What is Bathua? ( Besides being a personal favourite leafy winter veggi ? 😊 ). Also known as Chenopodium album, extensively cultivated and consumed in Northern India as a food crop known as bathu or bathua.
Bathua is loaded with essential minerals and is a powerhouse of vitamins like A, B, C. You can also find nutrients like iron, calcium, zinc, phosphorus, fibre and potassium in bathua. … Bathua Raita is probably far more healthy, compared to boondi raita
Bathua leaves are also cultivated in limited areas across the world. In some parts, it is also known as lamb's quarters, melde, goosefoot, pigweed and fat-hen. … These dark, leafy greens are also related to amaranth, spinach and beetroot.
Method
Wash and boil the bathua leaves, till soft. Allow to cool down.
Grind it coarsely, and keep aside.
Hand whisk the yoghurt to smoothness ( I prefer hand whisking to power blending, since the latter tends to take away the creaminess of the yoghurt, and makes it thin & watery) .
Mix the whisked yoghurt & ground bathua, add salt & chilli powder to taste, and hand blend the mix to a homogenous body. Keep aside.
In a small tadka pan, heat oil (I use olive oil), add the two pulses till brown, add mustard seeds, when they start crackling, add chopped curry leaves & chopped red chilly. The tampering is ready.
Add to the raita.
Time to eat 😉
A note
If so inclined, one can also add finely chopped green chillies to the tampering. It will enhance the flavours & sharpen the taste.
