Quick and easy recipe of thengai thogayal or thengai thuvaiyal – A perfect coconut chutney recipe for rice prepared coconut, urad dal, and dried red chilies and tamarind. Check out the thengai thogayal recipe with a detailed video.
Thogayal or thuvaiyal is a Tamil word, and in our household, we call the chutneys that we prepare for rice as thogayal. :-) I am not sure about the exact meaning or the name reason behind it, but we call thick chutneys with lentils are other spices are called thogayal.
Somedays instead of sambar, we make thogayal, rasam, simple raita and of course rice and call it a meal. South Indian cuisine has a lot of simple recipes, and this coconut thuvaiyal is one such recipe. And you can prepare this chutney in less than 30 minutes! The active cooking time is only 10 minutes.
Coconut chutney for rice-
While there are quite a few thogayal recipes, this coconut thogayal or thengai (Tamil word for coconut) is quite popular. The combination of urad dal, red chilies, tamarind along with coconut makes it perfect for rice.
You can serve it with plain steamed rice, yogurt rice, rasam rice, and other rice varieties also. I like it with plain steam rice with a dollop of gingelly oil. Guess what, these days I eat with plain quinoa also.
Now, coming to the recipe, very straightforward. You need to roast the urad dal, dried red chilies and grind it with coconut, salt and tamarind paste.
Should we roast the urad dal with oil or without oil?
It’s is a personal preference. My mom always roasts urad dal without oil. In fact, for any chutney and even for sambar whereas my MIL adds atleast 1 to 2 tsp of oil for roasting. So go with what works for you.
I have tried both ways, and we love with and without oil. For this recipe, I use ½ tsp of oil, as you can see from the video, just a little bit.
I usually roast until the dal turn light golden in color. You can cook it a little longer as well. (Make sure you are not over-browning it. It ruins the taste) If you are using a heavy bottom pan like indolium uruli or soapstone vessel or cast iron pan, even after turning the heat off, the pan remains hot, and the urad dal continues to cook. So turn it off a little before or cook till it turns golden brown and immediately transfer the dal to a plate.
When you add more oil and asafoetida while roasting, the urad dal turns beautiful golden brown color. And the color of the chutney will be more reddish.
Should we roast the coconut?
Both my mom and MIL don’t roast the coconut. They simply add it after roasting the dal and mix it. But some roast the coconut also. In that case, roast the coconut first for three to four minutes and set it aside on a plate and then roast the lentils.
I know I know, there are some much nitty-gritty details in a simple recipe as well. Every family has a unique style. :-)
Should we temper the chutney or not?
Mostly for thogayal, we don’t temper. But if you like the bite of mustard seeds and urad dal, go ahead and add the tempering. Nothing wrong about it. My mom sets aside ½ tsp of roasted urad dal mix and adds it later just for the bite. For today’s recipe, I did not temper it.
But if you notice, we add ½ tsp of mustard seeds along with urad dal and grind it. Mustard seeds are optional, but it does add a flavor and also helps with the long shelf life of this chutney. It’s something that I learned from MIL.
The other flavor enhancer in thengai thuvaiyal recipe is the hing or asafetida or perungayam. You can add between ¼ to ½ tsp for this below measure. We love the flavor or asafoetida, so I went with ½ tsp. Please do skip asafetida unless you are allergic to gluten. In that case, you can give a try with gluten-free asafoetida.
I think I have covered all the points, now without any further ado, here is the video and the detailed recipe.
How to make thengai thuvaiyal/thogayal?
- In a pan, add the oil. When it is hot, add the urad dal, mustard seeds, and hing. Mix it thoroughly. Roast for 30 to 45 seconds over medium heat.
- Now add the dried red chilies and roast it over medium-low heat until the urad dal turns light golden brown. Please check the section “roasting the urad dal with oil or without oil” more tips.
- Turn off the heat and add the coconut. Mix it and allow this mixture to cool down.
- When the mixture is cool, add it to the mixer jar. Add salt and tamarind paste and pulse it. As required, add water and grind it. You will need ¼ to ⅓ cup. The chutney should be thick, so do not add more water.
- Transfer it to an air-tight container and serve it with rice or other dishes.
Recipe Notes-
- So far, I have tried refrigerating this recipe for about 2 to 3 days, but not more than that.
- Adjust the salt, tamarind paste, and dried red chilies according to your taste preference.
- You can reduce red chilies and add whole black pepper as well.
- Skip asafetida or use gluten-free asafetida for a gluten-free version.
- Tempering is optional. I did not do that. But you can temper ½ tsp of mustard seeds in 1 tsp of oil and add it to the chutney.
- You can roast the urad dal without oil, or you can use up to 2 tsps of oil as well.
- If you are using tamarind block, then use the 1-inch piece, and once you turn off the heat, add it along with coconut. The heat softens it a bit. You don’t need to roast it separately.
If you like this coconut chutney recipe for rice, then check out these other recipes for rice from my archives as well.
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📖 Recipe
Thengai Thogayal / Thuvaiyal | Coconut Thogyal - Coconut Chutney for Rice
Ingredients
- ½ tsp oil
- 3 tbsp urad dal
- ½ tsp mustard seeds
- ½ tsp hing
- 3 dried red chilies you can use up to 4 red chilies. Break it into small pieces
- 1 cup coconut grated. if using frozen thaw it room temperature
- 1 tsp salt or to taste
- ½ tsp tamarind paste if using tamarind black, a small 1-inch piece would do.
- ¼ to ⅓ cup water
Instructions
- In a pan, add the oil. When it is hot, add the urad dal, mustard seeds, and hing. Mix it thoroughly. Roast for 30 to 45 seconds over medium heat.
- Now add the dried red chilies and roast it over medium-low heat until the urad dal turns golden brown.
- Turn off the heat and add the coconut. Mix it and allow this mixture to cool down.
- When the mixture is cool, add it to the mixer jar. Add salt and tamarind paste and pulse it. As required, add water and grind it. You will need ¼ to ⅓ cup. Do not add more water. The chutney should be thick.
- Transfer it to an air-tight container and serve it with rice or other dishes.
Video
Notes
- So far, I have tried refrigerating this recipe for about 2 to 3 days, but not more than that.
- Adjust the salt, tamarind paste, and dried red chilies according to your taste preference.
- You can reduce red chilies and add whole black pepper as well.
- Skip asafetida or use gluten-free asafetida for a gluten-free version.
- Tempering is optional. I did not do that. But you can temper ½ tsp of mustard seeds in 1 tsp of oil and add it to the chutney.
- You can roast the urad dal without oil, or you can use up to 2 tsps of oil as well.
- If you are using tamarind block, then use the 1-inch piece, and once you turn off the heat, add it along with coconut. The heat softens it a bit. You don't need to roast it separately.
Nutrition
I am not a nutritionist. The nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. It varies depending upon the product types or brands.
Update Notes: This recipe was originally posted in 2014 but now updated with video and recipe cards.
I know thuvaiyals can be refrigerated if there is any leftover. Do you know if any of these freshly made thuvaiyals freezes well? I want to make and some and send it thru for my daughter when she comes home.
I recommend making thengai podi instead of thuvaiyal. I tried freeze cabbage and ivy gourd chutneys but not the coconut one.
Made this today, came out very well.. thanks
Thanks so much. Glad it came out well.
Nice One, I want to Try.