on Jul 09, 2021 Chutney is that Indian accompaniment which can literally save you from a boring meal. Chutneys are made with fresh ingredients and have so much spunky flavour. You can mop them up with dosas or rotis, and serve them along with khichdi or dal chawal to oomph it up. Tomato chutney is my all-time-favourite. It’s tangy, sweet and spicy and so so simple to make. In this post, I’ve shared recipes of both North Indian Style chutney and South Indian style chutney to go with dosas. The North Indian style tomato chutney (shown in the video) is chunky, sweet and spicy vs the south indian version which is a smooth chutney that’s tangy and sweet. They are both amazing, especially when tomatoes are in season. I usually make a big batch of both because it lasts in the fridge for up to a week, and is a perfect way to spice up a boring meal.
Pick The Right Tomatoes
Tomato chutney is supposed to taste tangy and sweet and spicy all at once. The acidity comes from picking the right tomatoes – ones that are small and round, often referred to as Naati tomatoes in Kannada meaning country or local tomatoes. These are locally sourced as against hybrid tomatoes that are mass produced which are sweeter and not as acidic in nature. You can identify naati tomatoes from the fact that they are smaller and perfectly round in shape vs hybrid tomatoes which are larger and more oval-ish. If you’re not sure about picking the right tomatoes, just ask your local vegetable vendor and they’ll point you in the right direction!
North Indian Style Tomato Chutney
This simple tamatar ki chutney is served with khichdi or along with dal chawal. It’s so jammy and chunky. It’s super versatile and can be served alongside a meal. Or used as a spread for toast or sandwich or as a snacky dip for fried stuff. It’s more coarse and chunky than the south Indian tomato chutney. We used curry leaves, garlic, onions, tomatoes, spices and spice powders to make this onion tomato chutney.
Watch the Video
Steps to make North Indian style tomato chutney:
Temper the spicesCook garlic, onions and tomatoes till softAdd spices powdersBalance flavour profilesCook till the chutney is jammy
South Indian Style Tomato Chutney
Thakkali chutney is the perfect accompaniment for idlis and dosas. It’s tangy, sweet and sour, and lightly spiced. In this recipe, chopped tomatoes and onions are cooked before grinding them together into a sweet and spicy chutney. So there is no raw taste at all. Also, the tempering is the finishing touch to the ground chutney unlike it’s North Indian counterpart where the tempering comes first. Serve tomato chutney for dosa with dosas and idlis. You can also smear the chutney on top of the dosa while it’s cooking (masala dosa vibes).
Must – Try Accompaniments
Trio of South Indian ChutneysGreen coriander ChutneyEgyptian Beetroot DipMango Mustard DipLebanese MuhammaraGarlicky Yogurt Party Dip
