Spinach Raitha, Keerai Thayir Pachadi

          Coming back after a ten days trip and settling down back is a real pain, especially in India, the whole house is covered with dust, with loads of laundry to do and to top all that, the hot weather makes things even worse. You don't feel like cooking and eating heavy stuff, tend to lean more towards to lighter foods especially something cold and healthy at the same time, like this Spinach Raitha. It's so simple to make, you can use either fresh or frozen spinach and it can be served cold or at room temperature, a perfect accompaniment to any meal..

Need To Have

• Chopped Spinach - 2 cups
• Onion - 1 small, chopped
• Grated Ginger - 1/2 teaspoon
• Dried Red Chillies - 2, broken into half
• Urad Dal/ Husked Black Gram - 1 teaspoon
• Mustard Seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
• Asafoetida - 1/4 teaspoon
• Grated Coconut - 1 tablespoon
• Yogurt/ Curd - 1 cup
• Salt to taste

Method

          Heat some oil, add the urad dal and mustard seeds, when it starts spluttering, add the asafoetida, followed by the red chillies, mix once and then add the chopped onion. Saute the onions till translucent, then add the chopped spinach and grated ginger and mix for a minute or two. Add some salt, cover and cook on low heat, till the spinach is done.

          Add the grated coconut, mix for one more minute, remove and let it cool down a little. Then mix in the yogurt, check the salt and serve it along with your favorite rice or pilaf.

Note
You can also add a chopped tomato at the end along with the curd.