Classic Cucumber Raita with Mint

CR_650Raitas are Indian yogurt salads. They come in many varieties. The most common one being this cooling variety with cucumber and mint. Hence, the classic cucumber raita with mint.

The Story of Classic Cucumber Raita with Mint and Guidelines

This is not much of a recipe, it is more of a guideline. A guideline is a loose prescription. For example at a bare minimum a raita will have yogurt and then it will have something refreshing and cooling and possibly neutral tasting. Such as in this case and most popular instances cucumber. But then again they can have radishes or carrots as in my recipe in the Spices and Seasons cookbook, or even eggs. Yes, this one had been on my list to try, right alongside the DIY gift for the baby brother.

Ironically enough, we make the radish raita with mustard, pretty often, the MIL approves of it!

However, when I saw this recipe, something caught my attention and I had to post my classic version. There are a few ingredients in this classic version that are not really discretionary.

Cucumber Raita

Spices and the Raita

The two in my opinion are, the cayenne or black pepper and the cumin, this sort of harks back to their ayurvedic roots. Well, the cumin is both cooling and a part of my essential spice kit, and is also soothing and good for the summer and the black pepper and or cayenne helps with the heat factor. I see a lot of raita recipe these days with lime and lime zest, well… not so sure, because in North India, where the raita originates one tends to use at least a day old yogurt for the raita, which makes it naturally tart. Classic means different things to different people…

Cucumber and Mint Raita

 

Given the date and events, I could not help noting John Nash’s death. eing a arithmeticians spouse myself I so realize the weird dimensions of a beautiful mind. In my opinion, Alicia’s love was classic, and others might not agree. So their lies the conundrum of being classic.

Cucumber Mint Raita

So without much fuss, check out this classic cucumber raita with mint. For a fall variation, consider this beetroot and mint raita.

 

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Classic Cucumber Raita with Mint

Prep Time: 25 minutes

Cucumber Raita is a refreshing and classic Indian condiment, perfect to beat the heat or cool the spices in most Indian dishes.

Ingredients

  • 2 medium sized English or Persian cucumbers (About 11/2 pounds)
  • 11/2 cups of day old natural yogurt
  • 1/2 cup fresh mint leaves
  • 1/2 teaspoon black or Himalayan salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground cumin
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 1/4 teaspoon sugar
  • Cayenne pepper for garnishing (optional)

Instructions

  1. Peel the cucumbers coarsely. Grate about 3/4 of all the cucumbers and finely chop the rest. Set the chopped cucumbers separate from the the grated cucumbers. Place the grated cucumbers in mixing bowl.
  2. In a separate bowl add the yogurt and beat well.
  3. Mince the mint leaves and add in to the yogurt.
  4. Add in the cumin, black pepper and the sugar and beat well. Gently fold in the grated cucumbers,
  5. Top with the diced cucumbers and sprinkle with the cayenne and chill up to an hour or serve immediately.
https://spicechronicles.com/classic-cucumber-raita-with-mint/

2 Comments

  • Easy Shrimp Biryani

    […] While you can get several variations of a biryani, the Kolkata style biryani tends to be characterized with milder seasonings, and the addition of both eggs and potatoes into the mix. Today, I did a middle ground and did not add potatoes but did add in the egg, the highlight of the nuanced flavors of this dish was the marriage of mint, saffron and rosewater. I spent the requisite time to actually brown the onions and dished this up with a raita made with fresh garden cucumbers and mint. […]

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