Punjabi cuisine is renowned for its rich and robust meat preparations, but if you look closely, you would realise that the cuisine is actually a wide and vivid gamut of delicacies that are enough to quash all your pre-conceived notions. Punjab is one of the most fertile lands, and the people there know how to use its local and seasonal produce to best use. While you may have had many classic Punjabi dishes in your life, but if there is one dish that always manages soothe our cravings- it has to be the Punjabi Kadhi Pakoda. There are many kinds of kadhis, many states also have their own trademark kadhis, for instance Maharashtrian kadhi, Gujarati Kadhi and Sindhi Kadhi, the Punjabi version is tangy and a whole lot spicier.
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Besan is a very versatile ingredient
This yellow-coloured curry is thickened with besan and curd. While curd gives this curry its characteristic tanginess, besan gives it the thick, wholesome appeal. Punjabi Kadhi is also incomplete without the addition of pakodas or fritters. Typically, these fritters are made of chopped onions and gram flour, but you can experiment with the ingredients and toss in the fritters of your liking too. The flavour of this kadhi is mostly mild, which is why crunchy fritters taste exceptionally well here.
Kadi is actually very easy to prepare, provided you have all the ingredients ready. For tempering ( very important), this recipe uses a mix of cumin seeds, asafetida, red chilli powder and coriander leaves.
To make the kadhi, you need to whisk yoghurt, gram flour, turmeric, water and salt together. Let it come to a boil on medium flame. Next you are supposed to temper the kadhi with a tempering made of oil and other tempering ingredients, starting with cumin seeds followed by hing and finally red chilli powder and coriander leaves. Finally, add the pakodas to the kadhi, cook for a while. Serve hot with garnish of coriander leaves.
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Kadhi is made with besan and curd
That's it. Sounds doable? Why don't you try for yourself. Here's the full recipe of Punjabi Kadhi Pakoda. We love to pair our Punjabi kadhi with steamed rice, however, you can pair it with roti or naan as well.
Try this yummy recipe at home and let us know how you liked it in the comments section below.