Boondi Raita. A delicious Indian yogurt side dish that is so popular across the country. It is made using plain yogurt or curd, tiny fried gram flour balls called boondi and seasoned with basic spices.
Boondi Raita is a very popular raita in India. Raita is a term for seasoned yogurt that has flavors like simple spices and vegetables like cucumber, carrot, onion or boondi. Raita is a side dish in Indian cuisine and also a delicious accompaniment to Indian meals like rice, pulao, and parathas. It is refreshing and cools down a spicy and greasy meal.
Yogurt is essential to Indian cuisine. Most families across India consume yogurt or curd almost daily sometimes even 2 to 3 times in a day. Yogurt or curd or dahi is a popular side to parathas, dal rice. Bacterial fermentation of milk results in the formation of yogurt. Cow‘s milk is the most popular to make yogurt.
Boondi are tiny fried gram flour balls. They are round and spherical. They are also gluten free because gram flour is the main ingredient here. Boondi are easily available in all Indian stores. It is also very simple to make them at home as well. Most stores carry plain and/ or masala boondi.
Boondi raita is extremely simple to make. This is my favorite raita and I love to pair it with tehri, pulao and even aloo puri for that matter. To start, I usually season the yogurt with salt, roasted cumin, some sugar, dry mint, fresh coriander leaves and mix it well. Thereafter I like to add the boondi directly to the yogurt and add some water to my desired consistency. Most people like to soak the boondi in water and add to the seasoned yogurt once it is soft. You may choose to follow any method.
Once the raita is ready, I like to chill in the refrigerator for some time and serve thereafter. It is such a delicious side with rice dishes like pulao, biryani, tehri or even Indian breads like paratha or chapati in a complete meal. It is a very basic side dish but getting it right is always so crucial for that taste. Hope you enjoyed reading and will attempt this very soon.
Boondi Raita
Ingredients
- 2 cup Plain Yogurt (or white curd)
- ½ cup Water (as per desired consistency)
- ½ cup Boondi (Plain or Masala)
- 1 tsp Roasted cumin seeds (coarsely ground)
- ½ to 1 tsp Sugar
- 1 tsp Dried mint leaf powder
- ¼ tsp Red chili powder (optional)
- Salt (to taste)
- ¼ cup Finely chopped coriander leaves
Instructions
- In a mixing bowl, add the yogurt and whisk it well.
- Add the roasted cumin, sugar, dried mint, salt and red chili powder if using and mix everything well.
- Add the chopped coriander leaves and mix well again.
- Now add the water to desired consistency and give this a good mix.
- I usually add the boondi at this stage and mix well with the seasoned yogurt.
- If you prefer to soak the boondi, you may do that in 2 cups of warm water for 15 minutes. Once soft, drain the water and transfer the soft boondi to the seasoned yogurt.
- Refrigerate the boondi raita for minimun 30 minutes before serving.
- You may garnish with some roasted cumin and red chili powder when you are ready to serve.
