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Last updated on May 19th, 2024 at 10:45 am

A cooling Indian cuisine-inspired condiment or side made of yogurt, spices, mint and cucumber. This is an easy to follow raita recipe to keep.

What is Raita?

Raita is a yogurt based condiment, side or dip. It is commonly served with hot and spicy dishes. There are different variations of raita from different parts of India. From browsing the web for recipes and watching videos on social media platforms I see different versions.

I was first introduced to raita when I was teaching in a Kindergaten. I was assigned the cooking part and it had to do with fried food and then I had to look for something to pair it with which was raita.

I could not believe my eyes when I found the easiest recipe and was able to make it without any practice.

This dish brings an element of creaminess. And when eating hot, spicy foods it cools things down and make life bearable. You know when you know.

You will not find many Indian-inspired dishes on this site yet but try this Filipino chicken curry and pair it with raita.

What was your first experience or impression of making and tasting raita?

Basic Ingredients

Yogurt – plain yogurt is a must just turn away from flavored ones
cucumber – any type of cucumber will work for this recipe just be aware of the thickness of the skin and the seeds
chili – spicy chili pepper for a kick, opt out if not keen or if you want to make this kid-friendly use freshly ground pepper
cumin – adds earthy flavor to the dish
mint – adds freshness and flavor punch

HOW TO MAKE RAITA

Mix together freshly chopped cucumber, green chillies, mint with yogurt and sprinkle spices such as ground cumin among other ingredients. For this recipe, I did not season with any salt because I felt that the cumin and the chili were enough to spice this up but you are welcome to season as you wish.

FAQs

What does raita pair with?

Raita can be paired with any Indian dish. It serves as an accompaniement to spicy and rich dishes as it cools and calms the palate. This is affirmed by Priya on her article in Bon Apetit as well as by Anjali who made a basic raita recipe which you can find here. But it does not end there, I use mine as a dip for chips or crisps and just a vegetable dip. Nisha Katona inspires me to try to make dishes that pair with raita. You might find her recipes helpful too which you can find here.

Raita Variations

Variations of raita is endless. Spiceupthecurry has 15 recipes to choose from in addition to the popular onion-tomato, mint, and cucumber that will pair with any dishes. If you are on the look out for the yogurt sauce that goes well with Biryani this guy of Get Curried on Youtube has 5 recipes to choose from.

What spices to use in raita?

The common spices used are cumin, chilies, black pepper to make it child-friendly and chaat masala.

Could I make this recipe dairy-free?

Yes, this recipe could be dairy-free by swapping the yogurt to a plant-based one.

Watch how to make Easy Raita

Here’s a quick video on how to whip up a quick raita.

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