Nikhat's Kadhi

A yummy (and bright yellow!) sour-spicy gravy. My coworker Nikhat tells me it’s something you make when you don’t have any meat or vegetables in the house and need something tasty to eat with your rice or roti!

Also, she gets SOOOOO many points for giving me exact measurements. Woot!

1 cup plain yogurt
3 cups water
2 tbs Bengal gram flour (besan)
3 green chilies
1 tsp cumin seeds
2 tsp coriander seeds
Salt to taste
½ tsp red chili powder
¼ tsp turmeric powder.
1 ½ tsp mustard seeds
1 ½ tsp cumin
2-3 dried red chilis

For the kadhi:
In a large bowl, whisk the yogurt, water, and flour together to form a thick liquid. In a small bowl, mash the chilis, cumin seeds, coriander seeds, and salt into a paste. (A mortar and pestle is great for this, if you have one. Otherwise, you could maybe do it in a food processor). Add the paste to the batter and mix well; stir in both the red chili powder and a pinch of turmeric (only enough to turn it a light yellow color – if you add too much, it’ll make the dish bitter). Boil the mixture for a few minutes, stirring constantly (so it doesn’t form lumps); adjust salt to taste. Remove from heat.

For the seasoning:
In another small pot, heat 2 tbs oil. Toss in a few mustard seeds; if they splutter, it’s hot enough. Add the rest of the mustard seeds, cumin, and chili; cook for about 30 seconds, till the chilis start to turn a darker red. (You can also toss in some curry leaves here, if you like). Add this to the kadhi (the thick yellow mixture) and stir.

I’m betting this would be amazing served over brown rice and steamed veggies. Mmm . . .