Idli & dosa are two most popular south Indian dish. Most people across the country love these two awesome breakfast food. Those two foods are also very easily available in every region of this country. But what makes these foods so delicious? Undoubtedly it is chutney. Actually, there are many idli chutney & dosa chutney variety available. Options are many so if you do not like one then you can always try another. That is why many restaurants serve three or four different chutney for dosa or idli. Here is a list of those awesome chutney dishes for you to choose the favorite one.
The word ‘chutney’ came from the Indian word chatni which means a spicy substance (dry or wet) made of vegetables, fruits etc.
A list of idli chutney/dosa chutney variety
1. Coconut chutney (white)
This white colored coconut chutney is the most popular one what most people have already tried. If you have tried idli or dosa at a restaurant then you have definitely noticed that idli, dosa etc are often served with sambar and this white colored coconut chuntey. I used to have plain dosa with this coconut chatni at a roadside stall in Rohini, Delhi. Those were very tasty and cheap too. I used to buy such plain dosa for Rs 10 in the year 2011. I found it healthier than having a butter naan thali. It is also very easy to make at home too. Anybody can make this most common dosa chutney variety at home. But when I was in Nashik there I used to buy a packet of such coconut chatni only for Rs10. So during my days in Nashik, I hardly needed to make coconut chatni at home.
Recipe: Grind 1.5 cups grated coconut, fried split chickpeas (chana dal) 1 garlic clove (optional) & 1/2 inch ginger, add 1/2 tablespoon water and make a smooth puree. Heat oil in a pan and add 2 teaspoons mustard seeds, 2 teaspoons of urad dal, pinches hing (asafoetida), 2 whole red chillies, curry leaves and saute till mustard seeds start cracking. Pour coconut puree, add pinches of salt and cook aroma of each spice mixed with coconut puree, switch off the fire and serve with dosa or soft & fluffy idli.
2. Green coconut chutney
Green coconut chatni is not as popular as the white one. But if you will order a south Indian thali where you will find idli, dosa, medu vada, rice, sambar, rasam and a lot of chatnis then you may find such green coconut chatni in that menu. This chatni is very special in taste and I like this so much with idli, dosa and medu vada too. Did you ever get an opportunity to try this chatni?
Recipe: Take 1 cup of grated coconut, 1/2 cup of coriander leaves, roasted peanuts, 1 green chillies (or more), a few mint leaves, 2 teaspoons of lemon juice (tamarind/imli pulp), salt in a grinder and grind all together to make a puree and serve.
3. Green mango chutney
This is a seasonal chatni what I like very much with many south Indian dish. Whenever dosa/idli/upma etc will be prepared for breakfast during summer days then I certainly need this chatni. I tried this first time in Mumbai. There was a roadside stall where special dosa with egg used to be available and that dosa used to serve with this green mango chtani. But surprisingly each dosa was available only for Rs 12 in 2011-2012. I ate those dosa several times and most of the times it is green mango chatni which was served along with egg dosa.
Recipe: Grind 1 small green mango, 1/2 cup of coriander leaves & 2 green chilies and serve
4. Garlic chutney
This is one of my most favorite chutney for dosa. I always prefer this awesome dosa chutney whenever I will have an option. Though there are so many varieties of such garlic based chutney but I only like some specific ones. There are two specific versions like dry & wet. Dry garlic chatni is often used in some Maharashtrian snack like vada pav etc. But I prefer garlic & chili based wet chutney to have it with dosa. Some people also like this with idli too.
Recipe: Heat oil in a cooking pan and add 8-10 garlic cloves, 4 red chili powder and saute for 1-2 minutes till garlic cloves turns into light brown color. Now take 1 cup of grated coconut, tamarind (imli) pulp, salt and fried garlic cloves & red chili. Grind those all to make smooth puree. Now serve.
5. Onion chatni
Onion has a strong aroma and for this reason according to Ayurveda onion is a vegetarian spice. But because of this aroma, most people enjoy onion chutney for dosa, idli and other Indian snacks. I liked this onion chutney but it is not my favorite chatni. This onion based item is very spicy and it has a strong aroma what some people may enjoy. I have tried to make this dosa chutney variety only once at home. It was good but not as good as coconut chuteny for dosa & idli.
Recipe: Almost same process like coconut chutney (white) but instead of using coconut you have to use onion. I mean simply replace grated coconut with 1.5 cup of chopped onion. Cook it in the same way as mention above. But before switch fire, you need to add 2 teaspoons of tamarind pulp, roasted cumin powder, roasted coriander powder and red chilli. Then cook for another 2-3 minutes and then switch off the flame & serve with delicious dosa or soft & fluffy idli.
6. Tomato chatni
You may think it is just a easily available tomato sauce but traditional traditional tomato based idli chutney or dosa chutney is different. It is not sweet in taste. You can not buy it from the market. You need to make this at home or try this at a restaurant in some specific restaurants. I hardly had such tomato based chutney varieties for dosa, idli or any other south Indian dishes in a restaurant. Most of the cases taste of such chutneys are different.
Recipe: Same recipe like onion chutney. But instead of using onion, you have to use 2 large tomato and follow the same onion chutney recipe.
Also read:
How to make plain dosa so fast – Dosa recipe
Egg dosa, delicious breakfast food
How to make soft & tasty idli – easy idli recipe
South Indian food is always different from other Indian cuisines. Those are healthier and different in taste. If you are new to this then you can read this article to know more about south Indian food.
Suggested reading:
Favorite breakfast meals, Fun breakfast ideas for every Indian
Okay, now coming to this list of dosa chutney & idli chutney. This list may be as long as 20 awesome dosa chutney variety but here I have included only a few of my favorite what I have tried and liked very much. If your favorite chutney varieties for dosa or idli is in this list then do not forget to mention below in the comment section. In case it is not in this list but you think that people should try this or you want to share your experience of trying a very special idli & dosa chutney then do not hesitate to share it with us because such comments will make this post more interesting.
Leave a Reply