A perfect side-kick to any biryani or rice dish, this simple raita recipe is so versatile. It is a yogurt-based, healthy, and cooling dish that also works well with non-Indian meals. Start with four easy-to-find ingredients, and if you want to be fancy, there are lots of add-in suggestions to play with. For other raita recipes with a bit more complexity, see my tomato or cucumber raita recipe.
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Healthy Sauce or Dip that Goes With Everything
Raita is a workhorse of a condiment. Vegetarian and gluten-free, it is a perfect cooling foil for spicy Indian dishes. The recipe varies from region to region, season to season, and can be simple like this basic raita.
Not just for Indian food, raita is a healthy sauce for meats, fish, and vegetables. It is welcome as a drizzle over chicken shawarma wrap and tacos, and I like to use it instead of mayonnaise in a sandwich. Use it to dress up burgers, as a dip, or even eat it on its own as a snack.
Or, make with some additional raw or cooked fruits and vegetables. Flavor it with spices and fresh herbs, depending on your mood and what else you are serving.
What is Special About this Recipe?
- Quick, easy, and delicious
- Can be made ahead
- Rounds out a biryani meal beautifully
- A healthy and nutritious side
- No cooking involved; just a bit of chill time
Ingredients
There are no hard and fast rules for making raita. So this is a choose your own adventure recipe. Keep it simple with four ingredients:
- Yogurt
- Some sort of allium (onion, shallot, or scallions)
- Lemon or lime juice
- Salt and pepper
Or, if you want to take your raita further, add more flavorings and vegetables. Frequent additions are cucumber (ideally seedless), tomatoes, and a bit of green chili or chili powder.
Other flavoring ideas:
- Pinch of hing (asafetida)
- Pinch of ground red chili of your choice: Kashmiri, gochugaru, Aleppo pepper, cayenne, etc.
- 1 to 2 teaspoon finely chopped green chili, Serrano, bell pepper, or Indian chilis
- 1/2 teaspoon fresh grated ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed or ground cumin seeds
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed or ground coriander seeds
- 1 tablespoon of oil for added richness and flavor: olive oil, mustard oil, avocado, etc.
- Spice blends ~ a pinch or to taste: garam masala, Kerala garam masala, chaat masala, etc.
Other vegetables or fruit to consider:
- Chopped tomato, fresh or cooked
- Chopped cucumber, seedless or seeds removed
- Cooked or raw finely grated carrot
- Roasted eggplant
- Cooked potatoes
- Cooked spinach
- Chopped mango
- Chopped papaya
- Chopped kiwi
- Pomegranate seeds
Garnish as you wish with fresh herbs and a sprinkling of chili flakes.
How to Make Raita for Biryani
While this dish takes five minutes to make, you will want to plan for at least a 30-minute chill time. Whisk the yogurt until smooth.
Mix in the onion or scallion, lemon juice, and salt and pepper. Chill. If you are chilling raita for more than an hour, stir in the onions, vegetables, and herbs just before serving.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, simply replace the yogurt with your favorite plant-based yogurt.
You can certainly add either dried red chilies or minced green chilies. If you are wanting to balance out your biryani with a cooling raita then skip the chilies.
They are all yogurt-based sides with some sort of herb and allium component. Like many raitas, Greek tzatziki is made with cucumber and it has a thicker consistency. Borani is a Persian appetizer often with a good amount of spinach mixed in.
Yes, however, it won't be quite as rich and creamy.
Tips and Tricks
- Use a thick Greek-style yogurt. You can always add water at the end if needed.
- Be sure to give your yogurt a good whisk so that the raita will be smooth.
- If you want to add carrots or other hard vegetables, grate them finely.
- If you add vegetables with a lot of water (cucumber), chop them and salt well. Let stand for 15 minutes to remove the water or your raita will be watery.
- While you can certainly serve raita at room temperature, it will taste better chilled. Its rest in the refrigerator will also allow the flavors to blend together.
Storing
The finished raita will keep in the refrigerator for several days but depending on your add-ins it may get a bit watery. Whisk it well before serving. While I have not tried this, I have seen that it is possible to freeze raita. If you give this a try, please let me know how it goes.
This Raita Goes with These Amazing Biryanis
Other Biryani Sides
Did you try this recipe? I’d love to hear about it! Please rate by clicking stars ⭐️ on the recipe card and/or let me know in the comments below. Thank you! ~Alonna
Recipe Card 📖
Simple 4-Ingredient Raita for Biryani
Ingrediants
The 4-Ingredient Basic Raita
- 1 cup plain yogurt ~ Full fat is best, but use what you like
- 2 tablespoons onion, shallot, scallion ~ Grated or finely chopped
- 1/2 teaspoon lemon or lime juice ~ More to taste
- salt and pepper ~ To taste
Optional Garnishes
- 1 tablepoon fresh herbs ~ Cilantro, mint, parsley, scallions, or chives coarsely chopped
- 1 tablespoon chive blossoms ~ Torn
- sprinkling chili flakes
Instructions
- Gather the ingredients you are using. See Notes for additional options.
- Whisk the yogurt until smooth.
- Mix in the onion or scallion, lemon juice, and salt and pepper. Chill the raita in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes. If you are chilling it for more than an hour, stir in the onions, vegetables, and herbs just before serving.
- Taste to see if the flavors need balancing: a bit of sugar, acid (lime juice), and salt. You can make raita a day ahead without the herbs and veggies.
Notes
- For vegan raita, use coconut yogurt.
- If the raita is too tangy or spicy for you, just add some more yogurt and/or a pinch of sugar.
- If you want to add cumin or coriander seeds, toast and coarsely crush them with a mortar and pestle, or a heavy pan.
- If the raita is too thick, add a bit of water to thin it out.
- Usually, raita is lightly salted, but salt to your taste.
- Pinch of hing (asafetida)
- Pinch of ground red chili of your choice: Kashmiri, gochugaru, Aleppo, cayenne, etc.
- 1 to 2 teaspoon finely chopped green chili, Serrano, bell pepper, or Indian chilis
- 1/2 teaspoon fresh grated ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon fresh grated garlic
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed or ground cumin seeds ~ See note above
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed or ground coriander seeds ~ See note above
- 1 tablespoon of oil for added richness and flavor: olive oil, mustard oil, avocado, etc.
- Spice blends ~ a pinch to taste: garam masala, Kerala garam masala, chaat masala, etc.
- Chopped tomato
- Chopped cucumber, seeds removed
- Chopped or raw finely grated carrot
- Roasted eggplant
- Cooked potatoes
- Cooked spinach
- Chopped mango
- Chopped papaya
- Chopped kiwi
- Chopped pomegranate
linda mcaleer says
this is the type of sauce i use with salmon... i put horseradish in (the hot and cool), but this looks wonderful!
Alonna says
Hey Linda,
Thanks for the horseradish example. The flavoring options are unlimited. Thanks for the idea!
Alonna