Beetroot Chutney/Beetroot Thogaiyal

Beetroot chutney is something new to me.My mom never used to make it as she is not a great fan of beetroot but she used to say that my paternal grand mom used to make chutney in beetroot as well as in carrot.It took me till now to even ask for this recipe.I had just one beetroot left in my fridge and could not make a stir fry or dal so ask my mom for the recipe and tried it . It came out quite yummy and is a great accompaniment for rotis or crispy dosas or plain hot rice.My son loved it as it had a pinch of sweetness from beetroot,tangy from the tamarind and a mild heat from the chillies.

Preparation time:20 mins

Serves:3

Ingredients:

Chopped beetroot-150 gms

Small onions/Pearl onions-12-15 no

Grated coconut -4 tbsp

Urad dal-1 tbsp

Toor dal/pigeon peas-1 tbsp

Dry red chillies-6 or 7( depending on your spice level)

Tamarind paste-1 tsp

Asafetida or Hing -1 tsp

Oil-1 tsp(optional)

Procedure:

1.Dry roast urad dal,toor dal,red chillies and tamarind(if not paste) till the lentils turn golden brown.

2.Heat a tsp of oil in a wok and saute the small onions and once they are transparent add the beetroots and a little water and cook the beetroot till its 3/4 th done.

3.Once the beetroot is cooked switch off the flame and add coconut to it and stir well.

4.After all the roasted ingredients have cooled down,add asafetida and salt to this beetroot mixture and  grind it in a mixer coarsely or finely based on your choice.Beetroot chutney is ready to be served with chappathi or idli/dosa or plain rice.

Tips:

* You can avoid onion if you wish.

* Grind the vegetables first and add the dal in the end of the grinding process to get a coarse chutney .