Onion & Bell Pepper Chutney is a versatile Indian chutney which serves as side for breakfast dishes like dosa, idli, adai, etc. It's gluten-free and vegan.
We Indians love our chutneys! We need something on the side for nearly every savory dish we consume. Every region has its own chutney recipe that is served along with a snack or breakfast. We all have a chutney story to share and so do I. Like always, this story goes way back to my childhood where me and my younger brother got into a chutney fight! Yes, that is a thing! I know you might have heard of pillow fight and wondering what in the world is a chutney fight! Let me explain. We both are 4 years apart and me being the oldest, I am always expected to behave. But as kids, we both would get into crazy fights where we would literally pull each other's hair and get on the nerves of one another. You must be thinking that this seems to be a typical brother-sister scenario but where is the chutney story? I am getting there.
When we would be seated by the dining table, our parents would ensure we sit far away from each other otherwise we would begin to elbow each other and not let the other eat. Since we were made to sit far away, we would come up with other creative ways to irritate one another. One thing I began doing was, with the help of a straw, I would blow chutney over him. I felt elated that I had conceived of such a prank while our parents of course thought otherwise. My brother would cry over this and draw all the pampering to himself while I would get a sound hearing for my prank. When no one was watching, he would do the same to me. It's so hilarious to think of those days now. How silly and innocent were we! Even today when I look at chutney, I cannot help but remember those days which brings a smile to my face. I don't even think my brother would remember this as he was very young.
Now coming back to this chutney recipe, let me tell you that this chutney is super easy to make and is packed with sweet and spicy flavors. This is my aunt's recipe. She prepares this whenever she makes Adai Dosai. Since I was preparing Kale Adai for lunch, I called her for this chutney recipe. Let me take you through the process. In a pan add oil and once its hot, roast roughly chopped onion, cumin seeds, chana dal, garlic and dried red chillies for 2 minutes. Take it off the pan onto a plate. Then add desiccated coconut to the pan and roast it on medium flame for a minute. Be careful to not burn it. Take it out onto the plate and add roughly chopped bell pepper to the pan. Roast them till they get charred a bit. It could take 1-2 minutes. Transfer this to the plate and let the whole mixture cool down. Now transfer all of it to a blender, add little water, tamarind paste and salt, then blitz to a smooth paste. Transfer it to a serving bowl. Heat oil in a tadka pan. Once the oil is hot, temper mustard seeds. Once they crackle, add asafoetida/hing (skip adding hing if you want to make it gluten-free) and pour this tadka over the chutney.
You can serve this chutney as a side for dosa/idli/adai/savory pancakes/savory waffles/fried snack. [textendpost]
Vegan Onion & Bell Pepper Chutney
Ingredients
- 1 tsp oil
- 1 large onion
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 dried red chillies
- 1/3 cup desiccated coconut
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 1 tbsp chana dal
- 1 orange bell pepper
- 1 tbsp tamarind paste
- salt to taste
Instructions
- In a pan add oil and once its hot, roast roughly chopped onion, cumin seeds, chana dal, garlic and dried red chillies for 2 minutes. Take it off the pan onto a plate. Then add desiccated coconut to the pan and roast it on medium flame for a minute. Be careful to not burn it. Take it out onto the plate and add roughly chopped bell pepper to the pan. Roast them till they get charred a bit. It could take 1-2 minutes. Transfer this to the plate and let the whole mixture cool down. Now transfer all of it to a blender, add little water, tamarind paste and salt, then blitz to a smooth paste. Transfer it to a serving bowl. Heat oil in a tadka pan. Once the oil is hot, temper mustard seeds. Once they crackle, add asafoetida/hing and pour this tadka over the chutney. You can serve this chutney as a side for dosa/idli/adai/savory pancakes/savory waffles/fried snack.
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Some other condiment recipes that you can try are Spinach & Peanut Chutney, Radish Chutney/Mulangi Thogayal/South Indian Chutney, Besan Chutney/Bombay Chutney Recipe, Tomato Thokku, Amla Thokku/Indian Gooseberry Thokku, Green Chutney using Scallions, Bell Pepper Chutney/Dip, Carrots and Peanuts Chutney, Lettuce Sauce/Chutney and Tomato Almond Chutney.
Hey Priya, I loved your post and your recipe sounds absolutely delicious! If you ever feel too lazy or need a chutney ready ASAP, we've got you covered! Check out our variations of sauces & chutneys here: https://sukhis.com/product-category/sauces-chutneys/
Anyways, it was wonderful learning a new chutney recipe!
Thank you so much. I would love to collaborate with your brand and create some fun recipe that can be paired with your chutneys. Let me know if you are interested in this. 🙂