Punjabi Kadi Pakora for ICC

This month for Indian Cooking Challengewe traveled to Punjab to try out and taste their Kadi.The recipe Srivalli chose was from Simran of Bombay Foodie.Thanks for the killer recipe Simran.

The recipe is fairly simple and the result was astounding!Very delicious gravy for the little effort you put in..Here is the step by step procedure to make authentic Punjabi Kadi Pakoda

First lets assemble the ingredients ...

For kadi :

Sour curd-2 cups
Gram dhal powder / besan - 1/2 a cup
Onion-1,finley chopped
Mustard-1 teaspoon
Fenugreek seeds-1/2 a  teaspoon
Cumin seeds-1 teaspoon
Red chilli powder-1 teaspoon
Turmeric powder- a pinch
Garam masala- 1/2 a  teaspoon
Salt to taste
Oil-1 teaspoon

For Pakora :

Besan/ Gram dhal flour - 1/4 cup
Onion - 1
Red chilli powder-1/2 a teaspoon
Salt to taste
Oil for deep frying

This is what I did...

1.Take curd in a bowl and add red chilli powder,turmeric powder and salt.

2.Add gram flour and mix well so that there are no lumps.I put curd,water,red chilli powder,salt,gram flour in a mixie jar and blended it for a few seconds.This way it was easy to blend and no lumps too..

3.Heat oil in a pan and put in mustard,cumin and fenugreek seeds.When the mustard crackles,add the onion and saute till translucent.

4.Put in the prepared curd mixture and bring to boil.Add around 1 1/2 cups water.

5.When it come to a rolling boil,simmer.Let it cook on its own ,around 15-20 minutes.Stir occasionally.

6.Meanwhile slice onion for pakora.

7.Prepare a semi thick batter with besan,salt,chilli powder using a little water.Make sure there are no lumps.

8.Put in the onion slices

9.Mix well to coat the onion slices.

10.Heat oil in a pan for deep frying and when it is hot fry the onion pakoras

11.Fry till golden brown and crisp

12.Drain and keep aside.Don't be tempted to taste it coz its so tasty that you will end up almost an empty plate before the kadi gets ready ;)

13.After 15 minutes or when the kadi thickens add the garam masala and the prepared pakoras.

15.Stir and remove from heat.

Serve with Steamed rice....

My notes:

• The original recipe calls for Ajwain  / carom seeds.Since its not available here I omitted it.
• Ditto for amchoor.Since the curd was sour,I was told that omitting amchoor does not change the taste.
• This kadi has to be really thick for it to be called 'Punjabi' kadi.The Gujarati version is fairly 'thinner'

A very delightful challenge and thanks to Srivalli for introducing us to the authentic version...

Earlier in ICC

Pani Puri
Ras Malai
Ariselu / Athirasam
Kachori
Moong dhal halwa
Chegodilu
Gulab jamun

Also check out the other recipe posted today..

Vegetable Pulao and Chutney Raita

Bon Appetit..