Green Chutney Recipe (Hari Chutney)
This tangy and spicy Indian Green Chutney is a perfect accompaniment for chaat, samosa, appetizers, or Indian meals. Prepare it using a few simple ingredients in under 10 minutes (vegan, easily made gluten-free).
Here are some more chutney recipes that you might like: Guava Chutney, Mint Chutney, Coconut Chutney, Dahi Chutney, Garlic Chutney, and Cabbage Pachadi.
You come to my house any time, and you will surely find a container of green chutney and tamarind chutney in the refrigerator. These two chutneys are extremely versatile, and most North Indians keep them stocked at all times. Drizzle over chaat, serve with Indian snacks or appetizers, or pair with Indian meals to enhance their flavor. These chutneys go a long way.
About Green Chutney
Green Chutney is a tangy and spicy Indian accompaniment made using fresh cilantro, mint, fresh ginger, green chilies, and a few spices. It is a quintessential condiment to serve with chaat, samosas, or other Indian snacks and appetizers.
Hara means green in Hindi, and because of its green color, it’s also called Hari Chutney.
This tangy green chutney is extremely popular in India and is commonly prepared in most households. However, every home has its way and set of ingredients to make this flavorful condiment.
This Indian green chutney recipe is my mom’s, and anyone who has tasted it has always said that it is the best mint and coriander chutney they have ever had. She has a secret tip to keep the color of this chutney vibrant green.
My recipe yields approximately ¾ cup of hari chutney. You can scale the recipe up or down as per your requirements.
This Indian green sauce is vegan, vegetarian, and oil-free and can be easily made gluten-free.
Ingredients
This green chutney recipe is made using a few simple ingredients available in most Indian grocery stores.
Herbs – You will need cilantro (fresh coriander leaves) and fresh mint leaves. You can use the tender stems of cilantro, as they are very flavorful. However, be sure to discard the mint stems, as they are bitter and can make the chutney bitter as well.
Others – You will also need fresh ginger, green chillies, garlic, asafetida (hing), cumin seeds, salt, and freshly squeezed lime juice.
Use freshly squeezed lime juice for the best result. Lime juice can be replaced with lemon juice.
I used Indian green chilies, but you can also use Thai green chilies, jalapeno peppers, or serrano peppers. You can adjust the green chilies as per your taste.
If green mangoes are in season, add a few slices of tangy green mangoes to this chutney. Decrease the amount of lime juice in that case.
Amla, also known as gooseberry, is also a great addition to this chutney.
My Mom’s Secret
My mom’s secret ingredient to keep the color of this chutney vibrant green is ice cubes. When the herbs are blended, the heat from the blender causes them to darken in color. Adding 1-2 ice cubes while blending the chutney helps keep the temperature under control, and the chutney retains its vibrant green colour. Try this tip and thank me later 🙂
How To Make Hari Chutney
Preparation
Chop off the cilantro roots. Pick the mint leaves and discard the thick stems.
Rinse the leaves with water 2-3 times to ensure they are clean of dirt.
Chop the green chilies and ginger and peel the garlic cloves. Gather the remaining ingredients.
Make The Chutney
Add the following ingredients to a blender jar or a food processor, along with 2-3 tablespoon of cold water.
- 2 cups of cilantro (tightly packed, rinsed)
- 1 cup of mint leaves (tightly packed, rinsed)
- 3-4 chopped green chilies
- ½-inch piece of ginger (chopped)
- 3-4 peeled garlic cloves
- ¼ teaspoon asafetida (skip for gluten-free)
- ½ teaspoon cumin seeds
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 3 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice
- 2 ice-cubes
Blend until smooth. Scrape the sides of the blender a few times while blending.
Check for salt and add more if required.
Tip – Sometimes, the herbs don’t come in contact with the blade of the blender, and the blending process doesn’t start. In that case, push the herbs down with a spatula a few times.
Serve the green chutney at room temperature or chilled.
Pro Tips By Neha
Always use fresh coriander and mint leaves to make the hari chutney recipe.
Discard the thick mint stems, as they can make the chutney bitter. Additionally, do not increase the quantity of mint leaves; otherwise, the chutney will become darker in color.
Use freshly squeezed lime juice for the best result.
Add some Chaat Masala Powder and Roasted Cumin Powder for an extra flavor boost.
Make small portions of this hari chutney, as it tastes the best when made fresh. If you mistakenly made a big batch, freeze it in ice cube trays. The texture will change slightly when thawed, but you can use it to make Veg Green Pulao or Green Curry.
Serving Suggestions
This versatile chutney can be served with a variety of dishes.
It can be served as a dipping sauce with North Indian snacks, such as Frankies, Kabab, Samosa, Tandoori Chicken, Chicken Tikka, Batata Vada, Paneer Tikka, Cutlets, and Aloo Pakora.
Hari chutney also tastes great with South Indian snacks like Goli Baje and Maddur Vada.
You can also serve it with the main course, such as Biryani or Buddha Bowls.
This chutney is often drizzled over chaat recipes or Indian street food, such as Papdi Chaat, Sev Puri, Bhel Puri, Samosa Chaat, Dahi Puri, Ragda Pattice, and Aloo Tikki Chaat.
A green chutney sandwich is a crowd favorite, made by slathering the chutney on bread slices with cucumber, onions, and tomatoes.
You can serve it with your Indian-style meals.
Slather it on kathi rolls, vada pav, and wraps to give them a spicy kick.
You can also use it as a salad dressing.
Storage Suggestions
Store this green chutney in a non-reactive, airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. After that, it starts to lose its taste and become bitter.
I do not recommend freezing it. Its texture changes once you thaw it.
You Might Also Like
Craving more? Subscribe to Whisk Affair to get new recipes and a newsletter delivered straight to your inbox! And stay in touch on Facebook, Pinterest, and Instagram for all of the latest updates.
Green Chutney Recipe (Hari Chutney)
Equipment
- Blender
Ingredients
- 2 cups cilantro (fresh coriander leaves) (roots and hard stems removed, tightly packed, rinsed well)
- 1 cup mint leaves (hard stems removed, tightly packed, rinsed well)
- 3-4 green chilies (roughly chopped, adjust according to your taste)
- ½ inch piece of ginger (roughly chopped)
- 3-4 cloves garlic (peeled)
- ¼ teaspoon asafetida (hing) (skip for gluten-free)
- ½ teaspoon cumin seeds
- ½ teaspoon salt (or to taste)
- 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
- 2 ice-cubes
Instructions
- Add all the ingredients to a blender along with 2-3 tablespoons of cold water.
- Note – Use water sparingly, you don't want a watery chutney.
- Blend until smooth. Scape the sides of the blender a few times while blending.
- Tip – Sometimes, the herbs don’t come in contact with the blade of the blender and the blending process doesn’t start. In that case, push the herbs down with a spatula a few times.
- Check for salt and add more if required.
- Serve the green chutney at room temperature or chilled.
How long will this last in the fridge? Thank you.
It will keep good for 4-5 days in an airtight container.
Awesome recipe. I just tried it turned out too good. everybody in the family liked it and it is easy to make. I will make it again.
thank you so much for sharing the recipe
Those of you who haven’t tried it, please do try
Thanks for your words 🙂
I am a continuous follower of veg recipe of India. Not only this but I hv tried many other recipes of yours. Awesome recipes with simple techniques. Thankyou so much for making us a better cook.
Hi Jincy, It looks like you have posted a comment on the wrong site. I am not veg recipes of India I am whiskaffair 🙂
Can i use ginger garlic paste,green onion and green lime zest ?
Readymade ginger garlic paste doesn’t good in chutneys. You must refrain from using it. Green onion and green lime zest is fine.
Thanks Neha. The chutney turned out awesome.
Awesome 🙂
Just tried this. Turned out extremely good. I used to make it without garlic and ginger previously. By adding them, it has given that oomph factor. Thanks.
Thnx a lot for trying 🙂
Dear Whiskaffair team,
Chutney was very good. Tried Curd variety. Cutting coriander and mint is the only hard part 😄
Thanks
Happy to hear 🙂
perfectly made chutney and nothing beat this combo for our chaats
Thnx a lot 🙂