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Nadan Chammanthi Podi

Chammanthi podi is a roasted coconut spice chutney powder, and every household has its preferred variation. In the past, it was traditionally prepared using a stone mortar and pestle, known as 'Ural,' with the pounding pestle called 'Ulaka' in Malayalam. I can vividly recall my ammuamma/grandma pounding the chammanthi podi in the stone mortar. This traditional method of preparation imparts an exceptional taste to the chammanthi podi compared to the one made using a modern mixer.
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Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Total Time 55 minutes
Course Side Dish
Cuisine Indian
Servings 1.5 cups

Ingredients
  

  • 2.5 cups Grated Coconut
  • 6 Small onion / Pearl onion
  • 1 tsp Chopped Ginger
  • 10-12 Dry red chilli (refer notes)
  • 1 tsp Whole black pepper
  • 2-3 Fenugreek seeds
  • 1/2 cup Curry leaves
  • Small lemon size Tamarind (refer notes)
  • Salt

Instructions
 

  • Microwave the grated coconut for 3 mins.  
  • In a wide and deep pan, dry roast the microwaved coconut on lowest flame. When the coconut begins to brown around the edges, add the rest of the ingredients except tamarind and salt.
  • Mix well and continue roasting it. Make sure you stir it frequently to ensure uniform browning of coconut. Keep roasting till it becomes a rich caramel colour. 
  • Once it has reached the correct colour, switch off the gas and transfer the coconut mixture to another pan. Let it cool completely.  
  • Add tamarind and salt to the mixture and mix well. Pulse it in a mixie at 1 second interval. Make sure you shake the mixie in between. If you grind it continuously for a long time, it might become oily. After the first two pulses, check the salt and tamarind level and add more if required.
  • Keep in mind, the taste of tamarind develops as it rests. I like the texture of chammanthi podi little bit coarse than fine powder. Stop pulsing once it reaches your desired texture.
  • Store it in an airtight container. You can start using it from the next day or two. It should rest for some time for the flavours to settle in.
  • You can have it with Rice, Idli, Dosa etc., Sometimes I've it with Upma too...You will get around 1-1.5 cups of Chammanthi podi from the above qty. You can store it at room temp for a month, unless you are living in a very humid place.

Notes

To ensure uniform browning of coconut, you can just pulse the grated coconut and follow the recipe. I skipped that step, that's why you can see some white specs in between.Make sure you keep the flame at the lowest throughout the roasting process.Make sure you stir it frequently, otherwise it may get burnt. If you feel that it's browning too fast, just take it off the heat for a few seconds. I usually store a small qty outside and store the rest of it in the fridge in an airtight container.
Keyword Nadan Chammanthi Podi
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