Almond Chutney
Packed with protein and super delicious, this almond chutney is a great accompaniment to team up with pretty much any of your favorite foods.
Soaked almonds are teamed up with some simple spices and processed into a smooth paste before being topped with a refreshing tempering to make this delightfully healthy chutney. It's right up there on my list of favorite Indian condiments, beside my tandoori mayo sauce.
This chutney is perfect to pair with a classic South Indian breakfast like dosa and idli or even with your fried foods like fritters and vadas.
I’m all about trying out healthier versions of my favorite foods, especially condiments, sauces, and dips. My dahi boondi, tamarind date chutney and mix veg raita have been huge hits, but I really wanted to try something beyond the classic coconut chutney. And that’s when I thought of putting almonds to use!
Quick Look: Almond Chutney
- 🔪 Prep time: 35 minutes.
- ⏲️ Cook time: 0 minutes.
- 👪 Servings: 4 servings.
- 📋 Main ingredients: Almonds, green chilies, ginger, urad dal, asafoetida, curry leaves, mustard seeds, dried red chilies, lime juice, oil, and salt.
- ♨️ Cooking method: Soak almonds 🡢 blend with ginger, green chilies, lime juice, and salt 🡢 prepare a tempering with spices, urad dal, and curry leaves 🡢 pour tempering over chutney 🡢 mix and serve.
- ⭐ Difficulty: Easy.
- 🥣 Serving ideas: Serve with idli, dosa, moong dal vada, cashew pakora, kebabs, patties, or other fried and air-fried snacks.
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What's So Great About the Recipe?
- It has such a toned-down creamy flavor that is such a step up above the classic green chutney we’re all so used to having.
- It's an easy no-cook recipe, and you can always tweak and play around with the flavors to your liking too.
Recipe Ingredients
Almonds: Soaked almonds form the base of this delicious chutney. Use good quality almonds- it makes all the difference.
Ginger: Fresh ginger adds a beautiful earthy flavor to the chutney. Use some ginger powder if you can't find fresh ginger.
Green chilies: Green chilies add that kick of spice to the chutney. Use as much as your taste buds can tolerate.
Lime juice: Any chutney is incomplete without a bit of tanginess, and I like to stick to the classic freshly squeezed lime juice for this one.
Mustard seeds: Mustard seeds are usually added to the tempering and lend a beautiful aroma and texture to the chutney. I added them to my ginger mango chutney and it was just next level delicious.
Curry leaves: Curry leaves are another must in any tempering. Just a few can do the trick.
Urad dal: I also like to add some urad dal to add more texture and protein to the creamy chutney.
Asafoetida: Dubbed hing, asafoetida helps make the chutney easy to digest, and lends it that classic South Indian aroma.
Dried red chilies: This one’s optional, but if you want to, you can also add a couple of dry red chilies into the tempering.
Oil: And of course, a bit of your regular cooking oil.
See recipe card for quantities.
Substitutions & Variations
- In addition to almonds, you can also add some peeled coconut into the mix and turn it into a nice almond coconut chutney. Also check out my desiccated coconut chutney while you're at it.
- If you don’t have lime juice and want that bit of tangy flavor, you can add some tamarind pulp into the mix.
- Cumin seeds also make for a great addition to the tempering of the chutney.
How to Make Almond Chutney
Step 1: Soak whole almonds in some warm water for 30-45 minutes.
Step 2: Get rid of the excess water and transfer them to a blender jar along with the ginger, green chilly and lime juice.
Step 3: Add salt and blend until you get an almost smooth paste.
Step 4: Heat oil in a pan and prepare tempering with mustard seeds, dry red chilies, urad dal, asafoetida, and curry leaves. Top this over the chutney and serve.
💭Top Tip
Depending on your personal preference, you can process the chutney to a smooth paste or leave it a bit coarse or chunky.
Tips & Tricks to Nail the Recipe
- To lend this chutney that bright green color, you can also add a handful of fresh coriander leaves into the mix.
- Remember that the soaking time for the almonds is important. If you don’t have enough time and want to whip up this chutney quickly, you can choose to use blanched almonds.
- I didn’t peel the almonds, but if you want the chutney to have a bright white color, you can peel the skin off the almonds too.
- To bring a bit of flavor variation, you can also choose to add other ingredients like peanuts, and walnuts, or even sauté some tomatoes and/or onions and add them into the chutney.
- Use leftover almonds to make salt and vinegar almonds, cocoa dusted almonds or orange candied almonds in a batch and store as a quick snack.
How to Serve Almond Chutney
This easy and delicious chutney can be teamed up with some Andhra peanut chutney and avocado chutney and served as a side dish with any classic South Indian main. I personally love packing this chutney with idlis for my kiddo’s school lunch box. That way, she also gets the health benefits of almonds.
You can also pair this chutney with patties and kebabs and pretty much any of your fried or air-fried foods or snacks. If you're consciously trying to eat more protein-rich foods, team up this nutty chutney with some malai chicken tikka.
Troubleshooting & FAQs
Like most other chutneys, you can store your leftover almond chutney for 2-3 days in the refrigerator, if not longer.
Yes, the chutney can go bad when not stored correctly. Make sure you keep it refrigerated at all times and use a clean container and spoon for storage and serving.
More Easy Indian Condiments
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
If you tried this Almond chutney or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below. Thanks for visiting!
Almond Chutney
Ingredients
- 1 cup almonds
- 2-3 green chillies
- 1 teaspoon ginger
- ½ teaspoon black gram split
- ¼ teaspoon asafoetida
- 5-6 curry leaves
- ½ teaspoon mustard seeds
- 2-3 dry red chillies
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- 1 teaspoon oil
- Salt to taste
Instructions
- Soak whole almonds in some warm water for 30-45 minutes.
- Get rid of the excess water and transfer them to a blender jar along with the ginger, green chilly and lime juice.
- Add salt and blend until you get a smooth paste.
- Heat oil in a pan and prepare a tempering with mustard seeds, dry red chilies, urad dal, asafoetida and curry leaves.
- Add the tempering over the chutney and give it a good mix.
- Your almond chutney is ready.
