Preparing the Urad Dal Powder:

Dry roast the urad dal in a pan until it turns golden brown.
Allow it to cool, and then transfer to a mixer jar.
Grind it to a Rava (semolina) consistency. Set this powder aside.

Soaking Ingredients

Soak dried red chillies.
Soak tamarind separately.
Pour enough water to submerge them and let them soak for about 30 minutes.

Grinding:

After soaking transfer, the soaked ingredients, and garlic to a mixer grinder.
Grind them to a coarse consistency. Add the urad dal powder prepared earlier.
Add salt to taste and a little water if required.
Grind again to achieve a chutney-like consistency.

Tempering

In a pan, heat 1 tsp of oil.
Add the mustard seeds, curry leaves. Once they begin to splutter, add the urad dal.
Once the urad dal turns golden brown, add the curry leaves and sauté for a few seconds.
Pour this tempering over the prepared chutney and mix well.

Serving:

Transfer the Poondu Chutney to a serving bowl.
Serve it as an accompaniment with hot idli, dosa, or chapati.

Note:

The number of garlic can be adjusted based on personal preference. If you’d like a milder garlic flavour, you can reduce the number of cloves.
Adjust the spice level by varying the number of red chillies.
Gingelly oil adds a distinct flavour to the chutney, but if unavailable, you can substitute it with any other cooking oil.