What is Green Chutney?
As the name suggests, Green Chutney is an Indian flavourful condiment made with fresh greens/herbs like coriander leaves, mint leaves, cumin, ginger, garlic, lemon juice & salt. This spicy, tangy and aromatic side is immensely popular & is eaten with almost every kind of snack. It is also used in Indian street foods & chaat snacks like Vada Pav, Dahi Vada, Bhel Puri, Ragda Patties, Sev puri and Papdi Chaat. Apart from adding zing to your palate it provides you with plenty of health benefits too. Fresh coriander leaves and mint leaves are super-herbs and are considered great for digestion. So green chutney makes a perfect accompaniment with any snacks especially fried and heavy to digest snacks. Here are 2 popular sandwiches made with green chutney – Grilled Sandwich & Bombay Sandwich.
About this recipe
There are various versions of Hari Chutney made across the Indian restaurants and chaat places. Green chutney served in every place tastes different due to the change in proportions & ingredients used. The basic version of green chutney served in a lot of chaat places is made just with coriander leaves, ginger, green chilies, cumin powder, salt, lemon and chaat masala. My recipe uses a few additional ingredients – mint leaves & garlic. These 2 totally elevate the flavors and transform a normal chutney to a much more super delicious one. As with any other recipes made with fresh herbs, this Green Chutney too tastes best on the same day. The fresh flavors begin to diminish as the chutney sits for longer at room temperature. However if you prefer to make ahead and store it, make sure you transfer the chutney immediately to a glass container and refrigerate. Use up within 2 to 3 days. To refresh your chutney you may simply whisk the chutney with little Greek yogurt. I know a lot of friends also freeze the green chutney in ice trays. Later transfer the chutney cubes to freezer safe container or zip-lock bags. For best results thaw the chutney in the refrigerator and optionally whisk a little Greek yogurt to enhance the color. You may also refer to these similar Chutney recipes on the blogCilantro ChutneyPudina chutneyPeanut chutneyCoconut chutney
How to Make Green Chutney (Stepwise Photos)
- Add 1 cup cleaned, rinsed and drained mint leaves to a grinder jar. Do not use stalks of the mint leaves as they are likely to make your chutney bitter.
- To the same jar, add 2 cups cleaned, rinsed and drained coriander leaves along with the following:
1½ to 2 tablespoons roasted chana dal (optional, fried gram or roasted peanuts or desiccated coconut) 1 teaspoon roasted cumin seeds or ¾ teaspoon roasted cumin powder (Jeera) ¼ teaspoon salt (adjust to taste) 1 to 1 ½ tablespoon lemon juice (adjust to taste) 2 small garlic cloves (optional) ¼ to ½ inch ginger (peeled) 2 to 4 green chilies (serrano peppers, adjust to taste)
- Pour little water and begin to blend. I used about 1 to 2 tbsps. If you do not use roasted chana dal you may not need to add water.
- Add more only if needed.
- Blend until smooth. Check salt & tang. Add more salt and lemon juice if required. Serve green chutney with Indian snacks, chaats & sandwiches. Store it in a glass bottle and use up with in 2 to 3 days. You can also serve it withSamosaAloo tikkiVeg cutletBread rolls
Pro Tips
To make the best green chutney full of flavors, make sure you use fresh mint or pudina & daniya (coriander leaves). Addition of 1 tbsps roasted peanuts or fried gram makes the chutney thick and binds it together. Also water does not separate from the green chutney. You can skip garlic if you don’t like the pungent flavor of raw garlic. The ratio of mint : cilantro can be changed. I have mentioned the quantities that work good for me. The color of the chutney may vary each time you make as the greens begin to oxidize quickly. This doesn’t alter the taste though. You can find the color of the hari chutney is different in each photo as they were shot at different times. So just ignore the color.
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