Paruppu Thogyal is a spicy, tangy South Indian Lentil Chutney. Served with hot steamed rice and sesame oil
Chutneys across Indian cuisine and their versatility
Each home in India has its own share of accompaniments – be it thogayals (thuvayals or thick South Indian Tamil cuisine chutneys) or Andhra Pachadi / chutneys , Maharashtrian dry Lasanachi Chutney (a.k.a Vada Pav Chutney), the Bengali Aam Sotto (DAte raisin jaggery chutney – oh so yum!), faalse ki chutney / black currant chutney , pickles, spice powders – both for everyday meals as well as those made for occasions. I was recently reading a wonderfully chronicled book called “The Imperial Cholas” by the ITC Group (a 5-star hospitality chain) and there it mentions that these accompaniments were mostly made both to tickle the palate (with its blend of spices) as well as stand-ins when vegetables were scarce.
I think both the reasons are so true : How else can the simple Idli reach to greater heights with a wonderfully divine Molagapudi (fiery lentil spice powder) ? Or how many days have you (in a typical south indian home) craved for just Paruppu Thogayal with just roasted papad, steamed rice topped with a dollop of ghee or sesame oil with no other vegetables to complement the meal ?
Well, don’t dream anymore… coz this is a lipsmacking Paruppu Thogayal today. Team it with white rice for a
fulfilling meal .Every Tamilian household has their own version of Paruppu Thogayal, but this is my grandmom’s recipe, and am very proud to present this here.
What do you serve this Thogyal with?
Steamed Rice with a dollop of ghee / sesame oil works best, but if you are making it part of a larger thali, Paruppu Thogayal is usually served with any Puli Kozhambu (Tangy gravy), Vatha Kuzhambu . My persona; favourite though is with chilled South Indian Curd Rice (Thayir Sadam / Dudhyodhanam)
Other Indian Chutneys / Thogayals / Pachadi you might like on the blog:
Prep time – 10 mins ; Cook time – 5 mins (To roast the ingredients) ; Serves – 3 ; Difficulty level – Easy
Serving suggestions – Steamed rice + any Rasam of your choice with Roasted papad. Also tastes great with Vathkuzhambu / Puli Kozhambu (tangy tamarind gravy)
Ingredients for Paruppu Thogayal | South Indian Style Spicy Lentil Chutney:
- 1 TBSP Sesame Oil
- 1/4 cup Pigeon pea (Toor dal)
- 2 TBSP Bengalo Gram (Channa Dal)
- 15 grams Tamarind (a small gooseberry sized unit)
- 1 TBSP Jaggery
- 5 TBSP Grated coconut
- 3/4 tsp Salt (or to taste)
- 4 Dry Red chillies (adjust spice)
- 1/4 tsp Hing / Asafoetida (skip for Gluten Free)
- 1 tsp Oil
- 1 tsp Mustard seeds
- 1 sprig Curry leaves
How to make Paruppu Thogayal | South Indian Style Spicy Lentil Chutney:
- In a large pan, heat the Sesame oil. Roast the dals (lentils) on medium heat one by one till they turn golden
brown and slightly crispy. Transfer to a plate. - In the remaining oil, fry the tamarind, red chillies and transfer to the lentils plate. Cool completely.
- In the hot pan (without any oil), roast the coconut once for 1 mins (with flame switched off). This is optional but crucial to improve the shelf life of the chutney, especially in summers.
- Now, DRY grind the dals, asafoetida, salt, jaggery to a very coarse powder (remember this is NOT a smooth chutney, but a rather coarse one, used to mix with the rice).
- Now add tamarind and about 3 – 4 TBSP of water and PULSE to a thick kind of consistency. Transfer to a serving bowl. You can serve the thogayal as is, but we prefer it with some tempering / tadka.
- For the tempering: Heat 1 tsp of oil. Splutter mustard and curry leaves. Pour onto chutney and serve immediately with hot rice, drizzle a bit of ghee / sesame oil, mix and delve into culinary bliss.
PIN FOR LATER
Paruppu Thogayal | South Indian Spicy Lentil Chutney (GF & Vegan)
Equipment
- Thick Bottomed Pan
- Spice Blender
Ingredients
- 1 TBSP Sesame Oil
- 1/4 cup Pigeon pea Toor dal
- 2 TBSP Bengalo Gram Channa Dal
- 15 grams Tamarind a small gooseberry sized unit
- 1 TBSP Jaggery
- 5 TBSP coconut grated, fresh or frozen(thawed)
- 3/4 tsp Salt or to taste
- 4 Dry Red chillies adjust spice
- 1/4 tsp Hing / Asafoetida skip for Gluten Free
- 1 tsp Oil
- 1 tsp Mustard seeds
- 1 sprig Curry leaves
Instructions
- In a large pan, heat the Sesame oil. Roast the dals (lentils) on medium heat one by one till they turn golden brown and slightly crispy. Transfer to a plate.
- In the remaining oil, fry the tamarind, red chillies and transfer to the lentils plate. Cool completely.
- In the hot pan (without any oil), roast the coconut once for 1 mins (with flame switched off). This is optional but crucial to improve the shelf life of the chutney, especially in summers.
- Now, DRY grind the dals, asafoetida, salt, jaggery to a very coarse powder (remember this is NOT a smooth chutney, but a rather coarse one, used to mix with the rice).
- Now add tamarind and about 3 – 4 TBSP of water and PULSE to a thick kind of consistency. Transfer to a serving bowl. You can serve the thogayal as is, but we prefer it with some tempering / tadka.
- For the tempering: Heat 1 tsp of oil. Splutter mustard and curry leaves. Pour onto chutney and serve immediately with hot rice, drizzle a bit of ghee / sesame oil, mix and delve into culinary bliss.
this mixed with hot rice and ghee is like heaven..yummy
Hope you are feeling better now.. this thogayal is one comforting thing 🙂
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i love podis, but i also like them moist…so i guess this is the recipe
Yummm … this with milagu kuzhambu. Thx for linking Kalyani.
Vardhini
CooksJoy
Simple ane delicious Thogaiyal.. Rasam and this thogayal.. Excellent combo!!
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Nice combo n looks delicious n healthy…
looks so creamy and yummy
Classic and delicious chutney.. looks super perfect !!
Indian Cuisine
Simple and comforting thogayal of all times. Very satisfying one too Kalyani…hope you are feeling better now. Jayanthi (www.sizzlingveggies.com)
looks yummy!!
Spicy-Aroma
Very healthy and yumm lentil dip.
Cuisine Delights
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love this wid hot rice n ghee…yummm
This is one of my family's fav.and love to mix it with rice and ghee…looks tempting.
Simply love this thogayal with rice porridge,makes me nostalgic..
We make this too, but the only change is we don't use toor dal in it at all. Interesting.
Yum it looks …too gud
Luv this rasam sadam..yummy thovayal
Delicious looking thoyagal. Spicy and yummy.
Kalyani I make a similar one but with lots of curry leaves…looks grt!
Super like. I like these kind of podis and chutneys which have loads of dals in them!
That's always my favorite!
Funny it may seem, but I have never made this before. Bookmarking this.
Kalyani……….loved the new look of your space:-)
Thuvaiyal looks very inviting…love the combo of paruppu thuvaiyal and milagu kuzhambu!!
Nice thuvaiyal.My lil one loves this…
My all time fav thogaiyal. Looks so delicious…
Tempting CHutney!
Thogayal looks delicious. I would love to eat it with rice now.
Yummy one.
yumm
Thogayals are my all time favourite..Love to have with vathakuzhambu sadam..yummy.
Thanks for sharing the same.
Saras
I m a thogayal fanatic! Love the color you got on the thogayal! Steaming hot rice with thogayal and gingely oil (sutta yennai makes it even more divine) is bliss on plate! Brilliant share kalyani!
THanks PRiya. Am going for the sutta yennai version next time on 🙂
Parippu Thogayal, rasam and poriyal combo is my best Sunday treat. The colour of you parippu thogayal is amazing.
oh yes- that combo is simple yet divine!
This is a classic chutney as we call in South India. I like to pair it with idli and dosa too.
yes works with dosa tool
As always the recipe of paruppu Thogayal is similar to what amma would make .sudaana saadham ,nei ,paruppu Thogayal with jawwarsi vadam and some thenga pota kaay or kootu is bliss
aaha- you described ultimate comfort food with that javvarisi vadam 🙂