Rice mixed with a gravy like sambar or rasam and served with a vegetable side dish is what we grew up eating. Even now, that’s our everyday meal. There are so many varieties of sambar and vegetable preparations. Their permutation – combination keeps the meal diverse and interesting.

But there are times when you feel like taking shortcuts. This is for one of those days. Thogayal is a kind of like a thick chutney preparation. It fits the bill as a side dish for rice or as something to mix with rice and eat. It pairs well with preparations like poricha curry or rasam as a side dish.

Here, I have made it to be mixed with rice. With a spoon of ghee and something crunchy like pappadam or murukku on the side, it hardly tastes like a ‘short cut meal’.

Ingredients:

• One bunch of washed and cleaned coriander leaves
• 1.5 tablespoon chana dal
• 1.5 tablespoon urad dal
• 2-3 red chillies (or per taste)
• 2 pods garlic (optional)
• 1/4 cup grated coconut
• salt
• oil

Method:

1. Heat a teaspoon of oil in a pan and add the two dals, red chillies and garlic pods. Fry for a minute.
2. Add the coconut and fry for a minute or two. Turn off the heat and add the coriander leaves to the pan. It wilt in the residual heat.
3. Once its cooled down, grind in a blender (adding a little water if needed) to get a slightly coarse thogayal.
4. Serve with rice and rasam or mix with rice and serve a porial on the side.

Note: Garlic is optional and generally not added. I like it, so have added it here. You can add some mint leaves also here.