Cilantro Mint Chutney is a delicious condiment served with Indian cuisine. It’s herby, bright, slightly spicy and tastes incredibly vibrant, made with fresh mint, chilies, ginger and garlic. Make it in 5 minutes flat using your blender or food processor. Gluten-free & vegan-adaptable! Video.
The eyes do not see what the mind does not want.– Indian Proverb
Mint chutney has been enjoyed for centuries throughout India – it’s a versatile condiment that is fresh and vibrant, uplifting and elevating many Indian dishes. It’s an easy recipe that can be whipped up in a blender in just a few minutes and can be used on many things to give your Indian meals a punch of flavor that will take them from ordinary to FANTASTIC!
Why you’ll love this recipe!
- It’s fast and easy! Use a blender or food processor and it is ready in under 5 minutes.
- It tastes amazing! Mint chutney tastes fresh, vibrant and tangy, slightly spicy, slightly sweet, with the fresh mint flavor shining through. This green chutney is made with fresh mint leaves, cilantro, ginger, green chillies, garlic, lemon juice and your choice of yogurt (or coconut yogurt) for a hint of creaminess. It is oil-free, low in calories, and tastes amazing!
- You’ll find a millions ways to use it!
Mint Chutney | 30-Sec Video
Ingredients in Mint Chutney
- Fresh Mint leaves – fresh mint is a must here, giving the chutney its fresh, lively cooling flavor!
- Cilantro – we’ve added cilantro (coriander leaves) and tender cilantro stems to the chutney, for more flavor but if so inclined you can swap out fresh flat-leaf parsley or more mint.
- Yogurt– we make our chutney a little cooling with yogurt- full fat whole milk yogurt, sheep’s milk yogurt, or Greek yogurt. Feel free to use vegan yogurt, or even leave it out.
- Citrus juice– fresh lemon juice or lime juice adds a delicious brightness!
- Green chillis– jalapeno chili or Serrano chili for a little heat.
- Fresh ginger and fresh garlic – add a hint of punchy good flavor.
- Salt and sugar – or sub kosher salt and jaggery!
How to make Mint Chutney (Instructions)
Mint Chutney literally takes only two minutes using a blender or food processor. It is incredibly simple to prepare.
- Simply gather your fresh ingredients and place them in a blender or food processor.
- Blend until the mixture becomes smooth and creamy.
- Once you have achieved the desired consistency, transfer the chutney into a bowl or jar.
- For maximum flavor, it is recommended to chill the chutney thoroughly before using! This not only allows the flavors to develop further but also enhances the overall taste.
- Homemade mint chutney will stay fresh for up to 4 days in the refrigerator when stored in a sealed container or jar. In case you have some leftovers, you can also freeze the chutney for later use. This way, you will always have a tasty and aromatic condiment ready whenever you need it!
Ways to use Mint Chutney
Mint chutney is a traditional side dish or accompaniment to Indian cuisine, adding fresh, bright, lively flavor, waking up your taste buds! It compliments many meals. This week we are using this Mint Chutney Recipe on our Frankies Recipe (Indian style Burritos) – that you absolutely must make! But be sure to save any extras (or make a double batch) for:
- Buddha bowls– simple lentils and rice can be elevated by adding mint chutney!
- Tandoori Chicken Kabobs –
- Indian Cauliflower, Chickpea & Tofu Bowls
- Vegetable Biryani or Chicken Biryani
- Perfect Basmati Rice
- Indian Fried Rice
- Naan, paratha, or dosa
- Use as a tasty Dip for veggies
- Use on sandwiches, tacos and wraps to boost their flavor!
- You’ll find a million ways to use mint chutney and it is a wonderful way to expand your experience of flavor profiles.
Mint chutney Variations
- While mint is the star of the show, you can add other ingredients to enhance the chutney’s complexity. For example, adding a handful of fresh coriander leaves (cilantro) like we have here can give it an extra layer of flavor.
- You can also experiment with roasted peanuts for a nutty undertone.
- Try adding fresh grated coconut! This gives a delightful texture and subtle sweet flavor to the chutney.
- Add spices like mustard seeds, ground coriander or ground cumin. Fresh curry leaves are nice too.
- Leave out the yogurt and add little onion for a more traditional version- see the recipe notes.
FaQS
Traditionally, mint chutney is made with fresh mint leaves, chillies, onions, garlic, ginger, salt and sugar.
We think so! It’s full of vitamins and nutrients.
Try adding more mint leaves, cilantro leaves and a little more sugar.
Mint chutney should be tangy, slightly spicy, and slightly sweet, with the mint flavor shining through. The primary ingredients include fresh mint leaves, green chilies (adjust the quantity depending on desired spiciness), garlic, ginger, lemon juice, and a touch of sweetness from sugar or jaggery.
Give this easy Cilantro Mint Chutney Recipe a try this week- I promise, you will looooooooove it. For more tasty sauce recipes to brighten up your meals, be sure to go the sauce category!
More Indian recipes you'll love!
Mint Chutney Recipe
- Prep Time: 5 mins
- Total Time: 5 minutes
- Yield: 1 ½ cups
- Category: Sauce, condiment
- Method: Blended
- Cuisine: Indian
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
Simple, FLAVORFUL Mint Chutney is a bright and refreshing Indian condiment to use on Biryani, Samosas, Frankies, Dosa, Kabobs, Rice or Naan. Can be made in 5 minutes flat. Vegan adaptable- see notes. Video.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup yogurt, (see notes for vegan version)
- 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 bunch cilantro, tender stems ok
- 1 cup mint leaves, packed ( 2 x .75 ounce packages)
- 1 medium jalapeno, sliced
- 2 teaspoons sliced ginger
- 1 garlic clove
- 1/4–1/2 teaspoon kosher salt,
- 1/2 teaspoon sugar (or an alternative like honey, palm sugar, etc)
- optional: 1 tablespoon water, or just enough to get blender going – you may not need this
Instructions
- Blend all ingredients in a blender or food processor until relatively smooth.
- Taste and adjust salt and lemon to your liking.
- Refrigerate until serving.
- Chutney will keep 4 days in the fridge.
Notes
To make this thicker, feel free to add desiccated coconut or peanuts.
If you would like to make this vegan – either sub coconut yogurt or soy yogurt, or silken tofu. If using silken tofu, you might want to add 1 tablespoon olive oil and for sure, more salt and lemon.
If you would like more of a traditional Indian Mint Chutney, without the “creaminess” leave out the yogurt, add ¼ cup-½ cup of chopped onion and a bit of water to get the blade moving.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: ¼ cup
- Calories: 21
- Sugar: 1 g
- Sodium: 39.7 mg
- Fat: 0.8 g
- Saturated Fat: 0.4 g
- Carbohydrates: 2.2 g
- Fiber: 0.7 g
- Protein: 1.7 g
- Cholesterol: 1.9 mg
We make this often and never have leftovers. It elevates everything!
Thanks so much, glad you are enjoying it!
What can I use instead of cilantro? My husband and I both dislike this herb.
Hi Diane, You could try parsley.
Hi there. Please can you tell me what constitutes a ‘bunch’ of coriander? Online it says between 80g and 100g whereas in our shops they are sold in containers of 30g which is quite a significant difference
Hi Tanya, it is about one cup, packed solidly.
Lovely! Served it as a side to red lentil kofta. It really lifted them to a different level. Will certainly make again
Perfect, glad you enjoyed!
This chutney is absolutely gorgeous and very simple to make! I didn’t have silken tofu, so subbed with soaked raw cashews. Worked great. The flavour is divine. I can see this being used in lots of meals. YUM, thank you.
So glad to hear this worked out for you Christine!
One of my very favorite vegan recipes! I’m making it for my friend on Wednesday. I know she’ll love it! I use red lentil homemade wraps.
Wonderful! The wraps sound delicious.
Tasty!
This was absolutely delicious without adding any sauces. It was a big hit with the family.
Glad you enjoyed!
Where can I buy fresh mint in the winter?
We find it in the produce section of our local market with other packaged herbs.
Hi! We bought an Aerogarden so you can grip herbs easily and FAST INDOORS all year long! Mint grows REALLY FAST so I use it in mojitos and chutneys like this! Apparently mint goes well with lamb too but I don’t eat meat. The aerigarden sits on your counter, you drop in pods similar to coffee pods, make sure the water is always topped up and once a month dump the water out, clean it inside with a paper towel, refill with fresh water; 2 caps of their liquid grows food ( comes with) press the button to mix it in and forget about it! Herbs are so expensive in stores and they give you such pitiful quantities I swear I am a total convert to using fresh ones I grow myself. Parsley, Thai and Italian basil’s are great for stirfries and pesto….you will find so many uses as things grow fast in the hydroponic system.
Sucn a fun idea!
I made this with soft tofu thinking it would be like a dip texture but I ended up with a sauce… and I didn’t even add water! A bit disapointed tbh, I don’t know what I did wrong because I followed the recipe for once 😂. Maybe I’ll just chop the herbs and everything then add them in the yogurt insted of throwimg it all in the blender lol.
Oh shoot Martine! Mori Nu silken firm tofu works well here. Yogurt is a great option.