Homemade spice powders like Thengai Podi and Paruppu Podi are such a life saver on a busy day. All we need is hot rice and couple of tablespoons of these spice powders and dinner is taken care of. I also see these Spicy Coconut Powder as a comfort food.
Indian pantries are loaded with homemade spice powders like this Thengai Podi with Flax Seed, Paruppu Podi with garlic, Regular Lentil / paruppu Powder, Tilachi powder / sesame powder and so on.
I always get my stock of powders from my mother back in India. She makes sure that every time any of us travel, we come back with a good amount and variety of these powders.
I am slowly running out of my reserve and I have specifically asked my mother not to send me any, but rather tell me how to make them. So the first powder that I have here which is found invariably in every South Indian kitchen is thengai podi. This Thengai podi is also called the Chammanthi powder or chutney powder. Take a look at this Raw Mango Chammanthi that is tangy and delicious. This is an example for a wet Chammanthi.
Every cuisine has a slight variation of this thengai podi and they all taste equally good. This is the recipe from my mother and the only change I did was adding about ¼ cup of flaxseed meal to the podi.
Why make this recipe?
- It is very convenient to have spice powders ready as they come in very handy on a busy weeknight.
- They are super delicious and when made right, have a long shelf life.
- In this particular thengai podi recipe, I have used flax seed which is very nutritious and recipes like this coconut podi is a great way to incorporate it in our diet.
- This podi can be eaten with rice or also as side for idli and dosai instead of the regular milagai podi.
Benefits of flax seed
- Flax seed usage is becoming more popular because of its powerful anti-oxidant properties.
- Flax seeds have very high fiber content (both soluble and insoluble).
- Also flax seed contains a very high amount of Plant Omega 3’s (good fats). These properties make this a very powerful and mighty seed that aids in good cardiovascular health.
Few things that I came across when reading about the flax seed is that the oil in the flaxseed is highly unsaturated. This makes it very prone to oxidation. Hence storing the flaxseed is very critical.
When stored in the seed form, it can be stored without going rancid for a longer duration when compared to the flaxseed meal or oil. The flaxseed meal will store well for a couple of months if stored away from heat and light, whereas the oil has to be consumed within a couple of weeks.
Ingredients and Substitutes
Lentils - Even though this is a coconut powder, it uses quite a bit of lentil. Hence, this makes it even more nutritious. My mother uses both urad dal / ullutham paruppu and chana dal / kadalai paruppu for thengai podi. Some make it with just the urad dal and that would work as well. The chammanthi powder from Kerala is very similar is made with just the urad dal.
Coconut - Freshly grated coconut is the bets choice to make this thengai podi / chammanthi podi. I use frozen grated coconut after it is well thawed. As a last resort, we could use desiccated coconut.
Red chilies - I use couple of different kinds of red chilies when making any homemade spic powder. I use kashmiri red chili for color, Bydagi for flavor and the regular ones for heat. You could add any kind you have in hand. Just make sure to adjust the spice level.
Flax - I have used flax seed as well as flax meal when making this thengai podi. Make sure the flax is fresh when using.
Asafetida - I somehow cannot cook without asafetida and recipes like this spice powder gets a lit of flavor. If you are making it gluten free, then skip the asafetida.
Salt and oil - I use coconut oil when frying the lentils and coconut to enhance the coconut flavor. My mother would dry roast everything, but a little oil when roasting helps the powder stay softer and not be too dry.
Step by step process
- All the ingredients mentioned above have to be roasted individually. My mom suggested that I roast few red chilies with every dal that I am roasting and this way the strong aroma of the red chili will not be felt.
- So I first roasted the Ullutham paruppu / urad dal in about a with half the red chilies until it was golden brown. Transfer this to a dry wide container to allow it to cool.
- Then I roasted the kadalai paruppu with the remaining red chilies until golden brown and transferred it to the same container.
- Next I roasted the flax seed until it was beginning to change color and started to pop. I added the salt and asafetida and roasted it further for few seconds. This also went into the container with the rest of the fried ingredients.
- Lastly I roasted the grated coconut until reddish brown and kept this separately to cool.
- Once all the ingredients cooled down completely, transfer the mixture of red chilies, dals and flaxseed to the blender/mixer and grind until coarse.
- Now also add the roasted coconut and grind it until they all blend together. I keep my powder somewhat coarse, but you could grind it based on your liking. Once the coconut is added do not grind too long, since it will start releasing its oil and the powder will begin to clump up. Run the mixer in short cycles until they come to the desired consistency.
- Once again cool it down for some more time and then store it in an airtight container. If storing for a prolonged period, store it in the refrigerator or freezer.
- Enjoy with hot rice and sesame oil!
Expert tips
- Roast the ingredients separately as they all roast at a different time. This helps in evenly roasting the ingredients without burning them.
- Roast the red chilies with each of the lentils as it in even roasting of the chilies without burning them.
- Roast the salt and asafetida as well. Roasting the salt helps get rid of the moisture and it increases the shelf life of the thengai podi. Roasting the asafetida enhances the flavor.
- Cool the roasted ingredients well before grinding. This prevents any kind of condensation to happen.
- Also cool the ground thengai podi before storing it in an airtight container.
Frequently asked questions
When the ingredients are well fried and handled with care, the podi can be in the pantry for over a month. If making in larger quantity, you could freeze a batch to use later.
Yes, you can safely freeze the thengai podi. Make sure to freeze it in a freezer bag and when ready to use, thaw in room temperature and use.
Yes, traditionally flax seed was not added to the thengai podi. I add it for added nutrition.
Yes, Thengai Podi is Vegan. When making it entirely gluten free, skip the asafetida as it contains some flour mixed in or use Gluten free asafetida. Other than that the Coconut Podi is gluten free.
More podi / spiced powder recipes
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Recipe
Thengai Podi With Flax Seed | Spiced Coconut Powder
Equipment
- Blender
Ingredients
- ¾ cup Ullutham paruppu /Urad dal
- ¼ cup Kadalai paruppu / channa dal
- 2 cups Coconut Grated
- 10 Milagai Vathal / Red chilies Makes medium hot
- ¼ cup Flaxseed meal
- ½ teaspoon Asafetida
- as needed Salt
Instructions
- All the ingredients mentioned above have to be roasted dry, individually without any oil. My mom suggested that I roast few red chilies with every dal that I am roasting and this way the strong aroma of the red chili will not be felt.
- So I first dry roasted the Ullutham paruppu with half the red chilies until it was golden brown. Transfer this to a dry wide container to allow it to cool. Then I roasted the kadalai paruppu with the remaining red chilies until golden brown and transferred it to the same container.
- Next I roasted the flax seed until it was beginning to change color and started to pop. I added the salt and asafetida and roasted it further for few seconds. This also went into the container with the rest of the fried ingredients.
- Lastly, I roasted the grated coconut until reddish brown and kept this separately to cool.
- Once all the ingredients cool down completely, transfer the mixture of red chilies, dals and flaxseed to the blender/mixer and grind until coarse.
- Now also add the roasted coconut and grind it until they all blend together. I keep my powder somewhat coarse, but you could grind it based on your liking. Once the coconut is added do not grind too long, since it will start releasing its oil and the powder will begin to clump up. Run the mixer in short cycles until they come to the desired consistency.
- Once again cool it down for some more time and then store it in an airtight container. If storing for a prolonged period, store it in the refrigerator or freezer.
- Enjoy with hot rice and sesame oil!
Notes
- Roast the ingredients separately as they all roast at a different time. This helps in evenly roasting the ingredients without burning them.
- Roast the red chilies with each of the lentils as it in even roasting of the chilies without burning them.
- Roast the salt and asafetida as well. Roasting the salt helps get rid of the moisture and it increases the shelf life of the thengai podi. Roasting the asafetida enhances the flavor.
- Cool the roasted ingredients well before grinding. This prevents any kind of condensation to happen.
- Also cool the ground thengai podi before storing it in an airtight container.
Nutrition
Suma Gandlur says
We cannot imagine a south Indian kitchen, without these podis. This version of coconut powder is new to me as we make it with just coconut, of course adding the basic spices. This version sounds delicious too and adding flax seeds make it more nutritious.
NARMADHA says
Thengai podi looks so flavorful and love it. Wanted to try making it at home for a long time. Now I have got your fool proof recipes to try it out.
Priya Srinivasan says
Love having thengai podi and paruppu podi handy in my pantry!! Adding flaxseeds is a wonderful idea , i m going to try this for my next batch !! Brilliant share sandhya!!
Vaishali says
Truly speaking I get all my podi powders when I travel down South. Never really given a try at home - perhaps for the simple reason that most of the time we eat North Indian and are not accustomed to these. But for sure this podi sounds simple and healthy.
Sandhya Ramakrishnan says
I was like that until amma was around. She would have all the podis ready for me. Now I make them on my own here 🙂
Rajani says
I have never made this from scratch and one of the reasons I don’t make is that I used to get an excellent batch of this from a friend. But now after coming to US, I haven’t had it and your post reminds me to give it a try 🙂
Harini Rupanagudi says
Such a flavorful podi and I agree it is very handy and life saver for sure. I make it slightly differently but I will definitely try this version. Thanks for sharing.
Radha says
Thengai podi is my favorite and adding flax seed is a great idea. Healthy too!
Srivalli Jetti says
We have this always-stocked Sandhya, an excellent recipe with flax seeds. This podi comes so in handy right. Thanks for the detailed recipe with pictures, will help so much in making it easily ourselves.
Sandhya Ramakrishnan says
Thanks a lot valli. These podis are life savers when in a fix.
Sushma says
Very nice, am going to try this. Did u use fresh coconut or dry coconut ?