Vellarikaai Inji Thayir Pachadi | Cucumber Ginger flavored yogurt - No cook recipe

 Cucumbers are my best friend in summer . I love to munch on some juicy Cucumbers as is or use them in salads or raitas .

Raitas or pachadis are a must have in summer as they cool down the body heat and are comforting on our stomach aiding digestion. 

Across the length and breadth of India ,Cucumbers are an integral part of summer meal be it the Khamang Kakdi of Maharashtra ,Southekaai kosambri from Karnataka ,Vellarikai Kichadi of Kerala or Pahadi Raita from Himachal Region . 

Today , I shall be sharing another favorite recipe using cucumber.  Thayir Pachadi is the South Indian version of raita . We can make thayir pachadi with many vegetables like tomatoes,  sweet potatoes,  ladies finger,ginger etc .

• Sweet potato thayir pachadi
• Dangar Pachadi
• Inji (Ginger) Thayir Pachadi 
• Thakali (Tomato) thayir pachadi 

Inji Vellarikaai thayir pachadi ,is very easy to make and is a No cook recipe.  We will need fresh and tender cucumbers to make this raita . Donot use an over ripe cucumbers as the cucumber won't be juicy and also the seeds will be too mature and rough.

Spice level can be adjusted by increasing or decreasing the number of chillies used .I prefer to keep the pachadi mild so that the flavor of ginger is lifted up. 

Preparation Time - 10 mins
Cooking Time - Nil 
Complexity- easy 
Serves - 3 to 4

Ingredients 

2 small Cucumbers or 1 medium Cucumber
150ml thick yogurt /dahi/curd 
Salt as needed 
Small piece of ginger 
1 small green chilli
Few curry leaves 
2 tsp finely chopped fresh corriander 

1 tsp oil

1/4 tsp mustard seeds

1/4 tsp udad dhall 

Pinch of asafoetida 

Method 

• Peel the skin of the cucumber.  Finely chop half the quantity of the cucumbers and add it to a mixing bowl.
• Roughly chop the other half of the cucumber and blend it with ginger , chilli, corriander, curryleaves and little salt to a very fine paste.
• Whisk the curd with adequate salt and make it lump free. 
• Mix the cucumber paste , chopped cucumber and the whisked yogurt.  Adjust salt if needed. 
• Prepare a tempering of mustard seeds and udad dhall in hot oil with asafoetida.  Cool it and then add it to the raita . Donot pour hot tempering over the pachadi as the curd may turn sour in the hot weather .
• Delicious thayir pachadi is ready to serve .

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Vellarikaai (cucumber ) Pachadi | Vellarikaai Kichadi (Kerala Sadhya Menu)

 Vellarikaai means cucumber in Tamil and Malayalam.  Any Tamil or Kerala festive spread is incomplete without this delicious and lipsmacking Vellarikaai Pachadi . Vellarikai pachadi is also known as Kichadi in many households .

This Kichadi shouldn't be confused with the North Indian Kichdi which is a rice + dal based preparation.  

In Tamil / Malayalam pachadi or kichadi is the term used to refer to raita and is totally different from the North Indian style raita . Coconut chilli paste is mixed with thick whisked yogurt /dahi and added to the chopped cucumbers .

Bring summer ,cucumbers if included in our regular menu is very beneficial as it cools down the body apt to the idiom "as cool as cucumber". 

This pachadi is really very easy to make and can be paired with the regular menu . Vellarikai pachadi was part of our Sunday lunch which had Aloo Capsicum Sambar , Tomato Rasam , Brinjal Curry and some papads .

On a hot summer night ,I love to have this pachadi with hot fulkas .It is indeed filling and also light on the stomach and Sasmita's cucumber mint lassi will be an icing on the cake to end the day's meal.

Preparation Time - 10 mins
Cooking Time - 3 mins
Complexity - simple
Serves - 2 to 3 

Ingredients 
1 medium size cucumber 
2 cups thick yogurt /dahi
1/4 cup grated coconut 
1 green chilli 
1/2 tsp jeera 
Small piece ginger (skip for jain variant)
Salt to taste 
1/2 tsp oil
1/4 tsp mustard seeds 
Pinch of asafoetida 

Method 

• Grind the coconut, green chilli,jeera,ginger to a fine paste using little water .
• Chop the cucumber into medium sized cubes and cook it with salt and little water until the cucumbers turn soft and the water is all absorbed. Let it cool down.
• Whisk the curd until it is thick and creamy. 
• Add the ground coconut paste to the yogurt  along with the cooked cucumber and mix it . Add salt if required. 
• Prepare a tempering using mustard seeds and asafoetida.  Pour it over the raita and enjoy with your meal. 

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Kaakdi Koshimbir | Indian style cucumber salad

 I am so happy to be sharing this recipe on my blog today . Kaakdi koshimbir is a typical Maharashtrian style cucumber salad with a garnish of fresh coconut and roasted peanuts .

This Desi style salad has some rustic flavors from the tempering of cumin/jeera and asafoetida which is mixed into the salad . It hardly takes 10 mins to put this salad together and it can be served alongside a regular meal or as an accompaniment for barbecues or meal starters.

This salad is very refreshing and hydrating especially during summers . The cucumbers provide the necessary hydration to our body to keep us cool .

Thanks to Poonam who is the hostess for the 289th week Foodie Monday Bloghop (FMBH) and she suggested we share some healthy salads which will be perfect for the ongoing summer . In my part of the world ,the mercury is already soaring and we are experiencing severe heat and we are looking for various ways to beat the heat and keep us cool .  Poonam's vermicelli salad is very unique and healthy and definitely on my to do list soon .

 I try to incorporate cucumbers in many ways during summer and even other wise as it is a vegetable that is loaded with health and goodness . 

Cucumbers are natural detoxifiers and antioxidant that help remove toxins from our body . Cucumber is also rich in many other minerals and nutrients which help in digestion, maintaining of skin,manages stress  etc.

Some cucumber based recipes on my blog which you may want to try 

Vellarikaai Kootu / South indian style cucumber curry 
Pahadi Raita 
Southekaayi Kosambri 
Cucumber Pancakes 

For this kaakdi koshimbir  ,I have used English cucumbers which are almost seedless and we can use them as it is without deseeding . Incase you use the native Indian variety of cucumbers, then ensure to deseed before using it in the salad .

Preparation Time - 10 mins

Cooking Time - nil 

Complexity - easy 

Serves - 3 to 4

Ingredients 

2 to 3 cucumbers 
Handful of roasted peanuts (skip if allergic) 
2- 3 tbsp fresh coconut grated 
Pinch of salt 
Pinch of sugar 
2 green chillies slit 
1 tsp cumin seeds 
1/2 tsp oil 
Pinch of asafoetida 
Few curry leaves 

Method 

• Peel the skin of the cucumbers and chop of the top and bottom ends .
• Cut into small cubes and add to a large mixing bowl along with grated coconut and roasted peanuts. 
• Prepare a tempering of cumin/jeera by heating the oil and fry the slit chillies and curry leaves in the same oil .Lastly add the asafoetida and pour it over the chopped  cucumber .
• Add freshly chopped corriander ,salt and sugar and lightly toss it and mix well and serve immediately. Do not let it rest for a long time as the cucumbers, salt and sugar will release water and the salad will become soggy and loose the crunch .

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Cucumber Pancakes - desi style

Well we all know , necessity is the mother of invention and kitchen is a place where such inventions keep happening time and again .Today's recipe was also an outcome of one such times .  This month's theme in our Social media group was Pancakes . This was suggested by Ms Archana blogger at the Mad Scientist's kitchen who wanted us to come out with some different variations of pancakes in our own style . Secret ingredients given to me by Shobha Ji  of Shobha's food maza was gram flour /besan and cucumber while I gave her Quinoa and Sprouts . Her recipe of pancake can be found here. Do check her blog for some wonderful recipes from various  cuisines.

Well now over to the recipe... due to the sudden lockdown announcements and panic ..I realised I was running out of gram flour and the local shops also had run out of stock due to panic shopping. So as I pondered how to go about with the challenge , the good old staple of a south Indian home came to my rescue...well you all guessed it right ; Dosa Batter was my savior.
Now to know how to make this flavorful pancake do check my recipe below .


Preparation Time - 10 mins
Cooking Time - 3 mins per pancake
Complexity- easy
Serves- 2 -3

Ingredients

3 ladles dosa batter
4 tablespoon  besan /gramflour
1 medium cucumber peeled and grated.
Salt to taste
Pinch of sugar
Oil

Method

• Mix the gram flour with half cup water and whisk well to form a smooth batter without lumps. 
• Add this to the dosa batter and mix it well .
• Squeeze out the excess water from the grated cucumber and mix it well with the batter.
• Adjust salt as needed . Add a pinch of sugar.  
• Batter consistency should be just like dosa batter .
• Heat a tava or griddle and pour a ladleful of batter over it . Donot spread like regular dosa. 
• It has to be thick like pancake/oothappam .
• Drizzle a little oil .cook on one side and flip it over . Cook well. 
• Serve hot with a chutney of your choice. 

Pahadi Raita | Kumaoni Raita

Raita(hindi) or thayir pachadi (tamil) is a very flavorful yogurt based side dish served along with meals and is very famous all over India.  Each region has a different style of flavoring their raitas.  The south Indian version of raita Is generally flavored with plain salt and is tempered with mustard and udad dhall seeds along with red chillies or at times ground coconut chilli paste is added to the whipped yogurt and mixed with either grated cucumber or tomato or a mix of cucumber,carrots and tomato . Sometimes fine bits of green chilli are cut and added to whipped yogurt along with slices of onion which is the most preferred dish for Biryanis or South style famous Parotta.
The version of raita made in the northern India is flavored using roasted cumin powder , chat masala, red chilli powder and salt .  The vegetables used are finely diced and added to the yogurt.
At our home we love raita or pachadi to go along with our meal .
This month when we selected the theme as cuisines of Uttarakand in our Facebook group Shhhh secret cooking challenge , I was attracted to this recipe of Pahadi Raita or Kumaoni Raita as it is called. 
It is a simple cucumber based raita but the usage of mustard and fenugreek powder as flavoring agent is what elevates the taste and flavor of this dish.

My partner for this month's theme was another fellow blogger Priya Mahesh of  at200deg blog and she gave me  cucumber and methi seeds as the secret ingredients to work with while I gave her turmeric powder and corriander with which she has prepared Chainsoo a dal based dish .

Preparation Time - 5 mins
Cooking Time - nil
Serves - 2 to 3
Complexity  - easy

Ingredients
2 cups thick whisked yogurt
1 medium sized cucumber grated
1/2 tsp mustard powder
1/3 tsp methi powder
Pinch of salt
Pinch of red chilli powder
Pinch of turmeric
Pinch of roasted jeera powder

Method
Grate the cucumber, squeeze out the water and keep aside .
Whisk the yogurt well in a wide bowl and add in all the spice powders and salt and mix it well .
Add the grated cucumber, mix it and let it set for atleast 30mins before serving . This setting time is needed for the flavor of mustard and methi powder to seep into the yogurt mixture .

Notes
A drizzle of mustard oil is traditionally done over the raita , I skipped it as we didn't like the flavor of mustard oil .

Powder the mustard freshly in a mortar pestle before making the raita to get the fresh aroma . Yellow mustard if used is best or else we can use the regular black mustard also for making the powder .

Vellarikaai Kootu (South Indian Cucumber Dhall) - Vegan

Yet another signature recipe of my Paati (grandmother) . This Cucumber kootu for me is synonymous to my paati's kitchen and her cooking .The aroma of cucumber mixed with moong dhall still lingers around my nose and the taste active on my taste buds even after so many years. I was so much in love with this Kootu that I would fondly call it as "Paati Kootu" .
A very very simple recipe but has so  many flavors and goes well with Hot steamed rice or even as a side dish to sambar rice or rasam rice .

Preparation Time : 5 mins
Cooking Time : 20 mins
Serves : 3-4
Complexity: Medium

Ingredients
2 medium sized cucumbers
1.5 cups moong dhall (split yellow peas)
Handful of channa dhall (gram dhall)
1 tsp oil
1 tsp mustard seeds
1tsp channa dhall + udad dhall
Pinch of turmeric
Asafoetida
Salt as needed
3 tablespoon fresh grated coconut
3-4 dry red chillies (adjust as required)
Few curry leaves
1 tsp jeera

Method

• Grind the coconut,jeera, dry red chillies and curry leaves with water into a fine paste .
• Peel and chop the cucumber into 1 inch pieces .
• Wash and pressure cook the moong dhall, channa dhall along with haldi and the chopped cucumber pieces until soft and mushy. 
• (The flavor of mashed cucumber with the dhall is what enhances the taste of the kootu )
• Once the pressure releases, open the cooker and mash the dhall well. 
• Add the ground paste , salt and a little water and give it a quick boil . Dont let it boil too much else it will stick to the bottom of the pan and get charred .
• Transfer to another serving bowl and pour a tempering made using mustard  ,udad +channa dhall along with asafoetida over the kootu .
• Serve hot and enjoy your meal.

Note

• The consistency of the kootu will be slightly thick and not diluted as sambar .
• If you feel it is very thick, you can adjust the consistency by adding a little warm water .

If you would like to try some authentic kootu recipes on my blog 

Vazhakkai puli kootu 

(Raw Banana in a tangy lentil gravy)

Chou Chou Kootu 
(Chayote based Lentil gravy)

Avarekaalu / Mochhai Kootu 
(Field Beans based lentil gravy)

Southekaai (Vellarikaai) Kosambri / Indian Style Cucumber Salad

Southekaai (Kannada) / Vellarikaai (Tamil) / Khira (Hindi) / Dosekaya (Telugu) / Cucumber is a sought after vegetable used in most Salads or curries which have a lot of vitamins and health benefits.
Fresh green cucumbers may be had as it is without any additions.The yellow cucumber variety also popularly known as Indian Cucumber is widely used in South India in stews,curries and gravies.

As a child ,cucumber has always been a summer special vegetable where in we would have the cool cucumber slices with a little salt and paprika sprinkled over  to beat the afternoon scorching sun.Now that it is summer now,you can include this simple salad in your daily meal.Quick to make and provides the necessary nutrients required .
This salad is a part of any South Indian festive meal especially during Rama Navami,a handful of soaked moong dhall is added to this salad and is offered to Lord Sri Rama as Neivedhiyam / Prasadam. This salad is also called as Vadai Paruppu in most Tamil house holds.


Preparation Time : 10 mins
Cooking Time : Nil
Serves : 3-4

Ingredients

2-3 medium sized green cucumber
2 tbsp grated coconut 
1 tsp pepper powder  

Finely  chopped corriander
salt 
For Tempering
1 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp udad dhall
1/2 tsp channa dhall
pinch of asafoetida 

Method

• Peel and wash the cucumber. Ensure that,you trim of the ends using knife and rub the ends to bring out the sticky, off-white, fluid like oozing substance. It helps to lessen bitter taste from the cucumber.
• Cut them into fine small cubes and put it in a mixing bowl.
• Prepare the tempering using the ingredients listed under Tempering .
• Add the grated coconut,tempering,pepper powder to the mixing bowl and toss well.
• Add salt just before serving and not well in advance else the salad will become soggy and the crispness of the cucumber will be lost.
• Garnish with fresh corriander. 
• Salad can be served chilled or in room temperature.

Notes :

• For those who love tangy flavor,a teaspoon of lime juice or small bits of raw mango can be added for that extra taste.