Anaar (Pomegranate Raita)

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Yogurt is a favorite in almost all parts of India, and it also manages to transcend communal barriers. Some of the best yogurt sauces (called Raitas in India) are served with one of my favorite meals, the dum ki biryani at the biryani outlets. South Asia is full of examples of these raitas being served in some form or the other.

Now let me be honest. I have no special love for pomegranates. I think they are one of the more boring fruits out there, and it is an extremely laborious fruit. However, they go wonderfully well with yogurt, as I am going to discuss in this recipe. Try it with anything, and I hope you like the combo.

Ingredients
1 pomegranate - Kandahari ones are amazing for it, but any other will do as well.
about 400-500 gm of yogurt
1/2 tsp salt - if possible use something called sendha namak, other wise used for Hindu fasts
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp shahjeera - its a shorter cumin seed, but regular cumin will do just as well
Few pinches of raita masala

Preparation
Just whip up yogurt nicely. If it is thick, try to thin it with about 4 tbsp of water till it attains a creamy texture.
Peel a pomegranate and collect all the seeds.
Mix in the seeds with shahjeera, salt and half of the sugar till it all mixes well
Add to this the raita masala and the remaining sugar and mix well
Chill to serve.

Don't mind the color. Its a reddish tinge because of the lighting.



Comments

Anonymous said…
truly interesting.... i have always liked the anaar and yogurt combination for my "curd rice" South Indian iistyle.... :-)
September 22, 2012 at 5:03 PM
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