Side · The Indian subcontinent
Cucumber raita
Cool yogurt with cucumber and toasted cumin.
About the dish
Raita is a seasoned yogurt side served across the Indian subcontinent, especially alongside spicy curries and biryani. Cucumber raita is among the most common kinds; others use onion, tomato, mint, or boondi, tiny fried pearls of chickpea batter.
Plain yogurt is whisked smooth and seasoned with salt. Cumin seeds are dry-toasted in a pan until fragrant and a shade darker, then crushed and stirred in, which gives a warm, nutty note that raw ground cumin lacks. The cucumber is grated or finely chopped and squeezed or drained first, so it does not water down the yogurt. Many cooks add chopped mint or cilantro, a pinch of chili powder or black salt, and some finish it with a tempering of mustard seeds in hot oil.
The flavor is gently sour from the yogurt, salty and cool, with the warmth of the cumin. Dairy is a classic match for chili heat: the fat and the milk protein casein help carry away capsaicin, the compound that makes chilies burn, which is part of why raita sits beside the spiciest dishes on the table.
Written from general cooking knowledge, as background on a dish from the game’s recipe book. It is not a tested recipe.
The flavors it leans on
Cucumber raita in Night Kitchen
In the game, Cucumber raita is a side in the recipe book. A plate is named Cucumber raita when it holds these cards and is cooked with exactly this technique, with at most one extra ingredient.
Ingredients
- Yogurt
- Cucumber
- Cumin
Technique
- Toast spices
How those cards taste
Cooked from just these cards for an average ticket, before tonight’s mood and quirks, it would please Odile (3 stars), Theo (3 stars) and Mr. Vane (2 stars) most.
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