Raita is a yogurt-based Indian side dish. It can be made with a lot of different ingredients: potato, pomegranate, tomatoes etc. I like this cucumber and red onion version because the combination of ingredients makes it quite fresh. It’s a great side to pretty much any dry-vegetable dish, especially if your main has a bit of a spicy kick!
RECIPE
Type: vegetarian (can be made vegan by using vegan yogurt)
Approx. Preparation time: 10 minutes
Approx. Cooking time: none
Serves: 2
INGREDIENTS
- 200g unflavoured greek yogurt
- One quarter of a cucumber (unpeeled)
- A handful of fresh coriander
- A quarter of a red onion
- Cumin seeds (preferably lightly roasted on a pan for 5 minutes on very low heat)
- A pinch of paprika
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- Optional – two tablespoons of milk, this makes the texture a little more silky and helps with the taste if your yogurt is a bit sour
PREPARATION STEPS
- Grate the cucumber (make sure you wash it well, as in this recipe it is not peeled) and pop it into a small bowl
- Finely chop the coriander leaves and add to the bowl
- Finely dice the onion and add to the bowl
- Crush the roasted cumin seeds between your hands, by rubbing one palm against the other, and add to the bowl
- Add the yogurt and mix well
- Add the salt, pepper and paprika and mix well
- Optional – Add the milk and stir well
- Keep in the fridge until it’s time to serve
