Dill leaves and Cucumber Raita

A perfect dinner it was the other day with Garlic Naan and Dill leaves and Cucumber Raita and a Creamy Spinach Curry to go with. Few days back I had brought dill leaves and had plans in my mind to try a raita out of it. Had a small piece of left over cucumber too. I found that ideal way of finishing them too by adding to this raita.

Health benefits of cucumber are well known. Dill leaves too are rich source of nutrients and have many benefits. To list out a few,

• Dill weed contains numerous plant derived chemical compounds that are known to have been anti-oxidant, disease preventing, and health promoting properties.
• This popular herb contains no cholesterol and low in calories. However, it contains many anti-oxidants, vitamins like niacin, pyridoxine, etc., and dietary fibers, which help to control blood cholesterol levels.
• The essential oil, Eugenol in the dill has been in therapeutic usage as local-anesthetic and anti-septic. Eugenol has also been found to reduce blood sugar levels in diabetics.
• Not to forget that it is also rich in many vital vitamins, including folic acid, riboflavin, niacin, vitamin A, ß-carotene, vitamin-C that is essential for optimum metabolism inside the human body. Source

Dill leaves are used in many ways. I wanted to give a try of using them in yogurt to prepare raita. Here I share my simple recipe.

Ingredients:
Cleaned Dill leaves-handful chopped
Tender English Cucumber-1/4 chopped
Green chillies-1 finely chopped
Cumin seeds-1/2 tsp
Mustard seeds-1/2 tsp
Yogurt-1 cup
Sugar-1/2 tsp
Oil-1 tsp
Salt to taste

Recipe:

1. Add oil in a pan, when hot add mustard seeds, cumin seeds and wait till they splatter. Once they splatter add green chillies and sauté. Now add dill leaves and sauté.
2. Remove it off the heat and allow it to cool down completely.
3. In a bowl add yogurt, salt, sugar and whisk well.
4. Once cooled add chopped cucumber to it.
5. Now pour the whisked yogurt on top of the  cooled mixture and mix well.
6. Dill leaves and cucumber raita is ready to serve. Goes well with any flat breads or even plain rice.We enjoyed with Garlic naan. Do check Garlic naan recipe.

 

 

 

 

 

Enjoy the dish! n don't forget Eat and Eat little MORE.. :)

Sending this to Fast ! Fresh !  Simple !  @ Cookingwithsapana