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Kadhi

INDIA

A staple in Indian home cooking

SUBMITTED BY

Ishmeet

This creamy delicacy combines yogurt with chickpea flour as the gravy base accompanied by crispy fried vegetable fritters. This kadhi is infused with the warmth of traditional Indian spices and is perfectly balanced. It’s not too spicy, not too mild. Just pure creamy goodness.

Hailing from Vancouver, Canada, Ishmeet brings us a taste of home from her family’s roots in the Punjab region of India with a dish called Kadhi, which translates to “cooked and reduced”. While milder in flavor compared to other Indian dishes, Kadhi boasts a comforting blend of basic aromatic spices, typically enjoyed with rice, a departure from the usual roti. 

To make Kadhi, start by combining yogurt, chickpea flour, spices and water in a bowl to form a smooth mixture. For the fritters, mix red onion, yogurt, cilantro and spices until well combined. In a pot, heat oil and sauté onions, spices and chili peppers until fragrant, then pour in the chickpea yogurt mix. Simmer until the mixture thickens, then fry spoonfuls of the fritters until golden brown. Finally, add the crispy fritters to the kadhi, ladle into bowls and garnish with fresh cilantro.

Two important notes about Kadhi: Firstly, it requires a lengthy cooking time to allow the yogurt to develop a slightly sour taste. Secondly, it’s best suited for those who have a variety of Indian spices on hand. While not overly spicy, the dish relies on a multitude of spices, each contributing to its complex flavor profile. Skipping even small amounts could impact the final result. So, if your spice cabinet is well-stocked, I would absolutely recommend mankind this dish.

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Kadhi

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Ingredients
  

For curd slurry

  • 1½ cups sour curd (full fat) or sour yogurt
  • 3 cups water more or less as needed
  • ½ tsp red chili powder
  • ½ tsp turmeric
  • ½ tsp garam masala
  • 1 generous pinch hing
  • 1½ tsp salt or to taste
  • 8 Tbsp gram flour

For onion pakora

  • 2 onions sliced
  • 1 tsp ginger paste
  • 2 chilis finely chopped
  • ¼ tsp ajwain
  • ¼ tsp turmeric
  • 1 tsp kasuri methi
  • 2 Tbsp fresh coriander finely choppped
  • 1 cup gram flour
  • ½ tsp salt
  • 2 Tbsp curd
  • ¼ tsp baking soda
  • oil for frying

For kadhi

  • ⅓ cup onions chopped
  • 2 Tbsp ginger-garlic paste
  • 8-10 methi seeds
  • 2 green chilis chopped
  • 2 dry red chilis broken and seeds removed
  • 1 tsp cumin seed
  • 1 generous pinch hing
  • 1 sprig curry leaves
  • 2 Tbsp mustard oil

Instructions
 

Make the curd slurry

  • In a bowl take the sour curd and whisk it well till smooth.
  • Add gram flour, red chilli powder, turmeric powder, garam masala powder and salt to the whisked curd.
  • Stir and mix everything again. Add 3 cups water and stir again.
  • Stir very well to make a smooth mixture without lumps. If there are lumps, then break them with a wired whisk or a spatula or with your fingers. Set the curd slurry aside.
  • You can use a blender to make this mixture, but make sure you don’t over do it. You will get butter instead of a smooth blended curd.

Make the pakoras

  • In a small bowl take 2 onion, 1 tsp ginger paste, 2 chilli, ¼ tsp ajwain, ¼ tsp turmeric, 1 tsp kasuri methi and 2 tbsp coriander. Add 1 cup besan, ½ tsp salt and mix well. Squeeze and mix until the flour turns moist.
  • Add 2 tbsp curd and ¼ tsp baking soda. Mix well forming a smooth pakora mixture.
  • Wet your hand with water and scoop out a small ball sized mixture. wet hand prevents the batter from sticking.
  • Deep fry in hot oil, keeping the flame on the medium. Stir occasionally, until the pakora turns golden brown and crisp. Drain off the pakora onto the kitchen paper to absorb excess oil.

Make the kadhi

  • In another pan or kadai, heat mustard oil. Make sure to use a large bottomed pot so that while boiling, the kadhi does not spill.
  • Add the cumin seeds, fenugreek seeds and asafoetida. Allow the cumin seeds to crackle and the fenugreek seeds to change their color. Fry on a low flame, so that these spices do not get burnt.
  • Add chopped onions. Stir and sauté for 3 minutes on a low to medium-low heat. Then add ginger-garlic paste and chopped green chillies. Stir and sauté for a minute. Now add curry leaves, dry red chilies (halved or broken and seeds removed). Stir and sauté for a minute on a low flame.
  • Then add the curd slurry. Stir very well. Increase the flame to medium and bring the kadhi to a boil. Keep on stirring often so that the bottom does not get browned. Time taken to cook kadhi will be around 14 to 16 minutes.
  • After the kadhi has come to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for more 6 to 7 minutes. The kadhi will thicken. If the kadhi becomes too thick, then add some hot water.

To finish

  • Now add the onion pakora to the kadhi and stir gently. Lastly sprinkle some garam masala powder.
  • Serve kadhi pakora with steamed rice or cumin rice, topped with few teaspoonfuls of ghee.

Notes

Recipes inspired by Dassana's Veg Recipes and Hebbar's Kitchen 
Course: Dinner, Lunch
Region: Asia
Diet: Vegetarian

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