Thengai Thuvayal (Coconut Thuvayal)

A very authentic and yummy dish which can be prepared very quickly and is a great accompaniment. Mix it with rice and eat with vadam and you have a very simple and tasty menu on board. How about accompanying this with curd rice or sambar rice or rasam rice – it just adds tons of flavor.. We at home love this thuvayal and am happy to share this simple and homey dish..

Ingredients
Grated Coconut - 1 cup
Ulutham Parupu / Urad Dal - 1/3 cup
Kadalai Parupu / Channa Dal - 1/3 cup
Red Chili - 12 (adjust to taste)
Asafetida - 1/4 tea spoon
Salt - 3/4 tea spoon
Oil - 1 tea spoon (preferably coconut oil)
Tamarind - 1 small lemon size
Water - 1/4 cup + As needed
Method
Soak tamarind in 1/4 cup warm water
Heat oil in a pan and add kadalai parupu and ulutham parupu and sauté until golden brown
Add the red chili and sauté for another minute
Remove from heat to a plate to cool
In the same pan, add the coconut and slightly toast (not much)
In a blender, add the parupu, coconut, asafetida, salt and soaked tamarind (without water) and blend until all are close to a powder. Now add the water in which the tamarind was soaking and blend well. Add more water as needed and blend to a paste. If you are going to store this for later use, then add little more water as the parupu will absorb a lot of water when rested
Serve on room temperature. At the time of serving, you can also add a tea spoon or so of water if it is too dry. Enjoy this yummy thuvayal.
This will keep at least for a few days in an airtight container in the fridge.


Points to note (about Coconut from www.coconutresearchcenter.org) - 
In traditional medicine around the world coconut is used to treat a wide variety of health problems including the following: abscesses, asthma, baldness, bronchitis, bruises, burns, colds, constipation, cough, dropsy, dysentery, earache, fever, flu, gingivitis, gonorrhea, irregular or painful menstruation, jaundice, kidney stones, lice, malnutrition, nausea, rash, scabies, scurvy, skin infections, sore throat, swelling, syphilis, toothache, tuberculosis, tumors, typhoid, ulcers, upset stomach, weakness, and wounds. While coconut possesses many health benefits due to its fiber and nutritional content, it's the oil that makes it a truly remarkable food and medicine.
Once mistakenly believed to be unhealthy because of its high saturated fat content, it is now known that the fat in coconut oil is a unique and different from most all other fats and possesses many health giving properties. It is now gaining long overdue recognition as a nutritious health food.
Coconut oil has been described as "the healthiest oil on earth." That's quite a remarkable statement. What makes coconut oil so good? What makes it different from all other oils, especially other saturated fats?
The difference is in the fat molecule. All fats and oils are composed of molecules called fatty acids. Too much mention, please visit the website for lot more information!!!!

Sending this to My Guest Hosting event – Taste of the Tropics – Coconut, Chef Mireille’s page,  FFNF in Archana's page, Priya's page, Pickles and Chutney , Lentils and Legumes, CWS - Channa Dal, Dish name starts with T, CWS - Urad Dal, Priya's page, Lets cook Preserves, Jams and Chutneys