Kadhi

A healthy, creamy and slightly tart Indian soup made with yogurt and chick pea flour

Indian thaali masala basics kadhi khichri jeera aloo

 

Ever heard of a yogurt soup?  Looking for a soup packed with protein or tired of eating plain yogurt cups?  Kadhi (ka dhee), is a popular Indian soup enjoyed alongside any traditional north Indian meal. Its main ingredients are yogurt and chick pea flour and which makes it a healthy and hearty soup. At restaurants, Kadhi is frequently part of north Indian thaali meals.  Whether its enjoyed by itself or with rice, kadhi and most other soups are typically served with the main meal; not by itself as an appetizer. 

There are a few variations like : the Gujarati kadhi which is slightly sweet, light yellow color and often made without onion or garlic, the Panjabi kadhi is a thicker consistency and has pakoras (fritters) in it.  Depending on how much turmeric is used, the color can vary from a light yellow to a darker mustard yellow.  The consistency also varies in different parts of India.  This makes it a flexible dish to make.  Try this basic recipe below the first time, then adjust it to make it your own for next time.

For me, Kadhi is a comfort food and there is nothing like a steaming bowl of kadhi and khichri at the end of a stressful day. I love to gets bits of onion and tomato in my smooth kadhi. Along with khichri, its a perfect simple healthy meal.

Tempering (waghaar) is a very common practice in Indian food, addition of hot oil and spices at the very end.  Some believe that a layer if floating oil on top (tari) of the finished dish must be preset to complete a dish. For health reasons, I am personally not a fan of waghaar or tempering at the end. It is extra oil and calories that I feel can very easily be omitted without sacrificing any flavor.  Most of my cooking starts with very little oil at the beginning  which is like a tempering already so I don’t find it necessary to add oil again at the end.  I prefer to do this at the beginning to allow the flavor to permeate throughout the rest of the cooking process.  This is also why you hardly see any tari in my finished dish, this keeps it healthy.  

Makes approx 4 servings 

Time: 5 mins to prep, 20 mins to cook

kadhi soup creamy indian yogurt chick pea flour besan

Ingredients:

  • 1 small or 3/4 cups of sliced onion
  • 1/2 cup small diced tomato (if you like tomatoes in your soup cut them bigger, if you don’t you can blend it)
  • 1/2 tsp ginger garlic paste or 2 fresh cloves of garlic sliced or diced
  • 1/4 tsp black mustard seeds (rai)
  • 1/8 tsp cumin seeds (jeeru)
  • 1/8 tsp fenugreek seeds (methi)
  • 1 cup of plain yogurt (whole milk)
  • 1/3 cups (or 6 tbsps) of besan/chana ato (chick pea flour)
  • 6 curry leaves
  • 1/4 tsp cumin coriander powder
  • 1/8 tsp turmeric powder
  • 1/8 tsp chili powder
  • Optional: 1 green chili (chop it if you like spicy, or keep whole for less spice)
  • 1 tbsp lemon juice (depends on how tart the yogurt is)
  • 1 tbs oil
  • 1/4 tbsp salt
  • 1/2 tbsp sugar
  • 4 cups of water
  • Optional garnish with chopped fresh coriander leaves (dhania)

Method:

  1. In a bowl, whisk together yogurt, besan, salt, sugar, lemon juice, water and all the powder spices into a lump free smooth mixture. Can be done in a blender as well.  Set aside
  2. In a nonstick pot, on medium heat, add oil, mustard seeds, cumin seeds, fenugreek seeds, green chili, and curry leaves. heat till the mustard seeds start to splutter
  3. Add onion and stir fry for 2 mins till it just starts to color. No need to brown fully
  4. Add garlic ginger paste and stir fry for a min
  5. Add tomatoes and stir fry for a min
  6. Add the yogurt mixture from step 1 above, stir well 
  7. Cook for 10 mins until it comes to a full boil. stir occasionally in between
  8. Taste and adjust the salt and chili if needed. Add water if you like the consistency thinner
  9. Turn heat to medium low and continue to boil for another 10 mins.  Stir occasionally.  You should see a darker yellow forming in the middle and some oil droplets floating on top. 
  10. Turn off heat, add chopped fresh coriander leaves for garnish and serve hot
  11. Enjoy!

Tips:

  • Did you know…..Kadhi can be frozen, yes it can! Make extra and freeze a batch. When ready to use, thaw at room temperature. When it defrosts, it will look like it has curdled and separated, but fear not.  Heat in a pot on medium till it comes to a full rolling boil, the consistency will become smooth once again. Do not add coriander leaves as they will discolor, always add them fresh when serving.
  • Restaurant tip: add a tablespoon of sour cream with the yogurt mixture at the beginning for a creamier consistency
  • Consistency depends on the yogurt. If you use low fat yogurt, you can increase besan to accommodate. If you use Greek yogurt, you will need less besan and more water.  This ratio can be tricky, so I suggest using whole milk plain yogurt as a great in between alternative.
  • If you would like to add a tempering: in a small frying pan, heat up 2 tbsp of oil, add  dry red chili, red chili powder, sliced garlic, stir fry for 30 secs till the garlic gets light brown. Immediately add on top of the soup and serve.

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