raita

[helen jackson]

I have been asked by a company to come up with some yoghurt based dips that once sealed and refrigerated can have a 2 week shelf life.

I immediately thought of raita.

Does anyone have any interesting twists on raita that I could try out?

thanks

Helen

[rstarobi]

Does anyone have any interesting twists on raita that I could try out?

Are you looking for "authentic" twists, or can we go nuts?

[helen jackson]

At the risk of offending purists I am going to say go nuts!!

[rstarobi]

Oh - one more baseline question - are these dips supposed to emphasize sweet or savory more?

[g.johnson]

Previous threads here and here.

[Monica Bhide]

I have some great variations with mint, eggplant, okra -- let me know and I can PM them to you

[helen jackson]

Thanks for the links to previous threads. I had done a search to look to see if it had been discussed before but obviously did something wrong and didn't find it.

I need recipes that are savoury as opposed to sweet.

Love the sound of raitas with eggplant etc... Okra is a bit of an unknown here in NZ and is not available in quantity and treated with some scepticism but any other ideas would be welcome.

thanks in anticipation,

Helen

[Suvir Saran]

Okra, lotus root, beets, potatoes, pineapple, eggplants, cucumber, mint, onions, tomatoes, lotus seed, chickpeas and many other things make for great raita.

[helen jackson]

Suvir can you tell me more about using chickpeas in raita?

Do you leave them whole or crush them first.......?

Helen

[Suvir Saran]

Whole chicpeas is what I use.

And use the same spices as for most any other raita.

[JAZ]

I have a good recipe for a carrot salad with a spiced (garlic/cumin/mint) yogurt dressing, which I've also altered into a dip for carrots. You might be able to play with the proportions, using a little carrot for color and flavor, but keeping it as a dip rather than a salad. If you're interested I'll find the recipe and post it.

[helen jackson]

Jaz, yes please I would love your carrot recipe,

thanks

[JAZ]

Here's my recipe for the dressing version (the original came from a Turkish cooking class given by an instructor/chef named Anel Stoyanof, but I've altered it a bit).

1 cup lowfat yogurt

2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 small clove garlic, minced

1 Tablespoon ground cumin

1/4 tsp. cayenne

1 1/2 Tablespoons finely chopped fresh mint

1/2 tsp. kosher salt (or to taste)

This needs to time for the flavors to mellow and blend; otherwise the garlic is a little overpowering. The original recipe called for whole milk yogurt, but I found it a little too rich with the olive oil (might just be that I'm more used to the lowfat). This amount is enough for about a pound of carrots, shredded.

As I recall, when I made it as a dip, I merely drained the yogurt first and kept everything else about the same -- I may have upped the mint a little. Keep in mind that I made the dip specifically for carrots; if I were planning to use it with other vegetables that lack the sweetness of carrots, I might think about adding a pinch of sugar.

Some notes: I generally toast cumin seeds, then grind fresh.

[FoodMan]

Correct me if I'm wrong but isn't Raita more of a sauce/chutney than a dip. All of the Raitas that I've seen are pretty "liquidy" not dip like (Dip = Hummus like consistensy). Is that what you need Helen?

FM

[Suvir Saran]

A good raita ought to be somewhere between the poor consistency one finds in many restaurants and what a hummus should be.

That is what I aspire for when I make raita. At times I make very thick raita. Almost like a salad that has a yogurt dressing. Very well dressed salad.

[indiagirl]

So, to add to Suvir's comment, in traditional Indian food, the raita is served with both courses.

The first course is typically a vegetable dish, a meat/chicken dish, lentils and raita with some wheat based product like naans etc, and the second is all the same accompaniments with rice - this is only typical for the middle and north of India, the south is totally different.

But I digress.

Raita ideas -

I make raita sometimes with frisee or arugula or even baby spinach. I make a tarka for it (heat up some oil, add mustard seeds until they start popping, then add some chilli powder, finely chopped green chillies and a touch of garlic) and pour it onto the leaves which makes them wilt a little. Then I add the yogurt whipped up with some cumin powder adn freshly ground black pepper. I love the contrast between the bitterness of the leaves and the sourness of the yogurt.

I sometimes tie up the yogurt in a cheese cloth and let it drip for a few hours so that it is extra thick and a little more sour than normal.

In the south of India, they add lentils (split black lentils like urad or split yellow lentils) to tarkas they make for vegetable curries. I've tried that for regular old cucumber raita and the crunchy fried lentils add an interesting variation.

I've also made raita with roasted red and poblano peppers. I blend in a little strong feta cheese with the yogurt before I add it to the peppers and season with coriander and pepper and cilantro.

OK. I guess I should stop. I could keep going on.

[Simon Majumdar]

Keep it simple

I cooked an indian supper at Joy's house last weekend and she made a raita which was exemplary

chopped cucumber

Chopped mint

Yogurt

Salt to taste

fabulous

S

[La Niña]

Yes, Joy's raita was great. But sometimes I put in a little roasted, ground cumin....

[Suvir Saran]

So, to add to Suvir's comment, in traditional Indian food, the raita is served with both courses.

The first course is typically a vegetable dish, a meat/chicken dish, lentils and raita with some wheat based product like naans etc, and the second is all the same accompaniments with rice - this is only typical for the middle and north of India, the south is totally different.

But I digress.

Raita ideas -

I make raita sometimes with frisee or arugula or even baby spinach. I make a tarka for it (heat up some oil, add mustard seeds until they start popping, then add some chilli powder, finely chopped green chillies and a touch of garlic) and pour it onto the leaves which makes them wilt a little. Then I add the yogurt whipped up with some cumin powder adn freshly ground black pepper. I love the contrast between the bitterness of the leaves and the sourness of the yogurt.

I sometimes tie up the yogurt in a cheese cloth and let it drip for a few hours so that it is extra thick and a little more sour than normal.

In the south of India, they add lentils (split black lentils like urad or split yellow lentils) to tarkas they make for vegetable curries. I've tried that for regular old cucumber raita and the crunchy fried lentils add an interesting variation.

I've also made raita with roasted red and poblano peppers. I blend in a little strong feta cheese with the yogurt before I add it to the peppers and season with coriander and pepper and cilantro.

OK. I guess I should stop. I could keep going on.

Your digressions were most wonderful.

I love the North Indian toasted cumin scented raitas a lot.

But the subtlety that the pachadis (the South Indian raitas you descirbe) bring to any meal are amazing.

Please keep going on.. do not stop. Thanks for bringing the world of the tarka based raitas into this thread.

I love the use of urad dal and chana dal in tarkas for raitas. They add such a wonderful flavor to the raita.

Indiagirl, thanks for your great post.. and I am looking forward to reading more... please do not stop... thanks.