Panjabi Kadhi

My local Indian restaurant used to serve this dish for lunch on Tuesdays and Fridays. The chef/owner didn’t always clearly label his food, so I affectionately referred to it simply as “the yellow stuff.” I eventually decided that I should learn to make it myself. While it requires some uncommon spices, the results are wonderful. My home-made version is just as good as what I would order in any restaurant!

 Favorite Indian Vegetarian prep20 mins cook40 mins total time1 hr servings5 addedAugust 2018

Pakoras (Fritters)

• 1 cup besan (gram, chickpea flour)
• 1 onion, chopped
• (optional) 2 cloves garlic, grated
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon red chili powder
• (optional) ½ teaspoon chaat masala
• cooking oil

1. Pour besan (gram flour) in a bowl. Add Salt and red chili powder. Optionally you can also add grated garlic and chaat masala for a spicy taste.
2. Add water to make a batter of thick consistency. Mix well to remove all lumps in the besan.
3. Cut small slices of onions. Add the onion slices to the batter and mix well.
4. Heat oil in a deep-frying pan. Scoop small portions of the mixture in your hand or a spoon and gently drop it in the hot oil. Fry the pakoras on medium flame, gently flipping in between to ensure even heating. Make sure not to overcrowd the pan.
5. Remove the pakoras when they are crispy and golden-brown in color. Drain them on an absorbent paper and set them aside. Fry all pakoras this way.

Kadhi

• 1 cup sour curd or yogurt
• ¼ cup besan
• 3 cups water
• 3 – 4 cloves garlic, grated
• ½ teaspoon fenugreek seeds
• 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
• ¼ teaspoon cumin seeds
• ½ teaspoon red chili powder
• ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
• 1 pinch hing (asafoetida)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 – 3 dry red chili peppers
• 1 tablespoon oil
• (optional) Cilantro (coriander leaves), for garnish

1. Put about 1 cup of sour curd (yogurt) in a bowl and beat it properly.
2. Now add about 2 tablespoons of Besan (Gram Flour) along with 3 cups of water.
3. Mix taking care to remove all lumps.
4. Add red chili powder, turmeric powder, fenugreek seeds and salt and mix well.
5. Pour the mixture in a pan and cook it on medium heat. Stir continuously till the mixture boils.
6. Turn the heat to low and cook on minimum flame for 30 minutes stirring occasionally.
7. Heat oil in a pan and add mustard seeds. Fry until the mustard seeds start to crackle.
8. Then add cumin seeds and fry for a few seconds.
9. Add dried red chilis, garlic and hing (asafoetida) to the pan. Hing is one of the main flavoring ingredients in this recipe.
10. Add the pakoras to the hot kadhi mixture and cover the pan. Cook on medium heat for 5 minutes.
11. Add the prepared tempering to the kadhi pakora mixture. Mix thoroughly and cook for few minutes on medium heat.
12. Punjabi Kadhi Pakora is ready. Garnish it with coriander leaves. Serve it hot with rice or roti.