Raita is a common side dish that’s typically served with biryani in Indian cuisine. It’s an unassuming side dish made with either vegetables, pulses or fruits and then mixed with yogurt before seasoning it. I’ve not really paid a lot of attention to the raita previously because I don’t eat it often enough. But I do appreciate its ‘cooling’ nature which kinda helps ease that spiciness while eating chilli hot food.
A while back, the husband’s colleague brought back his mum’s biryani all the way from Bangalore. He also made a onion raita to go with the biryani. I was really glad to be able to try a true-blue homemade biryani and it was so good. Rice was fragrant and perfectly cooked. Meat was tender. Everything was flavoursome and overall it wasn’t overly oily or salty. Exactly the kind of cooking I like. The raita was absolutely appetising and had a nice creamy texture and cheesy taste to it. He recommended using Farmers Union brand of Greek yogurt which was really the most ideal because other brands that I had tried didn’t have the same consistency or flavour.
This Onion Raita Recipe isn’t much of a recipe, really. It’s all about chopping up the ingredients and then mixing everything up before leaving in the fridge to chill for flavours to marry. You can make this in bulk and store in airtight containers for later use because the raita is not just good for rice dishes, you can also pair it with roti or use it as a salad dressing or as a dip for crudités.
Personally I like light versions of Greek yogurts that are lower in calories and lower in fat content. If that’s not something you’ll go for, just use the regular Greek yogurt that will give you a slightly thicker consistency.
- 300g light Greek yogurt
- 2 red onions, peeled & thinly sliced
- 2 stalks coriander, finely chopped
- 1 green chilli, finely chopped
- small pinch of sea salt