One such dish that defines the best north Indian cuisine is the kadhi. This is a mildly spiced dish with sour buttermilk as a base in which chickpea flour or besan is added and then cooked together with several veggies or veg pakoras/fritters. Finally, a tadka/tempering is poured over it to make it more flavourful
Each state has its variation of cooking the kadhis. Among all, Punjabi kadhi is the most popular and relished by a large number of people. Kadhi’s Gujarati and Sindhi versions are also very popular. In both versions, several seasonal veggies are added to the kadhi
I occasionally cook kadhi pakora in my kitchen but this time I have changed the recipe a little bit. Instead of adding pakoras to the kadhi, I have added spinach/palak to it. And to my pleasure, it was the right decision, the taste of palak kadhi was outstanding. In my opinion, all types of kadhis go very well with steamed rice
Course – Main Course
Cuisine – Indian
Prep Time – 10 Min
Cook Time – 25 Min
Total Time – 35 Min
Yield – 4 Servings
Author – Bharti Dhawan
Ingredients
1- Washed and finely chopped spinach – 2 cups
2- Sour buttermilk/chaas – 5 cups or 1 lt
3- Chickpea flour/besan – 3 tbsp
4- Finely chopped onion – 1/2 cup
5- Finely chopped ginger – 1 tsp
6- Finely chopped garlic – 1 tsp
7- Salt – 3 tsp or to taste
8- Turmeric/haldi powder – 2 tsp
9- Red chilly powder – 2 tsp or to taste
10- Cumin seeds – 1 tsp
11- Roasted cumin powder – 2 tsp
12- Coriander seeds – 1 tsp
13- Oil – 1 tbsp
Ingredients for tadka/tempering
1- Oil – 1 tbsp
2- Cumin seeds – 1 tsp
3- Carom/ajwain seeds – 1 tsp
4- Heeng/asafoetida powder – 1 tsp
5- Whole red chilly – 2 nos
6- Green chilly – 1 no (chopped)
7- Red chilly powder – 1 tsp
Instructions
1- Add besan/chickpea flour to buttermilk/chaas and mix well so that there are no lumps
2- Heat oil in a big kadahi and add cumin seeds followed by ginger, garlic, and green chilly. Stir them for a minute
3- Add chopped onions and saute. When the colour changes a little, add salt and all the powdered spices and mix.
4- Time to add chopped spinach and cook for 2 minutes stirring well
5- When the palak /spinach leaves are cooked well, add chaas/buttermilk-besan mix and bring to 1st boil at high flame
6- When kadhi is boiled nicely, slow down the flame and cook kadhi for 15-20 minutes
Steps for Tadka/Tempering
1- Heat oil in a tadka pan and add cumin seeds and carom seeds/ajwain followed by heeng/asafoetida powder
2- Add whole red chilly, curry leaves, and chopped green chilies
3- Add red chilly powder and stir
4- Pour this tadka over cooked kadhi and serve with steamed rice
