Gujarati Soy Raita

Indian food can be tantalizing with all those spice variations, each bite can reveal new nuances in flavour and heat. (I always wanted to use nuances in a sentence) Truth be told-to cool our palates before and after each bite, we can enjoy spicy Indian dishes with a side order of what I call SOYersion Raita, a vegan take on traditionally yogurt based dish.

Many regions of North India make "raita" differently. Since I am Gujarati, I use soy yogurt to make the following:

"Gujarati Soy Raita"

Gujarati dishes often play salty with sweetness....especially liked by children!

Ingredients:

• Soy Yogurt, plain (make sure the one you get is fortified with calcium, vitamins, and has pro biotic culture)
• 1 Banana, nicely riped and sweet
• Fresh coriander leaves, washed thoroughly
• Black salt (also called "Kala Namak" and can be found in South Asian grocery stores. It smells strong but adds great flavour)
• Finely ground pepper
• Finely ground chili powder or paprika

Steps:

1. Thinly slice banana, add to soy yogurt
2. Add fresh coriander leaves to soy yogurt (a small handful for a cereal bowl of soy yogurt)
3. Mix gently, keeping banana pieces intact
4. Sprinkle black salt, ground pepper, and paprika/chili powder in a pattern, one at a time (add to taste, maybe side by side swirls, starting from the outside edge to the centre of the dish). You can also add some mustard seeds, but I prefer limited spices, as "raita" is meant compliment a more complex dish.
5. Stir right before serving, for maximum ooohs and ahhhs

Goes well with "Indian Soy Keema Biryani"