Kadi

Author: Rekha Gupta

Whats the fuss over Kadi, incase some of you maybe wondering.😁 Its a pretty common north Indian delicacy made in every household. However there are two reasons I am posting it . One, for whatever reason, my kadi is appreciated almost to the point of embarrassment by my family & friends and I thought if it is true than I would love to share it with you all. Secondly there are many food sites and blogs with millions of recipes. However In my blog, I have tried to simplify a lot of (otherwise daunting) dishes for the uninitiated or beginners, who can just walk to the kitchen and start without much prep. C@Rg

This dish is healthy , tasty and makes a hearty, comforting meal,that is easy to cook with just two main ingredients – Curd and Besan (gram flour)

USP- For me the dish has to be healthy as well as tasty , so no short cuts.

Kadi is a gravy dish with Besan and Onion pakodis . Pakodis usually are hard , but the secret of this dish is, its creamy gravy combined with melt in mouth soft pakodis . The gravy is made using homemade curd set the same day or a night before.

Ingredients for Gravy –

1 kg – CURD (home made,from 1 litre cows milk), 1 cup-Besan ,1 tbsp- Ghee , mustard Seeds(sarson) – 1tsp., Fengureek seeds(methi dana) -1/3 tsp, Jeera- 1/3 tsp, HEENG -1/4 tsp ,Haldi 1/3 tsp, Red Chilli Flakes 1/3 tsp, Servings- 6.

Steps for gravy-

In a blender , put the curd and besan (gram flour) and blend it together for a minute.

Take a heavy base steel pan , add Ghee , when hot add sarson , when they splutter , remove the pan from the flame and add methi dana ,jeera ,heeng ,haldi, red chillie , now place the pan back on the flame , give the masala’s one stir and immediately add the curd+ besan batter, stirring it constantly add 1 litre water to it , stir and let it reach a boil, stirring every two minutes [ if not stirred ,curd might curdle]. C@Rg

When it reaches a boil ,put the flame on sim and let it simmer for about 45 to 60 minutes till its a semi thick creamy gravy . Now add 1.5 tsp Salt and give it a final good stir.

Remove from the flame and dip the pakodis in it ,and leave it for at least half an hour – so that the pakodis soak the flavours of gravy.

Garnish with a final ‘tadka’- with 1 tbsp Ghee &, whole red chilles 4

PAKODI’S

Besan -1.5 cups , Onions- 2 chopped roughly , salt to taste, heeng 1/6 teasp., green chili 1 chopped. Water 1.5 cups maybe a little more.

COWS GHEE 1cup for deep frying.

Steps-

Mix besan, salt and heeng together in a bowl. Add water very little at first to make a thick paste, then start adding water and stirring it to make a smooth batter. The batter has to be little thinner than a semi thick batter. (Please note ,pakodis will not be of a round ball shape as the batter is thinner, but then we want them soft and not shapely) . Leave the batter covered to rest for 20 minutes. C@Rg

Now add the onions and green chilli . Mix it and beat the batter with your hand for two minutes to make it fluffy. (You may use a whisk, but I still prefer my hands)

Heat Ghee in a pan, when hot, add 9 to 10 pakodis , Let them cook on sim for a while , after 2 minutes maybe increase the gas flame to medium hot and flip all the pakodis so they are cooked evenly all over, when golden brown remove on a plate,

Fry all the batches ,when ready dip the pakodis in the gravy.

We all know, this dish is best served with rice❤️

And O yes, I follow a small little ritual of offering “bhog’ to bhagwanji before every meal. 🙏Happy eating people!

Author: Rekha Gupta