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South Indian · Indian

Thenga chammanthi (Kerala pounded coconut chutney)

Vegetarian

തേങ്ങ ചമ്മന്തി · tēṅṅa cammanti

Grated coconut pounded dry with roasted red chillies, shallot, tamarind and curry leaves into a coarse, red-flecked ball. Unlike wet coconut chutney it uses no water and no tempering — just a drizzle of coconut oil.

Thenga chammanthi (Kerala pounded coconut chutney) is a South Indian condiment, ready in about 13 minutes and made with dried whole chillies and coconut. It serves 4 and is rated beginner to cook.

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Prep
10 min
Cook
3 min
Total
13 min
Serves
4
Level
Beginner
Calories
138

Ingredients

4 servings (about 40 g)

Equipment

Method

  1. Step 1

    Toast the dried chillies in a dry pan (or directly over a flame) until they darken and smell smoky. Crush them roughly.

    Food safety: Toasting chillies gives off pungent fumes.

  2. Step 2

    Pound the chillies with the salt, shallots (opens in a new tab), ginger, tamarind (opens in a new tab) and curry leaves (opens in a new tab) in a mortar to a rough paste.

    Spices being ground in a mortar and pestle
    How it looks · Photo: https://kaboompics.com/ on Pexels

  3. Step 3

    Add the coconut (opens in a new tab) and keep pounding (or pulse in a dry grinder without water) until it binds together in a coarse, slightly moist mass that holds its shape when pressed.

  4. Step 4

    Shape into a ball, drizzle with coconut oil (opens in a new tab) and serve.

    • 1 min

About this dish

Origin
Kerala, India · Well documentedMore food from India
Dish
Breakfast · Lunch · Condiments, chutneys & relishes
Cooking method
Toasted, Raw
Taste
spicy (chilli heat), nutty, tangy, smoky
Diet
Vegan · No gluten ingredients · Dairy-free · No nut ingredients · Keto-style · Low-carb
All labelsVegan · Plant-based · Vegetarian (lacto-ovo) · Eggetarian · Lacto-vegetarian · Ovo-vegetarian · Pescatarian · Flexitarian-friendly · Whole-food focused · Paleo-style · No gluten ingredients · Dairy-free · Egg-free · No nut ingredients · No added sugar · Alcohol-free · Pork-free · Beef-free · Keto-style · Low-carb
Worked out from the ingredients. How labels work
Good for
Everyday · Budget-friendly
Cook more with
Dried whole chillies · Coconut · Shallot · Fresh ginger · Tamarind · Curry leaves
Techniques
Toasting · Spice roasting (dry-roasting) · Dry grinding

Allergens

None of the 14 major allergens appear in the listed ingredients.

Based on typical versions of these ingredients and not verified allergen-free. Brands differ and cross-contact happens, so always check labels. For severe allergies, follow your clinician’s advice.

Nutrition

138 kcal per serving

Estimated

1 serving ≈ 40 g · recipe makes 4

Where the energy comes from

  • Protein 5%
  • Carbohydrate 26%
  • Fat 70%
Nutrition per serving and per 100 g
NutrientPer servingPer 100 g
Energy138 kcal345 kcal
Protein1.7 g4.3 g
Carbohydrate9.4 g23.4 g
Net carbohydrate5.6 g13.9 g
Sugars3.6 g8.9 g
Added sugars0 g0 g
Fibre3.8 g9.5 g
Fat11.4 g28.5 g
Saturated fat9.9 g24.7 g
Trans fat——
Cholesterol0 mg0 mg
Sodium301 mg752 mg
Salt equivalent0.8 g1.9 g
Vitamins & minerals per serving
Potassium
230 mg
Calcium
13 mg
Iron
1.2 mg
Magnesium
17 mg
Vitamin A (RAE)
26 µg
Vitamin C
2 mg
Vitamin D
0 µg
Vitamin B12
0 µg
Folate (DFE)
15 µg

How these numbers were made

  • Calculated from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) per-100 g values and the listed quantities.
  • Not counted (tiny amounts or “to taste”): curry leaves.
  • “—” means the value isn’t known for enough of the ingredients; it is never zero by default.
  • Values are estimates for guidance, not for medical dosing. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. fdc.nal.usda.gov.

Good to know

Tips

  • Roasting the coconut until golden before pounding gives chutta (roasted) chammanthi, a smokier, longer-keeping version.

Common mistakes

  • Adding water to the grinder — chammanthi should be a dry, pressed mass, not a wet chutney.

Serve with

  • Serve with kanji (rice gruel), puttu, dosa, or rolled up in a pothichoru (banana-leaf lunch parcel).

Storage

  • Best the day it is made; keeps 1 day refrigerated.

Variations

  • Chutta thenga chammanthi (India): Coconut and shallots roasted until golden-brown before pounding.

Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added · Updated

Goes with

Recipe DNA

How this dish is built

Customise in Sauce & Drizzle

Grouped by each ingredient’s role in the dish. Each band’s width is its share of the dish by weight. Choose a component to see what it does.

What the dish is built around

Main ingredient

Used in steps 2, 3

Make it milder, swap ingredients for your diet, change the batch size or thickness — the original stays as it is.

Customise in Sauce & Drizzle

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