DIET SPECIAL ,,,,,,ADD YOGHURT TO YOUR DIET

ADD YOGHURT TO YOUR DIET

A great source of good-for-the-gut bacteria, yoghurt should ideally be consumed daily. Include it in your diet with these recipes

Yoghurt can be used widely in Indian cooking as it acts as a meat tenderiser, a souring agent and also as a base for curries. But cooking with yoghurt can be challenging. “For instance, when I use yoghurt in curries such as doi maanch (fish in yogurt gravy), I lower the heat and always use whole milk yoghurt as it's less likely to curdle,“ says home chef Ananya Banerjee. Each community has its own way of incorporating the item in its cuisine. “I always whisk it well before using for cooking.This way, the whey is combined back into the yoghurt and the addition makes the dish smooth and thick,“ Banerjee adds. Here are some traditional recipes that employ yoghurt.

BEETROOT SASIVE

Sasive (mustard seeds, in Kannada) is usually eaten for lunch or dinner as an accompaniment in Karnataka. “This dish is based on an ancestral recipe from my father's side of the family. Havyaka Brahmin cuisine includes food that is easily digestible, nutritious and made from indigenous herbs and vegetables,“ says food writer Anushruti RK. You may use any vegetable instead of beetroot, but the method of preparation remains the same.“

DAHI WALE ALOO

The cuisine in Uttarakhand is a reflection of the region's climate and the local lifestyle, and yoghurt holds an important place in it. “Garwali and Kumaoni cusine use mustard with yoghurt for their cucumber raitas while Jhola, a popular yoghurt-based gravy is a version of kadhi,“ says food writer Rushina Munshaw Ghildiyal. In Dahi wale aloo, the combination of sesame and yoghurt acts as a mood enhancer. “It's not only soothing for the stomach, but also provides a good dose of calcium,“ she adds.

ECHOR ER DOI BODA

While researching for her cookbook, home chef Ananya Banerjee came across this recipe in a 19th century cookbook by Pragyasundari Debi, published about 120 years ago. “The concept of Dahi Vada is mostly with lentils dumplings, so I was fascinated by this alternative. The jackfruit dumplings can either be dunked into a tomato-based gravy for kofta or a yoghurt-based one,“ says Banerjee.

VENDAKAI PACHADI

Yoghurt as an ingredient is the base for various pachadi style dishes in South India. “Vendakkai Pachadi is a dish I learnt from my mother. It is made in Malyali households and also by the Tamilians of Palakkad,“ says Clara Joy Alookaran from APB Cook Studio. In this dish, the vendakkai or okra is chopped and fried before being mixed into curd that. The dish is gently heated and finished off with a tempering of mustard seeds, red chilies and curry leaves in coconut oil.

Sayoni Sinha

MM28MAY17