Government of India
Nadeir Yakhni
Nadeir Yakhni is a mild yoghurt-based gravy, predominantly seasoned with cardamom seeds, bay leaves and cloves. It is a must-have in more or less all Kashmiri festivities and dinners, and is traditionally cooked in an earthenware pot or leij and served with steamed rice.
| Cuisine: | Kashmiri |
| Total time: | 30 mins |
| Preparation time: | 10 mins |
| Cooking time: | 20 mins |
| servers : | 3 to 4 |
Ingredients
For Broth
| 1 kg: | Lotus Stem pieces (Nadeir) |
| 1 kg: | Curd |
| 1 cup: | Milk |
| 2 teaspoons: | Aniseed powder |
| 1 teaspoons: | Ginger powder |
| ½ teaspoon: | Sugar |
|
Salt, to taste Water, as needed |
|
For tempering
| 2 tablespoons: | Mustard oil |
| 3 pods: | Cloves |
| 1 teaspoon: | Cumin seeds |
| 1 pinch: | Asafoetida |
Other ingredients
| ½ teaspoon: | Black pepper powder |
| ½ teaspoon: | Cinnamon powder |
| ½ teaspoon: | Caraway seeds |
| 1 teaspoon: | Garam masala |
| 3 nos: | Green cardamoms |
Directions
Preparing the broth
- Scrape the lotus stem with a knife and cut off the heads and any bad ends of the stalks. Cut horizontally into about 2-inch pieces. Wash thoroughly.
- In an earthenware pot or a steel tinned patila, boil, for half an hour, with the lotus stems fully immersed in water. Take out the boiled pieces and retain the broth in a separate bowl. Let it cool.
- Add the curd, milk, aniseed, ginger powder, sugar, and salt to the broth and churn.
Tempering and cooking
- In a separate cooking vessel, heat the oil on medium flame till the foam disappears. Add the cloves, cumin seeds and asafoetida. Stir and add the curd sauce immediately. Continue stirring till the gravy comes to boil.
- Add the boiled lotus pieces to the gravy and let it cook on low heat for 15 minutes. When the gravy thickens, add the caraway seeds, cardamom, cinnamon, black pepper, and garam masala.
Nadeir Yakhni pairs incredibly with plain steamed rice.
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