UP Style Kadhi Pakora Recipe – Traditional Uttar Pradesh Kadhi

UP Style Kadhi with pakora and rice

Kadhi, Uttar Pradesh style. Proper comfort food. The sort that simmers away while the house smells like home. Kadhi is a traditional North Indian yoghurt-based curry thickened with gram flour and gently spiced, usually served with rice. It is humble, frugal and deeply comforting, born from the clever use of slightly sour yoghurt and pantry staples. In Uttar Pradesh, the kadhi is thinner, well simmered and paired with soft gram flour pakoras that soak up all that tangy warmth.

This version has three parts: the yoghurt base made with slightly sour yoghurt, the spiced thin sauce and the pakoras. Then comes the all-important tadka, because kadhi without a sizzling finish is simply not done.

INGREDIENTS

For the kadhi base

1–1.2 cup sour yoghurt

4 tbsp gram flour, sieved

3/4 tsp turmeric

1/2 tsp chilli flakes

1 tsp Dreied fenugreek leaves, kasuri methi, crushed

Salt

Water, to loosen

For the sauce

2–3 tbsp oil

1 tsp cumin seeds

1/2 tsp carom seeds

1/2 tsp mustard seeds

1/4 tsp fenugreek seeds

Pinch of asafoetida

1 tsp coriander seeds, crushed

3–4 garlic cloves, finely chopped

1 inch ginger, finely chopped

1 small onion, finely sliced

1/4 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder

Salt

2–3 cups water

For the pakoras

1 cup gram flour

1 onion, finely chopped

1 tsp ginger garlic paste

1 tsp chaat masala

1/2 tsp carom seeds

Pinch of asafoetida

1/2 tsp turmeric

1 tsp cumin powder

1/2 tsp degi mirch or any red chilli powder

Salt

1–2 green chillies, chopped

Fresh coriander, chopped

Approx. 1/2 cup water

Oil, for frying

For the tadka

1–2 tbsp oil

4–5 curry leaves

1/2 tsp cumin seeds

1/2 tsp mustard seeds

Pinch of carom seeds

Pinch of asafoetida

Few coriander seeds

1 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder

2–3 dried red chillies, broken

Pinch of garam masala, to finish

METHOD

Whisk the yoghurt until smooth. Add gram flour and whisk until lump-free. Stir in turmeric, chilli flakes, salt and crushed dried fenugreek leaves or kasuri methi. Add enough water to make a thin pouring consistency. Keep aside.

Heat oil in a sauce pan or kadai. Add cumin, carom, mustard and fenugreek seeds, asafoetida and crushed coriander seeds on low heat so the fenugreek does not burn. Add garlic and ginger, fry briefly, then add sliced onion and cook until just pink. Stir in Kashmiri chilli powder and salt, adding a splash of water so the spices do not catch.

Lower the heat and pour in the yoghurt mixture, stirring continuously. Add 2–3 cups water. Bring to a gentle boil, then cover and simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

For the pakoras, mix all ingredients except water. Add water gradually, beating in one direction to form a thick dropping batter. Heat oil well, reduce to low, then add spoonfuls of batter. Fry until golden and cooked through.

Add the hot pakoras directly into the simmering kadhi and allow them to soak.

For the tadka, heat oil and add curry leaves, cumin, mustard, carom seeds, asafoetida, coriander seeds, Kashmiri chilli powder and dried red chillies. Let them splutter and immediately pour over the kadhi. Finish with a pinch of garam masala and serve with plain rice.

UP Style Kadhi recipe by Suki Pantal