An Indian yogurt dip, my Cucumber Raita recipe is light, fresh, and delicious, plus it has a great cooling effect and is a palette cleanser with super spicy dishes. It’s the perfect accompanying side for Tandoori Chicken. There are thousands of varieties of Raita, mine has diced cucumber, diced red onion, cilantro, and mint leaves. Many people cannot eat cilantro, in that case, substitute parsley and it’s just as good.
Cucumber Raita Ingredients
- Cucumber: Any variety of cucumber will work with this recipe. One very important thing to do is reduce the moisture in the cucumber. The easiest and fastest method is to peel and grate the cucumber. Then place it in a clean kitchen towel you use to wring out the excess moisture. The other option is for a chunky Raita. Peel and dice the cucumber into ¼-inch dice, place in a sieve and add the salt to it, let drain for one hour, discard the liquid.
- Yogurt: Plain, whole-milk yogurt works best. Plain Greek yogurt is an excellent substitution.
- Red Onion: Finely diced red onion is a nice addition to the Raita. It adds a small amount of spice and pungency to it that is very flavorful.
- Mint and Cilantro: Fresh herbs are a must and add a tremendous amount of flavor. Cilantro leaves are also known as coriander.
- Ground Cumin, Black Pepper, and Cayenne Pepper: Tempering spices is a technique in Indian cuisine. Tempering is normally done by briefly frying spices in oil prior to adding them to the other ingredients. There is no oil in my Cucumber Raita recipe, so instead, I briefly toast the spices in a medium-hot pan for only 20-25 seconds. This wakes up the spices and makes them taste as though they were freshly ground this morning. The difference in taste is well worth the effort.
Here’s my Cucumber Raita recipe:
Cucumber Raita
An Indian yogurt dip, my Cucumber Raita recipe is light, fresh, and delicious, plus it has a great cooling effect and is a palette cleanser with super spicy dishes. It’s the perfect accompanying side for Tandoori Chicken. There are thousands of varieties of Raita, mine has diced cucumber, diced red onion, cilantro, and mint leaves.
Servings 4
Calories 53kcal
Ingredients
- 1 Cup Yogurt
- 1 Cucumber Either diced or grated
- 1/4 Cup Red Onion Fine dice
- 2 Tablespoons Fresh Mint Chopped
- 2 Tablespoons Fresh Cilantro Or flat-leaf parsley, Chopped,
- 1/4 Teaspoon Ground Cumin
- 1/4 Teaspoon Cayenne Pepper
- 1 Teaspoon Salt
- 1/2 Teaspoon Black Pepper
Instructions
- Peel and seed cucumber. For a chunky Raita, dice cucumber into ¼-inch dice, place in a sieve and add the salt to it, let drain for one hour, discard the liquid. For a smooth Raita, grate the cucumber and place in a clean kitchen towel, wring out the excess moisture, discard the liquid
- Optional: Place a skillet over medium-high heat and toast the ground cumin, black pepper, and cayenne pepper. This will wake up the spices and brighten their flavors.
- Place all ingredients in a bowl, mix to combine.
- Taste, adjust seasonings to your personal preference
Nutrition
Calories: 53kcal | Carbohydrates: 6g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 2g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 8mg | Sodium: 612mg | Potassium: 226mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 286IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 91mg | Iron: 1mg
