Gujarati Kadhi
Gujarati Kadhi is a traditional sweet and tangy preparation. The most common way of making this is to blend yogurt, besan and spices, and serve it with a traditional rice dish called Khichdi.  The rice dish Khichdi is the Gujarati equivalent of chicken soup for vegetarians. Khichdi and Kadhi is to Gujarat what Chicken soup is to the West.  It is a nurturing and digestive food. Unlike Kadhi served in North India, Gujarati kadhi is sweet in taste. Most Gujarati recipes include sugar or jaggery. I prefer a thicker consistency, but you can add more water if you wish. It is always a pleasure to have a warm bowl of kadhi and it can be easily prepared  and relished any time of the year. Moreover, it takes only few minutes to make this dish with some basic ingredients and spices found in most household pantries.
Prep Time: 5 mins
Cook Time: 10 mins
Total Time: 15 mins
Ingredients
    For Kadhi:
  • 2 cups yogurt (about 500 gms.)
  • 3 tbsp. besan (chickpea or gram flour)
  • 2 tsp. ginger (finely chopped)
  • 2 green chilli (finely chopped)
  • 1/2 tsp. fenugreek pd. (methi pd.)
  • 2 cups water (or more according to taste)
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 3 tsp. sugar (more or less according to taste)
    • For Tadka (Tempering):
  • 2 tbsp. ghee (clarified butter)
  • 4 cloves
  • 3 dried red chillies
  • 1/4 tsp. turmeric
  • a pinch of asafoetida (hing)
  • 1 sprig curry leaves
  • 1 sprig cilantro (for garnish)
Instructions
    To make kadhi:
  1. Mix yogurt, besan, green chillies, ginger, sugar, salt, fenugreek pd. and water. Pour into a blender jar and blend well.
  2. Pour the contents into a pan and keep it on low heat. Bring it to a boil, stirring well so that the kadhi does not curdle. As it boils, the kadhi will gradually turn a little thicker in consistency because of the besan.
    3. For the tadka/tempering:
  3. Heat ghee in a small pan. Then add cumin, mustard seeds, cloves, whole red chillies, turmeric, asafoetida and curry leaves. Saute well until the seeds start spluttering and the cloves double in size.
  4. Turn off the flame and add the tempering to the pan of boiling kadhi.
  5. Check seasonings, add chopped cilantro and simmer on low to medium flame for a couple of minutes.
  6. Serve kadhi with plain rice, pilaf or khichdi.