Eating a karhi is really a way of eating heated yogurt. Because yogurt would curdle into unappetizing blobs if it were to be just heated up, it is stabilized with a flour first. In India, where there are many vegetarians who know that a bean, a grain, and a milk product can make for a balanced meal, it is chickpea flour that is used. Known variously as garbanzo flour, gram flour, chickpea flour, farine de pois chiches, and besan, it is very nutritious as well as full of a nutty flavor. Karhis are cooked over much of India with many interesting regional variations. This yogurt sauce, spicily seasoned and quite scrumptious, is either poured over rice or put into individual bowls and eaten with whole-grain flatbreads. Meats and vegetables are often served on the side.
Recipe information
Yield
serves 6
Ingredients
Preparation
Step 1
Put the chickpea flour in a large bowl. Very slowly, add 1 cup water, beating with a whisk as you do so. Keep beating until there are no lumps. Add the yogurt and beat it in until the mixture is smooth. Add another 4 cups water gradually, beating as you go.
Step 2
Pour the oil into a medium pan and set over medium-high heat. When hot, put in the cumin, mustard, and fennel seeds as well as the chilies. As soon as the mustard seeds start to pop, a matter of seconds, put in the turmeric and curry leaves. Stir once and pour in the chickpea-yogurt mixture. Stir with a whisk. Turn heat to medium. Add the salt. Keep stirring with the whisk until the mixture thickens and starts to bubble. Turn heat to low, cover partially, and cook 25 minutes.
