The Perfect Kadhi

Charu: Namaste Tribe, please pour in your suggestions to make the best kadhi—no onion or garlic either in kadhi or the pakodas. My attempts to recreate my Ma’s version have failed terribly. 

Jayshree: For the best kadhi, you need to find a good proportion of besan and a dahi-water mix.

Archana: I use one cup of curd with one tablespoon of besan. 

Jayshree: Lets say 200 grams dahi ka packet. One spoon besan. The spoon that we use to eat. Add enough water to make it watery. Because it will thicken up when cooked.

Archana: For the pakoras, use moong dal that is soaked overnight, then ferment it. Before making the pakoras, whisk the batter to make it fluffy. Rather than frying, boil it in salt water, and squeeze before adding in kadhi.

Charu: Umm… no frying? How to boil in salt water? We use besan for the pakoras.

Jayshree: For the tadka, use panchphoran, kadi patta, hing, salt, and turmeric. That’s it. No lal mirch. You can use green chillies if you want. Add just a tad bit of sugar and adjust the sourness with some nimbu at the end.

Archana: Always add salt to the kadhi after you are done cooking. Just 1 minute before you switch off the gas. 

Jayshree: We don’t generally put pakodas but add dry Methi at the end. You can add fresh methi too since its in season. We also add mungodi sometimes.

Archana: I gave a recipe for moong dal. For besan, you can fry, then add it in salt water, and squeeze it before adding to the kadhi. Moong dal batter needs to be thick, like the medu vada batter. For scooping it easily, the water should be at a good boiling point.

Charu: Now I have a few hardened pakodes. Can they be treated to become edible or do I discard them? 

Archana: Try to add it in warm water, see if that works. Keep it for 15-20 minutes. 

Nidhi: Hi Charu, hope your pakodas softened.

Sounds like you are trying to get a specific taste (your Ma’s)… It might help to know where you are from, as the kadhi is made differently in different parts of the country. People from that region might have more suitable suggestions for you 🙂I can share my mother’s recipe, as I have seen in the past that your way is very close to hers. 

Beat some sour, thick curd with a hand blender. Then add besan little by little and keep blending until you get a thick, gooey mass. Don’t aim to get a specific colour—that will come from the turmeric. Aim for a thickness and balanced taste. The besan balances the sourness of the curd but doesn’t overwhelm it. You should be able to taste the besan mildly.

Then add turmeric, jeera powder, salt, and slit green chillies and give it a good whisk. Adding the masalas here would prevent the curd from splitting. (How much water you add here depends on what you are going to do with the pakodas—-explaining it later). Let’s say, you keep it reasonably thick. Remember, it will thicken up as the besan cooks, but don’t go overboard with the water in the beginning. You can add more later if it is too thick. Switch off the heat once the besan is cooked and you are comfortable with the consistency. (Keep it slightly more watery than the final consistency you want as the pakodas will absorb some water). Add a tadka in oil of methi dana. You can add a little hing, if you want. 

For the pakodas, just add the basic spices and salt in besan (don’t forget hara dhania). No need for onions. While adding water to the mix, don’t aim for crispy pakodas. If the batter is slightly dense, it will give you soft pakodas. And yes, whisk them nicely. Get some air in. Keep water at room temperature in a bowl ready. As you fry and take the pakodas out, dunk them immediately in the water. Some oil will be lost in the process, but pakodas will be soft. Later, squeeze the pakodas, add them to the  kadhi, and slow-boil them together for 5 minutes. They should somewhat absorb the kadhi. Don’t wait to do this just before you sit down to eat. Do it as soon as you are done with the frying. They will absorb the kadhi and stay soft. 

If you don’t want to dunk them in normal water, keep the kadhi quite thin and dunk them directly into the kadhi. This will give you a different taste, but some people prefer it. Hope it helps! 

Charu: Thank you so much Nidhi! The detailed steps are very close to the process, as far as I remember. Her besan pakoras for kadhi and moong dal pakoras for dahi bhalle were highly sought after! I have almost given up on those dishes… can’t match years of experience… lol.

I have kept the pakoras in the fridge to test-prepare pakore ki sabzi… I guess a kind of gatte ki sabzi. We are in Delhi, but can say Ma’s cooking is predominantly influenced by her Amma, who is from Meerut.