chutney began and describes chammanthi as a pounded and mashed mixture; the word is thought to come from Sanskrit.
Ingredients
Scaling: source batch only
CoconutCut into pieces and roasted over a flame.
½ coconut
Red chilliesRoasted over a flame.
8
TamarindAbout the size of a gooseberry.
1 ball
no quantity given
Lemon leaves
no quantity given
no quantity given
Method
Risks and precautions
The source gives no storage period or holding guidance. Fresh coconut and shallots make this a perishable fresh preparation; make it for the meal and keep it cold.
Roasting over an open flame needs care with the chillies, whose fumes are irritating.
- Cut the half coconut into pieces. Roast the coconut pieces and the red chillies over a flame.
- Grind them with the shallots, tamarind, curry leaves, lemon leaves and salt into a smooth paste.
- Shape the paste into a ball and serve.
Places
Kerala
Traditional preparation · Region evidenceKerala Tourism lists it among Kerala food; the page gives no town, date or history.
Related
Same method
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Sources
Kerala Tourism, Government of KeralaMethod · Identity
Roasted Coconut Chutney (Thenga Chuttaracha Chammanthi)Half a coconut in pieces, 8 red chillies, 4 shallots, a gooseberry-sized tamarind ball, curry leaves, lemon leaves and salt.
Roast coconut and chillies over a flame, grind with the rest to a smooth paste, shape into a ball and serve.
Cited in: What it is; Eating it; What the source does not give
OnmanoramaHistory · Use
History and origin of chammanthi / chutneyChammanthi is a pounded and mashed mixture in the Malayalam lexicon, believed to derive from Sanskrit sambandi (accompaniment).
Eaten in Kerala with hot kanji (rice gruel) and roasted pappadam.
Origin and date of chutney are unresolved; a 500 BC date is only a belief.
Cited in: The word and its context; Eating it
Dassana's Veg RecipesComparison
Coconut Chutney Recipe (South Indian Classic)The Tamil Nadu-style fresh coconut chutney with grated raw coconut and a separate tempering, which this preparation differs from.
Cited in: What it is
U.S. Food and Drug AdministrationSafety
Selecting and Serving Produce SafelyGeneral produce handling guidance; it does not establish a shelf life for this chutney.
Cited in: What the source does not give