🥣 Dahi

Dahi is the traditional homemade sour yogurt of the Indian subcontinent. It is usually made from cow’s milk, sometimes from buffalo or goat milk. The milk is boiled, cooled until warm and inoculated with a spoonful of dahi from the previous batch, then left somewhere warm for a few hours. In Indian English homemade dahi is called “curd”, while “yogurt” refers to the commercial product.

The microflora of dahi depends on temperature and humidity and may include Lactococcus lactis, aroma-producing lactococci, Lactobacillus bulgaricus and Streptococcus thermophilus. There is a folk method of obtaining a starter by dropping dried red chilli pods or stems into hot milk. The sweet Bengali version is mishti doi, set from boiled-down sweetened milk in clay pots.

Dahi is the base of many dishes and drinks: it is used to make lassi and chaas, strained dahi (chakka) goes into shrikhand, and it is used in raita, curries and marinades. Dahi differs from commercial yogurt in its homemade starter with more diverse microflora. It is served with spicy dishes because it softens their heat.