Kadhi

Now this is the kadhi I had known and savored all along, unless I landed up here in delhi and tasted the punjabi kadhi, something totally different. My kadhi version is the marathi one, with no haldi, lots of curd/buttermilk and very less besan..a contrast to the punjabi kadhi version. By now, I have started to relish both - I make the marathi one at home and enjoy the punjabi one at restaurants - lucky me!

Ingredients -
250 ml of buttermilk. If you dont have butermilk, you can add water to curd and mix it well to get a smooth, watery consistency.
2 tbsp of besan
2 green chillis slit lengthwise
half inch piece of ginger chopped to small pieces
handful of cleaned, fresh curry leaves/kadi patta/ meetha neem
1 tsp jeera
2 pinches of heeng
2 tsp ghee/oil
salt as per taste, a pinch of sugar

Method-
1. Add the besan slowly to the buttermilk. Keep stirring, lest it forms lumps. Keep this aside.
2. Heat ghee/oil in a pan/wok/kadhai.
3. When hot, add jeera and let it sizzle for a few seconds. Add heeng.
4. Add the green chillis, curry leaves, ginger and let them wilt for a minute.
5. Add the buttermilk + besan mixture and stir.
6. Add salt, sugar. Let this come to a rolling boil.
7. Sprinkle chopped dhania.
The simple, basic kadhi is ready to be served with rice or rotis. This is the way it is prepared in maharashtian households daily. However, occasionally, 'bhaji' is added to it - unlike the pakoda in punjabi kadhi, this one does not have any vegtables in it, but just simple salted besan bahjia. Here's the recipe -
2 tbsp besan
1 tsp ajwain
salt to taste
1 tspn oil
Mix all the above with some water, to make a thick batter. Heat oil in a kadhai and deep fry small dumplings of this batter. Add these to the kadhi.

Note - these bhaji can absorb all your kadhi :). So, always add them to the kadhi just half an hour before serving.