Kadhi and other Childhood foods

The Punjabi Kadhi (recipe follows)
 Last week brought back amazing memories of this special dish...After I had made this and the kids had relished theirs .. with rice ofcourse!! . The leftover kadhi got special treatment by way of  tadka with ghee and lal-mirch and decided to make the home-made tandoori roti...Nostalgia hit immediately and took me back to my childhood years.

My mum worked in a bank and saturdays were half-days..A day, we waited for eagerly when mum would be home in the afternoon in time for lunch. Saturday lunch was a ritual... Bang in the middle of East Of Kailash , 3 plots away from our home, was Mohinder da Dhaaba...and Saturday Lunch Special was "the Kadhi" ofcourse. Garam Garam Tandoori Parathas with tadke waali Kadhi...The most amazing saturday lunch.

We would take our home made atta and ghee to the dhaaba very often in the summers when the heat was at it's peak or when the electricty failed. And he would do the most amazing tandoori rotis.

Saturday afternoons also saw us waiting for the dahi-bhalle and chaat  wala who came riding his bicycle with  the red tins attached to his handles...Don't remember anything else even close to the way that tasted!!

Tuesday and Saturday evening brought Sharmaji ke Cholle...again on his bicycle with this huge insulated container at the back.I can hear him calling out """Cholle""" and us running out to find him before he disappeared. His Bheege Kulche were to die for ( Kulcha soaked with cholle topped with onions/coriander and chutney).

Thursday and Saturday were Dad's treat days for us !! The Kwality's ice-cream vendor would stop at our home after winding up around 11pm..and we would all have our favorite picks. Kulfi/ Mango Bar/ Choco- Bar, Cassatta being top favorite picks.

And how can I forget the Ghanta Churan ( the Churanwala who came ringing his bell every evening!! ) Loved his khatta meetha churan..

As you can tell, ours is a complete foodie family . I get my genes from my dad...Love food .. Love to tell stories of food as well...

All these stories have transported me to another era. Times have changed so much..We are now so spoilt for choice, we have forgotten these simple pleasures

I feel so old as i write this !! but those sure were good old days !!

Kadhi - Recipe
(my Family recipe - very simple and light )

Ingredients 

Kadhi
Khatti dahi or buttermilk - 1 ltr (thinned down )
Besan/Gram flour -  3 tbsp
Ginger-Garlic Paste - 1tbsp
Methi seeds - 1tsp
Turmeric - pinch
Whole Red Chilles - 3-4
Hing - a pinch

Tadka
Ghee - 1tbsp
Red Chillies ( coarsely ground) - to taste

Pakoras
Onions - 3-4
Gram Flour/Besan ( see instrcutions for quantity )
Salt to taste
Turmeric - pinch

Method

Kadhi
1.Whisk curd + turmeric + besan
2.In a kadhai heat some oil, then add methi seeds. Brown them slowly taking care not overcook or they taste bitter.
3.Add hing, whole red chillies and then  ginger garlic paste and saute for another minute.
4. Add the curd mixture and bring to a boil.
5. Simmer for 15-20mins.Adjust consistency and add salt to taste.

Pakoras ( not the traditional way but we love them like this ! )

1. Slice onions thinly and add salt to it. Keep aside for 1/2 hour. ( This releases the water in the onion )
2.Now slowly add besan to it binding the onions adding very little or no water.The water from the onions should be enough. This makes very nice and crisp pakoras ( kanda bhajjia as we know them in mumbai ). Infact make a few extra ;-) . Am sure half will get eaten before being added to the kadhi.
The pakoras become really soft as they absorb the kadhi as they have a lot of onions..
3.Drop spoonfuls into hot oil and fry on slow fire until done. Unlike the traditional kadhi-pakoras these take shorter time to cook. Increase the flame to high before u remove them. They absorb less oil then.
4. Add them to the prepared kadhi. You may need to adjust the consistency as the pakoras get soaked.

Tadka
Heat Ghee. Switch off the gas.. Add red chillies.Let it cook a bit. Add to the kadhi for that wonderful red tadka. Be careful not to burn the chilles.


Serve hot with rice as the traditional " kadhi-chawal" or have them with a home-made tandoori roti made on an inverted tava.
 
Healthy Tip - For healthier and lighter Kadhi option omit the pakoras and add blanched spinach or methi.