punjabi kadhi

Punjabi Kadhi
Punjabi kadhi is one of the most prominent and exotic recipes of India. In Northern India, pakoras are added to the chickpea gravy and sour yogurt is added to add flavour to it. They are eaten either with boiled rice or roti.Kadhi is made with different variations ranging from different countries. I made the version of punjabi kadhi in which besan is used to thicken the gravy and by adding pakoras it gives a crispy and brittle taste to the gravy.

As I relish eating punjabi food ,that is why kadhi is one of my favorites it consists of so much of masalas because of that me and my family enjoys every part of it. I usually eat kadhi with rice with a dollop of ghee and with crunchy papads.  

I remember the day when i got to know about this dish, it was just like a normal day and when i opened my fridge and tasted my yogurt and it tasted very sour in taste. I just got worried about it as i had made this yogurt in bulk. For the help, I called my mom and she then told me about her recipe of making the "Punjabi Kadhi" . Then, I was felt relieved as now my yogurt won't be wasted. 

From that day and since now , I adore making kadhi. It is just because of my mom who told me about her precious and evergreen recipe of kadhi. Now, I am thinking that I should share this golden recipe with all of you.

Ingredients -
For kadhi batter -

1. 2 cups of sour curd (around 250 grams)
2. 3 tbsp of besan(gram flour)
3. 1 and half cup of water
4. 1 tsp salt
5. 1 tsp turmeric powder
6. 2 tsp freshly made ginger,garlic and green chili paste.(I have taken 3 to 4 garlic cloves,1 small piece of ginger and 5 to 6 green chilies and made a paste out of it)
7. 1 tsp coriander powder.
8. 1 tsp freshly chopped coriander.

For pakoras -

1. 1 no.medium sized finely sliced onion
2. 1 and 1/2 cup of besan
3. 1 cup water (you can reduce or increase the water for the pakoras because it depends on the quantity of besan)
4. Salt as per taste
5. 1 tsp Red chili powder
6. 1 tsp freshly made ginger, garlic and chili paste
7. 1 tsp Coriander powder 
8. 2 tsp freshly chopped green coriander
9. Oil to deep fry the pakoras

For Tadka-

1. 2 tbsp vegetable oil.
2. 1 medium sized onion finely sliced.
3. 3 to 4 red dry chilies.
4. 5 to 6 curry pattas.
5. 2 pinch Asafoetida  (heeng).
6. 2 tsp cumin seeds.
7. 2 tbsp dry mango powder(you can use this if you want your kadhi to be little more tangy,if not then you can skip this step)

For final tempering (tadka)

1. 2 tsp desi ghee
2. 1 no.medium sized onion(finely sliced)
3. 2 Red dry chilies(optional) 
4. 1/2 tsp coarsed coriander powder.

 Method -

1.  Take a bowl and start making the batter of kadhi by adding curd and besan ,whisk it very well .

Follow the steps as i have mentioned above by adding -

1. 1 and half cup of water
2. 1 tsp salt
3. 1 tsp turmeric powder
4. 2 tsp freshly made ginger,garlic and green chili paste.(I have taken 3 to 4 garlic cloves,1 small piece of ginger and 5 to 6 green chilies and made a paste out of it)
5. 1 tsp coriander powder.
6. 1 tsp freshly chopped coriander.

Whisk the ingredients very properly to avoid lumps and keep it aside.

For pakoras -

1. Take a wok add oil heat it up properly.
2.  Take a bowl add besan,onions,coriander leaves,paste and all the dry spices and mix it well by adding water in it.
3. Now take the batter in your hands and drop it in hot oil and make pakoras from it.
4. Flip the pakoras and once they starts changing it color,take them out on an abosorbent paper.
5. Make rest of the pakoras from this batter.Keep it aside.

For the kadhi-

1. Take a deep big wok add oil and heat it up.
2. Add onions and stir fry them for 2 minutes.
3. Add cumin seeds,red chilies,curry leaves and asafoetida.
4. Let it pop up.
5. Now take your kadhi batter and pour it in the wok.
6. Mix the ingredients properly and add ginger,garlic and chili paste.
7. Now let it boil properly.
8. Add more salt,turmeric powder and mango powder.
9. You can add more water because the curry gets thick after boils.
10. Now sim the flame and let the kadhi get boiled up for around 1/2 an hour.
11. Stir it in between to avoid lumps.
12. When you will find the kadhi does not have froth and its properly mixed up with the gram flour and curd,this means your kadhi is almost ready.

For final touch of the tempering-

1. Take a small wok add ghee heat it up.
2. Add onions and saute it for 2 to 3 minutes.
3. Add dry red chilies.
4. Stir it and close the flame when onions become translucent in color.
5. Now pour the tempering on the kadhi with the fresh coriander leaves and coarsed coriander powder. Serve it hot steamed rice or roti.