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Similar to the North Indian raita, the pachadi is a vegetarian, yoghurt-based preparation that is synonymous with Kerala cuisine. The savoury dish involves mixing fully or partially cooked vegetables into smooth whisked yoghurt and finished off with a tempering of mustard seeds, curry leaves and red chillies. The mild-flavoured gravy also has a nutty dimension from the ground coconut paste, which is added to the vegetable and cooked, before it is combined with the curry. Here are seven different types of pachadi to try.
Beetroot Pachadi
Image Credits: Krishi Jagran
This bright-pink pachadi made with cubed or grated beetroot has a deliciously earthy flavour from the root vegetable and is one of the more popular varieties of pachadi served during the Sadya. Made by lightly sauteing beetroot in a tempering of mustard seeds, coconut paste and curry leaves, the beetroot pachadi is best eaten when still warm.
Coconut Pachadi
A basic pachadi preparation that pairs well with spicy tomato rice or tamarind rice, the mellow flavours of the coconut pachadi offset the robust heat of these preparations. With a tangy flavour and hints of ginger, this pachadi also has a pleasant crunch from the coconut which is ground and toasted before being mixed with the yoghurt.
Okra Pachadi
Image Credits: Subbus Kitchen
A yoghurt-based tempered preparation with shallow-fried okra, the vendakkai pachadi is also a relatively well-known Onam sadya offering. The okra pachadi has textures that are closest in resemblance to the raita, with the slight crunch from the okra and the mild tanginess of sour yoghurt that seeps into the vegetable, giving it a well-rounded taste, best enjoyed with rice.
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Cucumber Pachadi
A summer special pachadi that is cooling to the palette as well as the body, this healthy version of the tempered yoghurt accompaniment is one of the rare preparations where the vegetable does not need cooking before being mixed into the yoghurt-coconut mixture. The cucumber pachadi tastes delicious with tava rice, bisi bele bath or just about any savoury rice preparation that needs a mild side dish.
Bitter Gourd Pachadi
Image Credits: Yummy O Yummy
Since the sadya is all about bringing balance of flavours, the bitter gourd pachadi offers its vegetal bitterness as a way of balancing out the savoury, sweet and astringent flavours. Healthy and diabetic-friendly, this bitter gourd-yoghurt side dish tastes pretty good when eaten with a savoury accompaniment like sambar or kootu curry.
Pineapple Pachadi
A fruit-based pachadi that has a khatta-meetha flavour, the pineapple pachadi is also eaten as a regional preparation with daily meals, in Keralan homes. Cubes of fresh pineapple are mixed with fresh, slightly sour yoghurt and tempered with coconut oil, turmeric powder and red chillies for a well-balanced interplay of flavours.
Banana Stem Pachadi
Image Credits: Archana's Kitchen
Made by finely chopping and sauteing bits of banana stem or vazhathandu, this simple preparation is thematic with other Onam regulars like the upperi and vazhakkai thoran. Since the pachadi utilises a part of the banana plant in a creative manner, the delicious banana stem takes on the flavours of the tempered yoghurt, making it enjoyable to eat, mixed with rasam and rice.
