TOMATO ONION RAITA with carrots– a soothing, comforting and cooling bowl of Indian yogurt sauce with fresh vegetables; a delightful combination with any biryani, pulao, parathas or even curries!
When our gourmet Facebook group “Healthy Wellthy Cuisines” reached out to me to suggest a theme for our next bimonthly food posting, I had to mention raita as this is one of the most ignored dishes which almost always amps up the flavor of any meal!
No Indian meal is complete without some form of yogurt based sauce like raita, lassi or even curd rice (yogurt mixed with rice and some simple spices and aromatics!)
WHAT IS A RAITA?
Raita or sometimes called raitha is a mixture of yogurt with some spices and aromatics, the basic being just some onions! To amp up the flavor and nutrition, we do add a plethora of fresh vegetables like tomatoes, carrots or even some fruits like pineapple, mangoes etc.!
This cooling, no cook yogurt sauce is a great accompaniment to spicy curries, pulaos, biryanis etc.! When we have some filling paratha like aloo paratha (Indian flat bread stuffed with a spicy potato mixture), paneer paratha or any other savory paratha, all you need is a bowl of raita to complete the meal!
BASIC INGREDIENTS NEEDED FOR RAITA:
Yogurt – of course this is the base of any raita; preferably one that is not sour.
Aromatics – this could be any of the basic aromatics like onions, grated ginger, fried garlic etc.
Spices – the main spice I like to add is roasted whole cumin seeds or cumin powder. Sometimes, I have just made a tempering of mustard and curry leaves with a dash of cumin.
Vegetables – here I have used grated carrots, chopped onions and chopped tomatoes. You can add grated beets, cooked and cubed beets, freshly chopped cucumbers, blanched and chopped spinach etc. Let your tastebuds decide what you want to put in your raita. Sky is the limit!
Fruits – I have not used any in this raita but you could use chopped pineapple, apples, grapes and even mangoes (in mango season!) I have even stirred in chopped dates and raisins for the added sweetness; do try this one for sure!
Cilantro/coriander leaves or mint leaves – freshly chopped cilantro or mint adds another dimension of freshness in every spoonful of raita
SERVING SUGGESTIONS:
Raita almost always adorns any dinner/lunch table when we have biryani, pulaos, stuffed parathas or along with a hot, spicy curry! Every spoonful of this cooling and refreshing yogurt sauce is the ultimate accompaniment and a must to many a meal in any Indian home!
Hope you have fun conjuring up your custom flavored raita for your next Indian meal or even as a super delicious summer side dish with any grilled dish!
Enjoy and Happy Eating!
Here are some more refreshing and cooling salads to enjoy with any meal, to name a few:
- Three Bean Salad with Walnuts and Pomegranates
- Zesty Macaroni Salad
- Mung Bean Sprouts, Mango and Corn Salad
How about making us some refreshing homemade Tomato and Onion Raita with carrots for our next meal? Do check out how I made this:
A soothing, comforting and cooling bowl of Indian yogurt sauce with fresh vegetables; a delightful combination with any biryani, pulao, parathas or even curries!
Ingredients
- 2 large tomatoes, chopped
- 1 small onion, sliced or chopped
- 1 small carrot, peeled and grated
- 2 green chilies/jalapenos, finely chopped or sliced into roundels
- 1 cup yogurt (should not be sour), beaten until smooth
- 1 tsp roasted jeera/cumin seeds powder
- Salt to taste
- Coriander leaves/cilantro for garnish
Instructions
- In a bowl, mix chopped tomatoes, onions and grated carrots.
- Add sliced or chopped green chilies and mix to combine.
- Stir in yogurt, ½ tsp roasted cumin powder and salt to taste.
- Add water or milk to adjust consistency of raita.
- Garnish with cilantro and more roasted cumin powder.
- Chill and serve with any meal; pulao, parathas, rotis etc.!
- Enjoy and Happy Eating!
Notes
To make roasted cumin powder, just toast whole cumin seeds in a wide saucepan until light brown and fragrant. Remove, cool and blitz in a coffee grinder or spice grinder to a fine powder.
Raitas can be flavored with any spice that you love! It could be just cumin, coriander or even just a simple tempering of mustard and curry leaves in coconut oil! Just let your taste buds guide you.
Use any combination of fresh salad type vegetables to make your favorite kind of raita - options are cucumber, grated beets, sauteed vegetables etc.
Raita keeps well in the refrigerator for a couple of days.
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I am sharing this with our Facebook gourmet group "Healthy Wellthy Cuisines" where the theme this time is Raitas! Do check out these other delicious accompaniments you can make with curd/yogurt shared by my foodie friends:
- Makhana Raita by Poonam
- Capsicum Raita by Narmada
- Achari Aloo Raita by Sasmita
- Spinach and Pomegranate Raita by Swaty
Join the party at Angie's FiestaFriday along with co host Ai @ Ai Made It For You.
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Have fun cooking, eating and sharing!!!
Love this onion tomato raita with carrots... Although carrot i dont use. but yours look different than the regular one due to the addition of carrot !
onion tomato raita with carrots looks so delicious. I always make them separately. Good combination. Would love to have it as such.
Love this chilled raita with pulao or biryani or even with parantha it will be a wholesome meal ..looks so tempting!!
I make onion tomatao raita quite often but add cucumber to it. Next time I will add carrots your way.