Bombay Chutney Recipe (Besan Chutney)
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Bombay chutney (besan chutney) is a curry-like dish made using chickpea flour and spices. It is a great side dish for poori, dosa, idli, chapati, or roti. Here is how to make it.
Here are some more South Indian chutney recipes that can be served with your breakfast: white coconut chutney, South Indian tomato onion chutney, coconut cilantro chutney, red chili coconut chutney, and Andhra-style peanut chutney.
Quick Look: Bombay Chutney
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Servings: 4 people
Calories: Approx. 200 per serving
Dietary Info: Vegan. Can be easily made gluten-free (skip hing).
Skill Level: Easy
Tools Needed: Pan, wire whisk, mixing bowl.
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Table of Contents
What Is Bombay Chutney?
Bombay chutney is a South Indian side dish made by cooking a gram flour (besan) and water slurry with tempered onions, tomatoes, and spices until it thickens into a smooth, pourable curry.
Despite the name, Bombay chutney has almost no connection to Mumbai. Ask someone from Bombay about it, and most won’t recognize the dish at all.
It actually belongs to Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, where tiffin centers serve it as a ready backup when they run low on vegetables for the day’s curry. Some Karnataka homes make their own version too. In Tamil Nadu, it often goes by a more honest name: Kadalai Maavu Chutney, which simply means “gram flour chutney.”
Calling it a “chutney” is also a bit misleading. Real chutneys are usually ground pastes made from coconut, peanuts, or herbs. This one behaves more like a light, pourable curry, closer in style to the Maharashtrian pitla, which uses the same besan-and-water base but leans spicier and thicker.
Whatever you call it, the dish earns its place at the table for one simple reason: it turns four pantry staples into a curry good enough to serve guests.
Why You’ll Love This Family Favorite Recipe!
It rescues empty-fridge mornings. No vegetables on hand? Besan, onion, and one tomato are usually enough.
It comes together in one pan with no blending, grinding, or soaking.
It tastes different from your usual chutneys. If your rotation is stuck on coconut and tomato-onion versions, this one adds real variety.
Ingredients
- Besan Flour (Chickpea Flour, Gram Flour) – This is the base of the entire dish, so freshness matters more than anything else here. Stale besan carries a bitter, musty taste that no amount of spice can fix. Buy it from a store with high turnover, or store it in the fridge once opened.
- Water – Used twice: first to make a smooth, lump-free mixture with the besan, then to thin the mixture.
- Onion and tomato – A ripe, red tomato adds the tang that balances the earthy besan. Sliced onion adds sweetness once it turns translucent.
- Spices – This recipe uses essential spices such as turmeric, red chili powder, garam masala, and salt.
- Lime Juice – Adding a small squeeze of lime juice right before serving lifts the whole dish.
- Other Ingredients – You will also need black mustard seeds, cumin seeds, asafetida (hing), ginger, curry leaves, green chilies, and cilantro (fresh coriander leaves).
How To Make Bombay Chutney
Make a lump-free slurry. Whisk ½ cup of besan with ½ cup of water first, until completely smooth. Only then add the remaining 2 cups of water. Adding all the water at once is the number one reason people end up with lumpy chutney.
Temper the spices. Heat 3 tablespoons of oil in a pan over medium-high heat. Add 1 teaspoon black mustard seeds, 1 teaspoon cumin seeds, ¼ teaspoon hing, and 15-20 curry leaves. Let them crackle for 5-6 seconds until fragrant.
Cook the onion and chili. Add 1 cup of sliced onion and 2-3 slit green chilies. Cook until the onion turns soft and translucent, not brown.
Add tomato and ginger. Stir in 1 cup of chopped tomatoes and 1 teaspoon of grated ginger. Cook for two to three minutes until the tomato softens.
Season the base. Add ½ teaspoon turmeric, 1 teaspoon red chili powder, ½ teaspoon garam masala, and 1 teaspoon salt. Cook for about a minute so the spices toast slightly rather than taste raw.
Pour in the slurry and simmer. Lower the heat to medium-low before adding the besan slurry. This step matters, since pouring flour batter into a very hot pan makes it bubble and spit. Stir often and cook for 12 to 15 minutes, until the mixture thickens slightly and the raw, flour-like smell disappears completely.
Finish and serve. Check for salt and add more if needed. Stir in 2 tablespoons of chopped cilantro. Squeeze some lime juice on top and serve hot.
Vartiations
Add cooked vegetables such as boiled potatoes, green peas, carrots, or bell peppers to make this curry more filling.
Swap in roasted gram flour (sattu) for raw besan to make a faster, nuttier version that some families in Andhra Pradesh swear by.
Add a tempering of urad dal and chana dal along with the mustard and cumin seeds for extra crunch.
Pro Tips By Neha
It is important to follow the exact measurements when making this recipe, as the ratio of besan to water is key to making this quick side dish.
Taste-test your besan raw before cooking. If it tastes even slightly bitter on its own, don’t use it in this dish; the bitterness becomes more obvious once cooked.
Lower the heat before adding the slurry. This single step prevents nearly all the splattering and uneven cooking home cooks run into.
Don’t rush the simmer. The chutney needs the full 12 to 15 minutes for the raw besan smell to cook off completely.
Stir often near the end. Besan settles and can catch at the bottom of the pan if you leave it alone for too long.
Bombay Chutney FAQs
They’re close cousins. Both use a besan-and-water base, but Maharashtrian pitla is usually thicker and spicier, while Bombay Chutney stays thin and pourable, closer to a light curry.
Yes. Skip the onion and use a pinch of extra hing for depth.
Serving Suggestions
I serve this runny chutney with South Indian breakfast dishes like dosa, idli, and poori. It also goes well with steamed rice or a plain tawa paratha.
I like to drizzle some lemon juice over it just before serving.
Storage Suggestions
Bombay chutney is at its best fresh off the stove. As it cools, the besan continues to thicken and can turn slightly lumpy.
If you have leftovers, stir in a splash of hot water before reheating, and warm it gently in a pan rather than the microwave. This brings back the pourable consistency without breaking the flavor.
Other Curry Recipes We Recommend
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Bombay Chutney Recipe (Besan Chutney)
Ingredients
- ½ cup besan. (gram flour, chickpea flour)
- 2 and ½ cups water (divided)
- 3 tablespoons oil
- 1 teaspoon black mustard Seeds
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- ¼ teaspoon asafetida (hing) (skip for gluten free)
- 15-20 curry leaves
- 1 cup thinly sliced onions
- 2-3 green chillies (slit into half)
- 1 cup chopped tomatoes
- 1 teaspoon grated ginger
- ½ teaspoon turmeric powder
- 1 teaspoon red chili powder
- ½ teaspoon garam masala powder
- 1 teaspoon salt (or to taste)
- 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro (fresh coriander)
- lime (to squeeze on top)
Instructions
- Make a lump-free slurry. Whisk besan with ½ cup of water first, until completely smooth. Only then add the remaining 2 cups of water. Adding all the water at once is the number one reason people end up with lumpy chutney.
- Temper the spices. Heat oil in a pan over medium-high heat. Add mustard seeds, cumin seeds, hing, and curry leaves. Let them crackle for 5-6 seconds until fragrant.
- Cook the onion and chili. Add onions and green chilies. Cook until the onion turns soft and translucent, not brown.
- Add tomato and ginger. Stir in tomatoes and ginger. Cook for two to three minutes until the tomato softens.
- Season the base. Add turmeric, chili powder, garam masala, and salt. Cook for about a minute so the spices toast slightly rather than taste raw.
- Pour in the slurry and simmer. Lower the heat to medium-low before adding the besan slurry. This step matters, since pouring flour batter into a very hot pan makes it bubble and spit. Stir often and cook for 12 to 15 minutes, until the mixture thickens slightly and the raw, flour-like smell disappears completely.
- Finish and serve. Check for salt and add more if needed. Stir in cilantro. Squeeze some lime juice on top and serve hot.
