CORIANDER AND COCONUT CHUTNEY RECIPE

Our Green Coriander & Coconut Chutney Recipe was inspired by the flavours of Mumbai, a port of call for the SS Great Britain, this chutney would have been exotic and exciting compared to the pale English palette. Samuel Archer, a crew member who disembarked in Mumbai in 1857, wrote of the ‘amusing and interesting sight’ of ‘vendors of bananas, coconuts and oranges’.

This is a version of a traditional chutney that visitors to Mumbai in the 19th century may have tasted. In the UK we often think of chutneys as involving vegetables or fruits with spices preserved in vinegar and sugar, but traditionally Indian chutneys would be made fresh on the day that they were consumed.

In his book ‘Culinary Jottings for Madras’ “Wyvern” (Colonel Arthur Robert Kenney-Herbert) first published in 1878 following over 30 years working in India gives recipes for a number of fresh chutneys including tomato, cucumber, coconut, mint and tamarind.

Ingredients

• Large bunch of fresh coriander leaves, washed and dried
• 100g of fresh coconut, grated (you can but this frozen, ready grated)
• 100ml of tinned coconut milk
• Juice of 1 lime
• 1 green chilli, seeded and chopped
• 1 cm piece of fresh ginger, grated
• 1 clove of garlic, crushed
• 2 teaspoons of tamarind paste mixed with a little water (optional) or just use a few teaspoons of water
• Pinch of salt and sugar to taste

Method

1. Grate the coconut and place in a medium-sized bowl. Add the chopped coriander.
2. Stir the coconut milk well to ensure it is thoroughly mixed and add to the bowl.
3. Add the lime juice chopped chilli, grated ginger and crushed garlic to the bowl and mix well.
4. Add the tamarind paste and water.
5. Blend until smooth. Add a little more water or lime juice if the mixture appears too dry.

Allergens: none although some people may experience a reaction to coconut