Yogurt Seasoning an Indian raita spice, 1 jar

ok, I'm told I should get off the stick and make RAITA from scratch. Oh well, people, here it is and nearly as good, so I have to have it in the cabinet!Try to make ahead to give the lovely knarley spices a chance to soften an mesh together . . .

I like it. You do need to let the mixed yogurt sit for a few hours to get the best flavor. Overnight is even better.

Love this stuff so much!!!! It makes the perfect yogurt dip for naan bread and curry

This mix is excellent for making raita or even a sauce on short notice. Up front, though, you need to know that despite the claims to the contrary it does contain a trace of salt - 2mg per teaspoon, of which there are 24 one-teaspoon servings per jar. Frankly, it's such a minute amount that you could make the claim that a single serving is sodium free. You decide.In addition to using it to make raita, I use it to infuse olive oil as a topping for soups or to flavor rice. Basically I use a teaspoon of this in a quarter of a cup of olive oil that I bring up to medium heat. Some of the ingredients will pop, at which point I remove it from the heat and allow to cool. I'll sometimes squeeze the juice of a whole lime into the infused oil and use it as a marinate or even a quick salad dressing.However, this blend is primarily for raita. While most raita dishes are made from either tomato or cucumber, I only make the cucumber variant. Here is my recipe using this blend (when I am making it from scratch I prepare it differently. I start with two cups of plain yogurt. Avoid 'Greek' style yogurt because it's too thick. I peel, deseed and grate a cucumber and finely chop a spring onion (using as much as the darker stem that I can). I mix those ingredients into the yogurt along with two teaspoons of this mix. I squeeze the juice of a whole lemon and thoroughly mix it in. If I have either fresh mint or cilantro handy I will finely chop a quarter of a cup of one or the other and mix it in. Since this blend is essentially salt free you will need to add that to taste.Is this as good as made from scratch? Of course not. It is, however, an excellent blend for raita when you are in a hurry or unexpected guests drop in. It has earned a place in my spice rack.