punjabi kadhi recipe with step by step photos – this is my mother in law’s recipe of making traditional punjabi kadhi with pakoras. she has been making this delicious kadhi since ages. its a family treasured recipe 🙂

kadhi pakora is often made at our home, but i just could not manage myself to take step by step photos and thats why it took me so long to share this delicious punjabi kadhi recipe.

we love kadhis, be it plain or with pakoras. at home we call it kadhi chawal, because the kadhi is had with plain rice or jeera rice. you can also have kadhi with roti but i always prefer to have kadhi with rice. kadhi chawal and rajma chawal combo is quite famous in punjabi homes.

coming to punjabi recipes, there are a few much loved vegetarian recipes, that i have shared like:

1. sarson da saag
2. aloo paratha
3. punjabi chole
4. matar paneer
5. rajma masala

each state and region have their own ways of making dahi kadhi. so we have maharashtrian kadhi, rajasthani kadhi, gujarati kadhi, sindhi kadhi and so on.

the punjabi kadhi is different from the other regional variations of kadhi. punjabi kadhi is thicker and creamier and the other kadhi variations have a slight thin consistency. the ingredients used to make the kadhi in all the versions are more or less the same.

few tips for making best punjabi kadhi recipe

• use full fat sour curd. if the curd is not sour, then the kadhi will not be sour, but still tastes good. to make the curd sour, you could add amchur powder whilst cooking the kadhi.
• use mustard oil if possible to fry the onion pakoras and for tempering. mustard oil leds a pungent sharp taste and flavor to the curry.
• you could also bake the pakoras instead of frying them.
• don’t skip on curry leaves, as you will know that something is missing from the kadhi.
• use good quality gram flour (besan).
• the onion pakoras can be prepared before hand and kept aside.
• use a large bottomed pot for cooking the kadhi. the curd mixture froths whilst cooking and can spill if you use a small pot.
• to make softer pakoras, add some more water than mentioned in the recipe below. in this case, add the pakoras to the kadhi, just before serving. if added much before serving, then the pakoras become too soft and mushy.
• some folks do not like the mushy and soft pakoras in the punjabi kadhi. in this case the pakoras can be a little hard. add little or no water to the batter.
• in this recipe i have not made the pakoras soft. just added enough water to make the batter smooth but not liquidy. in this scenario, you could well add the pakoras just after the kadhi is ready. the pakoras won’t break when the kadhi is served later.

this is again one of those posts, where there are maximum pictures. since i am presenting a step by step recipe detail for the punjabi kadhi, i will first start with the curd mixture, then onion pakoras and then with the making of the kadhi.

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punjabi kadhi pakora recipe

punjabi kadhi recipe - popular north indian recipe of punjabi kadhi pakora. fried onion pakoras in a creamy & sour yogurt sauce.

course main course

cuisine north indian

prep time 40 minutes

cook time 30 minutes

total time 1 hour 10 minutes

servings 4

rough calories per serving 394 kcal

author dassana

ingredients (1 cup = 250 ml)

for kadhi mixture

• 1.5 cups full fat sour curd or khatta dahi or yogurt or 375 gram sour curd
• 3 cups water or add as required
• ½ teaspoon red chilli powder (lal mirch powder)
• ½ teaspoon turmeric powder (haldi)
• ½ teaspoon garam masala powder
• 1 generous pinch of asafoetida (hing)
• 1 to 1.5 teaspoon salt or add as required
• 8 tablespoon besan or about 40 grams of besan
• mustard oil or sunflower oil or any oil for shallow frying or deep frying pakoras

for onion pakoras

• 1 cup tightly packed thinly sliced onions or 2 medium to large onions or 150 grams
• 1 cup besan (gram flour)
• ½ teaspoon red chilli powder (lal mirch powder)
• ½ teaspoon turmeric powder (haldi)
• ½ teaspoon garam masala powder
• ½ teaspoon ajwain (carom seeds)
• ⅔ to ¾ teaspoon salt or add as required
• ¼ cup water or add as required

for punjabi kadhi

• 1 small to medium onion or ⅓ cup chopped onions
• 1 tablespoon chopped ginger (adrak)
• ¾ to 1 tablespoon chopped garlic (lahsun)
• 8 to 10 fenugreek seeds (methi seeds)
• 2 green chillies, chopped
• 2 red chillies, broken
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds (jeera)
• a generous pinch of asafoetida (hing)
• 8 to 10 curry leaves or 1 sprig curry leaves
• 2 tablespoons mustard oil

how to make punjabi kadhi pakora recipe

making curd mixture for kadhi recipe

1. in a bowl take 1.5 cups sour curd or about 375 grams of curd. whisk it well till smooth

2. add 8 tbsp gram flour, ½ tsp red chilli powder, ½ tsp turmeric powder, ½ tsp garam masala powder and 1 tsp salt to the whisked curd.

3. stir and mix everything again.
4. add 3 cups water and stir again.

5. stir very well to make a smooth mixture without lumps. if there are lumps, then break them with a wired whisk or a spatula or with your fingers. keep the curd mixture aside.

6. you can use a blender to make this mixture, but make sure you don’t over do it. you will get butter instead of a smooth blended curd.

making onion pakoras for punjabi kadhi recipe

1. take the 1 cup gram flour/besan in a bowl and add ½ tsp ajwain/carom seeds, ½ tsp red chili powder, ½ tsp garam masala powder and ⅔ tsp salt or as required.

2. add 1 cup thinly sliced onions.
3. mix everything well and keep aside covered for 30 minutes.

4. this will allow the onions to release their water in the mixture. depending on the water content in the onions, the mixture will become very moist or just about moist.

5. then accordingly add water as required to make a thick batter. i added ¼ cup water.

6. heat oil for deep frying in a pan or kadai. with a spoon or with your hands drop the pakora batter in the oil.
7. when the pakoras are partly cooked, then turn over and fry the other side.
8. fry till the pakoras are crisp and golden.
9. remove the fried pakoras and place them on a kitchen paper towel so that extra oil is absorbed. fry the pakoras in batches this way. when done keep all of them aside.

making kadhi recipe

1. in another pan or kadai, heat 2 tbsp mustard oil. make sure to use a large bottomed pot so that while boiling, the kadhi does not spill.
2. add the 1 tsp cumin seeds, 8 to 10 methi seeds and a generous pinch of asafoetida. allow the cumin seeds to crackle and the methi seeds to change their color. fry on a low flame, so that these spices do not get burnt.

3. add ⅓ cup chopped onion. stir and saute for 3 minutes on a low flame.

4. then add 1 tbsp chopped ginger/adrak, ¾ to 1 tbsp chopped garlic and 2 green chillies, chopped. stir and saute for a minute.

5. now add 8 to 10 curry leaves, 2 dry red chilies (halved or broken). stir and saute for a minute on a low flame.
6. then add the curd mixture.
7. stir very well.
8. increase the flame to medium and bring the kadhi to a boil. keep on stirring often so that the bottom does not get browned. time taken to cook the kadhi will be around 14 to 16 minutes.

9. after the kadhi has come to a boil, then lower the flame and simmer the kadhi for more 6 to 7 minutes. the kadhi will thicken. 

10. if the kadhi becomes too thick, then add some hot water.

11. now add the onion pakoras in the kadhi. stir gently.

12. cover the punjabi kadhi with a lid and let the onion pakoras be soaked in the kadhi for 8 to 10 minutes.

13. lastly sprinkle some garam masala powder on the punjabi kadhi.
14. serve the punjabi kadhi pakora with steamed rice or jeera rice, topped with few teaspoonfuls of ghee. you could also have kadhi with rotis or parathas. however the combo of kadhi chawal is very popular and taste very good.

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how to make punjabi kadhi pakora

a) making curd mixture:

1. in a bowl take 1.5 cups sour curd or about 375 grams of curd. whisk it well till smooth.

2. add 8 tbsp gram flour (besan), ½ tsp red chilli powder, ½ tsp turmeric powder, ½ tsp garam masala powder and 1 tsp salt to the whisked curd.

3. stir and mix everything again.

4. add 3 cups water and stir again.

5. stir very well to make a smooth mixture without lumps. if there are lumps, then break them with a wired whisk or a spatula or with your fingers. keep the curd mixture aside. you can use a blender to make this mixture, but make sure you don’t over do it. you will get butter instead of a smooth blended curd.

b) making onion pakoras for kadhi recipe

1. take 1 cup gram flour/besan in a bowl and add ½ tsp ajwain/carom seeds, ½ tsp red chili powder, ½ tsp garam masala powder and 2/3 tsp salt or as required.

2. add 1 cup thinly sliced onions. about 2 medium to large onions, sliced, approx 150 grams of onions.

3. mix everything well and keep aside covered for 30 minutes.

4. this will allow the onions to release their water in the mixture. depending on the water content in the onions, the mixture will become very moist or just about moist. here’s a pic of the onions after 30 minutes. mix again.

4. then accordingly add water as required to make a thick batter. i added ¼ cup water. you can also skip adding water if the mixture is too moist.

6. heat oil for deep frying in a pan or kadai. with a spoon or with your hands drop the pakora batter in the oil.

7. when the pakoras are partly cooked, then turn over and fry the other side.

8. fry till the pakoras are crisp and golden.

9. remove the fried pakoras and place them on a kitchen paper towel so that extra oil is absorbed. fry the pakoras in batches this way. when done keep all of them aside.

c) making punjabi kadhi recipe

1. in another pan or kadai, heat 2 tbsp mustard oil. make sure to use a large bottomed pot so that while cooking, the kadhi does not spill.

2. add 1 tsp cumin seeds, 8 to 10 methi seeds/fenugreek seeds and a generous pinch of asafoetida/hing. allow the cumin seeds to crackle and the methi seeds to change their color. fry on a low flame, so that these spices do not get burnt.

3. add ⅓ cup chopped onion. stir and saute for 3 minutes on a low flame.

4. then add 1 tbsp chopped ginger/adrak, ¾ to 1 tbsp chopped garlic and 2 green chillies, chopped. stir and saute for a minute.

5. now add 8 to 10 curry leaves, 2 dry red chilies (halved or broken).

6. stir and saute for a minute on a low flame.

7. then add the curd mixture.

8. stir very well.

9. increase the flame to medium and bring the kadhi to a boil. keep on stirring often so that the bottom does not get browned. time taken to cook kadhi will be around 14 to 16 minutes.

10. after the kadhi comes to a boil, then lower the flame and simmer the kadhi for more 6 to 7 minutes. do stir the kadhi at times. the kadhi will thicken. if the kadhi becomes too thick, then add some hot water.

11. here is the kadhi ready now.

12. now add the onion pakoras in the kadhi. stir gently.

13. cover the kadhi with a lid and let the onion pakoras be soaked in the kadhi for 8 to 10 minutes.

14. lastly sprinkle some garam masala powder on the punjabi kadhi.

dassana amit

Founder, Designer, Recipe Developer, Food Photographer || MORE ABOUT US

i started vegrecipesofindia.com in feb 2009. it is a pure vegetarian blog and shares recipes with step by step photos that will help you to make delicious and tasty vegetarian food easily.

i am passionate about cooking from childhood and learnt cooking from my elders. having a home science degree surely enhanced my cooking & baking skills which i now share as fool proof recipes on the blog. i am trained both in mainstream indian as well as international cuisines.