My definition of a Thuvaiyal is a chutney to which coconut has been added. A chutney is a mixture of vegetables and spices. A thuvaiyal, on the other hand, has in addition to the chutney ingredients, coconut to give it some body.
I had some carrots which were slightly bitter to taste. I didn’t know what to do with them, then remembered this thuvaiyal that my mom used to make. This thuvaiyal can be eaten with idli/dosa/bread or even mixed with rice. My mom used to make thuvaiyals to be eaten with rice when she didn’t want to cook much that day.
Carrot Thuvaiyal
Ingredients:
- 1 cup chopped carrots
- 1/2 cup grated coconut
- 1 tsp mustard seeds
- 4-5 dried red chillies
- 1 tsp urad dal
- a pinch of asafoetida
- a small lime-sized ball of tamarind
- 1 tsp oil
- Salt to taste
Method:
Heat oil in a pan and put in the mustard seeds. When they pop, add the urad dal, asafoetida and red chillies. Stir for a few seconds and then add the carrots and tamarind. Fry for a while till the carrots a bit soft and the raw smell goes away. You do not need to cook the carrots, but they do need to lose the raw hardness. When the carrots soften, remove from the fire and let it cool.
When the carrots mixture are cool, blend it in a mixer with coconut adding water if needed. Since my carrots were a bit bitter, I added some jaggary to this, but if you have sweet carrots, you can omit this. Once the carrot-coconut mixture is finely ground, add salt to taste and transfer to a serving bowl. This can be eaten mixed with rice when you don’t want to cook or eaten with idli, dosa or even with bread. This keeps for upto a week in the fridge.
Memories and Such 
Pingback: Recipe: Carrot and Peanut Chutney | Memories and Such
Pingback: Recipes: Mor Chaar | Memories and Such