How about a recipe that looks so pretty that you won’t even want to eat it? This beet cucumber pachadi is so beautiful and cooling. Grated beets and cucumber mixed with dairy free yogurt and seasoned South Indian-style with mustard seeds, green chili, asafoetida and curry leaves.
Raita/ Pachadi
In the subcontinent, raitas (Hindi) and pachadis (Tamil) are common as a cooling side dish to complement hot spicy curries. They are usually different raw vegetables, or sometimes cooked, tossed in yogurt and very mildly seasoned with herbs and spices. In Tamil Nadu, where my ancestry lies, pachadis are seasoned using a mild tempering in hot oil rather than mixing in spice powders in.
For this recipe, my raw vegetable was beets! The beets will be used raw to give it a nice crunchy textural element. The beets also give the yogurt a very nice earthy sweetness, which balances well with the savory-nature of the dish. I also used grated cucumber to offer a different texture to the raita. From start to finish, it takes no more than 10 minutes to whip together!
Tadka
In this preparation, the pachadi is seasoned with a tadka (oil tempering), rather than having raw spices mixed in. All you will need is a few tablespoons of a mild-flavor oil like sunflower and:
- mustard seeds
- asafoetida powder
- 1 green chili
- 3-4 curry leaves
The green chili is added just for flavor, but if you are sensitive to heat, you may remove the seeds before adding.
Dairy Free Yogurt
The dairy free yogurt I used was Forager Cashewgurt. I find it has a very similar taste to dairy yogurt and use it frequently in dishes that require yogurt. You may use whichever dairy free yogurt of your choice.
Vegan Beet Root Cucumber Pachadi (Raita)
Ingredients
- 1 small beet peeled
- 1 cucumber peeled, seedless or seeds removed
- 2 cups dairy free yogurt such as Forager Cashewgurt
- 1 handful chopped cilantro leaves for garnish
Tadka
- 1 tsp mustard seeds
- 1 green chili or 1/2 serrano
- 1/4 tsp asafoetida powder
- 3-4 curry leaves
- 2-3 tbsp mild oil for sauteing
Instructions
- In a mixing bowl, grate the cucumber and beet. If possible, remove the seeds and soft center. from the cucumber.
- Add 2 cups of plant based yogurt and stir.
- Add 1 tbsp water at a time until raita achieves desired consistency. Careful not to add too much–it will thin out even more as cucumber releases water.
- Add 1 tsp salt, or more to taste.
Prepare the Tadka
- Heat 2-3 tbsp oil in a pan. Add mustard seeds as they heat.
- Once mustard seeds begin to sputter add green chilies and stir
- Add the curry leaves. They will sputter considerably, especially if rinsed. Allow them to crisp up for no more than 1 minute.
- Add this Tadka to the raita.
- Garnish with cilantro and serve
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This is not just a beautiful dish, but also so beautifully photographed. I love the cutlery you featured!
Thank you so much Roula! So glad you like it! 🙂