South Indian Style - Onion Tomato Chutney Recipe (2024)

Whenever am making south Indian food, be it idli, dosa, uttapam, or pongal, I prefer to make chutneys that goes with it, else somehow I find justice is not done to the food. Two most common chutneys that I make are 1) Coconut Chutney and 2) Onion Tomato Chutney. Both of these are easy to make (Who does not like easy recipes?), as well does not take huge effort and ingredients for this chutney are available in generally in kitchen cupboard.

What is South Indian Tomato Chutney

A chutney made with tomato, onion and bengal gram in south-indian style. It has reddish / orangish in color. No South-Indain meal can be complete without this tomato chutney.

You can make this chutney and can keep it refrigerated for a week or so. In my case, I end up dishing it in couple of days as I could barely resist myself eating it and numerous times I just eat this chutney on its own, such delicious I find it 😀

The key ingredients are tomatoes, onion and bengal gram (Chana). In old days (and still in few households) this chutney is made using traditional tools (stones) for grinding. Unfortunately, I do not have that here in UK, and I have used mixer grinder to make this. I am assuming these days most households have a mixer grinder or food processor, and that helps in preparing this chutney in few minutes.

The proportions of onion, tomato and bengal gram is something that I use to get the kind of taste and consistency of chutney, however, you can vary the quantity to suit your own tastebuds.

Method

• Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a pan. Add red chilies, onions, roasted chana and sauté till onions are translucent.
• Add tomatoes, turmeric powder and salt and sauté till the tomatoes becomes soft. Switch off the heat and let the mixture cool.
• Transfer the mixture to a grinding jar and add green chilli. Grind it to a fine and smooth paste. Transfer it into a serving bowl.
• For tempering, heat 1 tablespoon oil in a pan and add asafoetida, mustard seeds and curry leaves. Once they crackle switch off the heat and pour this tempering over the onion tomato paste. Mix well and chutney is ready to serve.

Storage

You can freeze this chutney and once you take it thaw it and do not re-freeze it. If keeping under refrigeration, keep in a closed container. This will last 5-7 days in fridge.

Serving Suggestion

Pair this chutney with Idli, Dosa, Uttapam, or any such South-Indian Delicacy.

I will also request you to checkout my recipe for Green Chutney (Mint Coriander Chutney), which is North-Indian style and goes well with numerous food items.

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