Here's a healthy alternative to plain Yogurt or Indian boondi raita. (Boondi, although delicious with yoghurt, is deep fried. And we all know that mixing fried stuff to yoghurt is no good. Hence, I am here sharing with you this Yogurt / raita recipe that will let your belly and tastebuds feast on flavour.
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Ingredients:
- Yogurt
- Cumon Seeds
- Dy Chilli
- Olive oil
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- Seasoning like mint / basil, cilantro etc.
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Magic ingredients:
Fox nuts   = makhaana
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Flax seeds = alsi
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A quick online search will tell you all about these superfoods. Let's get to the recipe straight...
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1. Prep the yoghurt / curd by stirring. Use a spoon if you prefer it lumpy, or a beater/blender if you like it flowy/drippy/creamy. Avoid keeping it watery, because you want the Yogurt (raita) to stay a while in the mouth so you can savour the flavour.
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2. Take whole foxnuts. Proportion = a handful of foxnuts for a bowl of yogurt (raita). If you are apprehensive about keeping the nuts whole, pinch them down to smaller chunks, but they won't look as pretty.
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3. In a large pan, (deep, wide and with lid), without oil and on low flame, toss the fox nuts around till they receive heat uniformly. Lower the flame and spread the nuts on a flat utensil, to cool off. Immediately sprinkle flax seeds all over the hot pan (a teaspoonful of flax seeds for each bowl of yogurt (raita)). Cover the pan and wait for the seeds to crackle. Once the crackling settles, lift the pan and give it a shake; (another round of crackling follows when you shake it) Just like pre-microwave era popcorn! Let the lid stay on and quickly fix the seasoning (tadka) in another pan, before the nuts and seeds go soggy.
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For the seasoning (tadka), Take a pan (small size or a tadka pan if you have one), heat a teaspoon of olive oil and throw in some cumin seeds, chillies and your favourite herb (mint, basil, cilantro etc.)...lightly fry. Once done, lower the flame. Toss in the fox nuts and flax seeds. Let this mixture cool down to 'just warm'. After which, take the mixture and add it to your curd. And your yummy Yogurt / raise is ready to eat.
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Slurp and munch away! Avoid salt. Who needs more water retention anyway?
Do try this recipe at home and let us know how you liked it. Also do share your recipes of fixing a great bowl of curd. I would love to learn something new from you.
Nishtha Singhal