Pineapple Raita Recipe

Here is a restaurant style sweet and savoury pineapple raita recipe. Be sure to watch the video!

• Recipe Highlights
• Picking Pineapple For Raita
• Tempering (Tadka) for Raita
• My Tried and True Tips
• Watch Pineapple Raita Video
• Pineapple Raita Recipe

For those who don’t know what ‘raita’ is – it is an Indian side dish made with curd. Raita is usually served with the main course to balance the spiciness of curries. It is like a dipping sauce. There are many varieties of raita like – pudina raita , boondi raita , onion raita, and so on.

Raise your hand if you love the classic pineapple raita served at Indian restaurants. Oh God, it is one of my favourite side dishes to accompany the spicy Indian main course . It is sweet, sour, savoury, and so refreshing.

A perfect combination of flavours to cool down the palette after a spicy Indian meal.

Sometimes pineapple raita is served as a side dish, and sometimes it’s more of a summer sweet treat – it can be literally enjoyed during any hour of the day.

Recipe Highlights

• a delicious way to eat pineapple
• vegetarian and gluten-free
• minimal cooking required
• easy to make and store
• multipurpose side dish

Picking Pineapple For Raita

The prominent flavour in this raita recipe is sweet pineapple.

I have tried this raita recipe with both canned and fresh pineapple. And in my opinion, it tastes best with canned pineapple.

The sweet, tender, syrup-coated canned pineapple when combined with yogurt and spices creates the best raita ever.

If you are using fresh pineapple – pick a juicy, ripe, sweet-tasting one. Soak it in homemade sugar syrup for 10 minutes. The bland or too sour pineapple will not give you the right taste.

Tempering (Tadka) for Raita

I love a crunchy, flavoursome South Indian Style tempering on my raita. This pineapple raita recipe is inspired by the South Indian Pachadi.

Hence, a basic tadka of oil, mustard seeds, and curry leaves is what makes my raita recipe so special.

Usually, the pineapple raita is served without tempering at Indian restaurants. You can skip the tempering, the raita tastes delicious even without tempering as well.

My Tried and True Tips

• If you are using fresh pineapple , try to consume the raita as soon as possible. Do not let the raita sit at room temperature for too long especially in hot and humid tropical climates. There might be chances of the curd turning bitter after a few hours due to the tartness of the pineapple.
• Soaking fresh pineapple in sugar syrup makes it tender, sweet-tasting, and perfectly juicy.
• Pick the plain, thick yogurt or curd (dahi) for making raita. Avoid using sour or flavoured curd.
• A dash of roasted cumin powde r does all the magic and bridges the gap between sugar and salt.
• Adjust the amount of sweetness according to the taste of the pineapple and curd. It is best to taste the curd, pineapple and then adjust the amount of sugar, salt, spices accordingly.

Watch Pineapple Raita Video

Serving Suggestion

You can serve raita as a side dish with biryani, pulao , dals, or curries. It tastes great as a dipping sauce for kebabs, tikka , or any other type of grilled or fried snack.

Pineapple Raita is best served chilled. Allow it to sit in the refrigerator for 20 – 30 minutes before serving.

Store the leftover raita in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 1 – 2 days. After 24 hours the raita slowly start tasting bitter and sour because of pineapple.

More Pineapple Recipes

• Pineapple Halwa
• Pineapple Fried Rice
• Pineapple Chicken Curry
• Tropical Pineapple Salad
• Mint Pineapple Popsicles
• Pasta Salad with Pineapple

Ingredients

• ▢ 2 Cup pineapple, diced
• ▢ 2 Cup curd or yogurt
• ▢ Salt to taste
• ▢ 1 tablespoon roasted cumin powder (jeera powder)
• ▢ 2 tablespoon powdered sugar
• ▢ 1 teaspoon red chili powder
• ▢ 1 teaspoon Chaat masala
• ▢ 2 tablespoon fresh coriander

Ingredients For Sugar Syrup

• ▢ 1 ¼ Cup water
• ▢ 1 Cup granulated white sugar

Ingredients For Tempering (tadka)

• ▢ 2 tablespoon cooking oil
• ▢ 2 teaspoon mustard seeds (rai)
• ▢ 6 – 8 curry leaves

Ingredients For Garnish

• ▢ 2 tablespoon pomegranate pearls
• ▢ 2 tablespoon bite-size pineapple cubes
• ▢ 1 tablespoon fresh coriander

Instructions

Prepare Sugar Syrup

• Boil sugar and water for 8 – 10 minutes to thicken the syrup. Turn off the heat. Add fresh pineapple slices. Soak them in sugar syrup for 10 minutes. Skip this step if you are using canned pineapple slices.
• After 10 minutes, chop the pineapple slices. Set aside.

Prepare Raita

• Whisk the curd using a wire whisk or hand blender till it is smooth and creamy.
• Add the spices, salt, and whisk once again to combine.
• Add chopped pineapple, fresh coriander, and mix nicely with the curd. Taste, if required add more sugar or spices as per your taste preference.

Prepare Tempering (Tadka)

• Heat oil in a small pan. Add mustard seeds and curry leaves. Once seeds starts popping, turn off the heat.
• Pour tadka over the pineapple raita. Garnish raita with pomegranate, chopped pineapple, and fresh coriander leaves.
• Keep the raita in the fridge until ready to serve.
• Serve Pineapple Raita chilled.

Recipe Notes:

• If you are using fresh pineapple to make the raita soak it in homemade sugar syrup. Skip this step if you are using canned pineapple.
• Adjust the quantity of sugar according to the taste of the pineapple.
• Do not add granulated sugar into the curd as sugar crystals will not dissolve properly.

Nutrition

We follow a strict NO SPAM Policy

Pineapple Raita Recipe

Equipment

• Mixing Bowl
• Tadka Pan

Ingredients

• 2 Cup pineapple, diced
• 2 Cup curd or yogurt
• Salt to taste
• 1 tablespoon roasted cumin powder (jeera powder)
• 2 tablespoon powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon red chili powder
• 1 teaspoon Chaat masala
• 2 tablespoon fresh coriander

Ingredients For Sugar Syrup

• 1 ¼ Cup water
• 1 Cup granulated white sugar

Ingredients For Tempering (tadka)

• 2 tablespoon cooking oil
• 2 teaspoon mustard seeds (rai)
• 6 - 8 curry leaves

Ingredients For Garnish

• 2 tablespoon pomegranate pearls
• 2 tablespoon bite-size pineapple cubes
• 1 tablespoon fresh coriander

Instructions

Prepare Sugar Syrup

• Boil sugar and water for 8 - 10 minutes to thicken the syrup. Turn off the heat. Add fresh pineapple slices. Soak them in sugar syrup for 10 minutes. Skip this step if you are using canned pineapple slices.
• After 10 minutes, chop the pineapple slices. Set aside.

Prepare Raita

• Whisk the curd using a wire whisk or hand blender till it is smooth and creamy.
• Add the spices, salt, and whisk once again to combine.
• Add chopped pineapple, fresh coriander, and mix nicely with the curd. Taste, if required add more sugar or spices as per your taste preference.

Prepare Tempering (Tadka)

• Heat oil in a small pan. Add mustard seeds and curry leaves. Once seeds starts popping, turn off the heat.
• Pour tadka over the pineapple raita. Garnish raita with pomegranate, chopped pineapple, and fresh coriander leaves.
• Keep the raita in the fridge until ready to serve.
• Serve Pineapple Raita chilled.

Video

Notes

• If you are using fresh pineapple to make the raita soak it in homemade sugar syrup. Skip this step if you are using canned pineapple.
• Adjust the quantity of sugar according to the taste of the pineapple.
• Do not add granulated sugar into the curd as sugar crystals will not dissolve properly.

Nutrition

Thai Red Curry is a flavoursome, bold, aromatic curry – packed with fresh herbs, vegetables, chicken, and a robust red curry paste. It is one of the must-try curry recipes from Thailand.

• My Favourite Thai Red Curry
• Red Curry Paste – Homemade vs Readymade
• Ingredients For Red Curry Paste
• How To Make Red Curry Paste
• Ingredients For Thai Red Curry
• How To Make Thai Red Curry
• Serving Suggestion
• Key Ingredients Substitution
• FAQs Related To Thai Red Curry
• More Thai Recipes
• Thai Red Curry Recipe With Chicken

In recent years, Thai Cuisine has become quite popular among food lovers. Thai food ain’t about simplicity. It’s about the juggling of disparate flavours to create umami.

It is a deadly combination of delicious aroma, brilliant colours, fresh herbs, local spices and a lot of coconut milk, especially – spicy, slurpy Thai Curries.

My Favourite Thai Red Curry

As the name suggests, Thai Red Curry is a bright red curry from Thai Cuisine. It is one of the most popular curries across Asia.

The fresh flavours, lingering aroma, creamy texture, and uniquely bold taste – all make me obsessed with this Thai Curry recipe.

I am sharing a Thai Red Curry Recipe with chicken made from homemade red curry paste that you can store for a month.

Red Curry Paste – Homemade vs Readymade

I always stick to Homemade Red Curry Paste to make an authentic Thai curry. The colour, texture, and taste of the curry prepared from freshly ground paste are mind-blowing. Plus, the homemade paste is:

• vegan
• gluten-free
• freezer friendly
• preservative free
• no artificial colour
• easy to store for 30 days

You can store homemade curry paste for about 30 days in the refrigerator and even longer if frozen.

But for making red curry on short notice, I rely on some of the best readymade curry paste available in the supermarket. Real Thai Red Curry Paste, Blue Elephant, Mesri and Ayam are a few of my favourite brands.

Zest up the readymade curry paste by frying in oil for 3 – 5 minutes with chopped garlic before adding chicken or vegetables.

Ingredients For Red Curry Paste

• Red Chillies: This curry paste requires broad, dried red chillies. I use Kashmiri red chillies. Do not use fresh red chillies. They will not give you the same taste and make the curry paste too spicy.
• Spices: Coriander Seeds, Cumin, Black Peppercorns
• Onion: Use tiny shallots. If not available, add red onion.
• Galangal is a Thai variety of ginger with a sharp aroma and taste.
• Lemongrass: Use the stalk of lemongrass and not leaves.
• Other Ingredients: Garlic, Lemon, Salt, Water

How To Make Red Curry Paste

• Step 1) Discard the crown of dried red chillies. Roughly chop them. Discard the seeds if you do not want spicy curry.
• Step 2) Soak red chillies in hot water. Cover and set aside for 15 minutes.
• Step 3) Clean the stalk of lemongrass. Wash to remove dirt. Thinly slice it.
• Step 4) Scrape the skin of the galangal. Wash it. Either grate or chop it.
• Step 5) Dry roast the coriander seeds, cumin, and peppercorns for 1 minute only to release their aroma.

• Step 6) To make the paste, add soaked chillies, lemongrass, galangal, roasted spices, salt, garlic, shallots, and lemon zest, to a mixer. Blend the ingredients to a smooth paste using the soaked chilli hot water.
• You must scrap the ingredients a few times and add water in small batches to make a smooth paste.
• Transfer it to a bowl or store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Ingredients For Thai Red Curry

• Curry Paste: Use homemade or readymade curry paste.
• Chicken: Boneless chicken, preferably thigh or breast, cut into bite-size pieces.
• Vegetables: I add yellow pumpkin, french beans, baby corn, red bell pepper
• Coconut Milk: Use thin coconut milk to give the Thai red curry a creamy and saucy consistency.
• Fresh Herbs: Thai Basil, Kaffir Lime Leaves, Cilantro, Thai Bird’s Eye Chilli
• Other Ingredients: Cooking Oil, Dark Brown Sugar, Salt, Fish Sauce

How To Make Thai Red Curry

• Step 1) Clean, wash, and cut the chicken thigh or breast into bite-size pieces.
• Step 2) Heat the oil in a wok or large saucepan over medium flame.
• Step 3 ) Stir in the curry paste and cook for 2 to 3 minutes or until the oil separates from the paste.
• Step 4) Add chicken pieces. Stir-fry till chicken pieces turn pale white. Add 2 tablespoons of coconut milk if the curry paste sticks to the wok or burns.

• Step 5) Add sugar, fish sauce, vegetables, and salt. Combine and cook for 1 minute.
• Step 6) Add the remaining coconut milk along with kaffir lime leaves, red chillies, and stir to combine. Taste and season with salt accordingly.
• Step 7) Add chicken stock or water if the curry seems too thick. Bring slowly to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer, covered, for 6 – 8 minutes or until chicken and vegetables are cooked.
• Before serving, add Thai basil and chopped cilantro.

Serving Suggestion

Thai Curry is best enjoyed with warm jasmine rice or any other short grain, aromatic, starchy rice. You can serve it with rice noodles or my signature pineapple fried rice .

I like my Thai red curry with a bowl of plain rice topped with toasted peanuts, shrimp crackers, a spoonful of spicy sambal, and a bowl of smashed cucumber salad on the side.

Key Ingredients Substitution

If you live in a place where Thai ingredients aren’t easily available, try these substitutes:

• Lemongrass – use dry lemongrass or lemon juice and zest
• Kafir Lime Leaves – regular lime leaves or lemon zest
• Galangal (Thai Ginger) – regular ginger
• Coconut milk – cashew or almond milk
• Thai Basil Leaves – Italian Basil
• Brown Sugar – jaggery or white sugar
• Fish Sauce – soy sauce or skip it
• Birds Eye Chilli – any other variety of spicy red chilli

Apart from these herbs and spices, a medley of seasonal vegetables, meat, or seafood is added to the Thai red curry. From local mushrooms, green beans, bell peppers, squash, and Turkey Berry, eggplant to baby corn, feel free to add vegetables of your choice to the curry.

The first thought that comes to mind when seeing a bright red curry with sliced chillies is that it will blow one’s brains out with the heat. On the contrary, Thai red curry has a good balance of – spiciness, sweetness, and sourness, with an outburst of fresh flavours from herbs. The right word to define Thai red curry is – umami. But if you are not accustomed to tolerating even low – medium spicy food, it’s highly recommended to taste the red curry cautiously.

Add tofu instead of animal protein, skip the fish sauce, and have the perfect vegan Thai red curry.

The taste of Thai Red Curry is unique. It is a bit sweet, spicy, and sour, and you can taste the fresh flavour of herbs in each bite. It also has a creamy mouthfeel. But this is not the right curry if you are not accustomed to aromatic food.

Yes, you can. It is a fantastic meal prep-friendly curry that reheats well and remains good for consumption even after a few days.

More Thai Recipes

• Chicken Satay
• Chicken Pad Thai
• Pineapple Fried Rice
• Green Papaya Salad
• Thai Green Curry Soup
• Thai Sweet Chilli Sauce
• Thai Pineapple Chicken Curry

Ingredients

Ingredients For Red Curry Paste

• ▢ 6 dried red chillies (preferably Kashmiri Red Chilli)
• ▢ ½ Cup water
• ▢ ½ Cup shallots (sambar onion)
• ▢ 2 tabespoon garlic cloves
• ▢ 1 tablespoon grated galangal or ginger
• ▢ 2 tablespoon chopped lemongrass
• ▢ 1 tablespoon coriander seeds (sabut dhaniya)
• ▢ 1 teaspoon cumin seeds (jeera)
• ▢ 1 teaspoon salt or to taste
• ▢ ½ teaspoon black peppercorns (sabut kali mirch)
• ▢ ½ teaspoon lemon zest

Ingredients For Curry

• ▢ 4 tablespoon groundnut oil
• ▢ 250 gram boneless chicken pieces
• ▢ ¼ Cup french beans, cut into one-inch pieces
• ▢ ½ Cup yellow pumpkin, diced
• ▢ 2 Cup thin coconut milk
• ▢ 1 tablespoon dark brown sugar
• ▢ 1 teaspoon fish sauce
• ▢ Salt to taste
• ▢ ¼ Cup water
• ▢ 2 Thai birds eye chili
• ▢ 4 kaffir lime leaves
• ▢ ¼ Cup Thai basil leaves
• ▢ 2 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro

Instructions

Prepare Red Curry Paste

• Discard the crown of dried red chillies. Roughly chop them. Discard the seeds if you do not want spicy curry.
• Soak red chillies in hot water. Cover and set aside for 15 minutes.
• Clean the stalk of lemongrass. Wash to remove dirt. Thinly slice the stalk/stem and not the leaves.
• Scrape the skin of the galangal. Wash it. Either grate or chop it
• Dry roast the coriander seeds, cumin, and peppercorns for 1 minute only to release their aroma.
• To make the paste, add soaked chillies, lemongrass, galangal, roasted spices, salt, garlic, shallots, and lemon zest, to a mixer. Blend the ingredients to a smooth paste using the soaked chilli hot water.
• You must scrap the ingredients a few times and add water in small batches to make a smooth paste.
• Transfer it to a bowl to make curry or store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Prepare Thai Red Curry With Chicken

• Clean, wash, and pat dry the chicken pieces. Set them aside.
• Heat oil in a wok or large saucepan over medium flame. Stir in the curry paste and cook for 2 to 3 minutes or till the oil starts separating from the paste.
• Add chicken pieces. Stir-fry till chicken pieces turn pale white. Add 2 tablespoons of coconut milk if the curry paste sticks to the wok or burns.
• Add sugar, fish sauce, vegetables, and salt. Combine and cook for 1 minute.
• Add the remaining coconut milk along with kaffir lime leaves, water, red chillies, and stir to combine. Taste and season with salt accordingly.
• Bring slowly to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer, covered, for 6 – 8 minutes or until chicken and vegetables are cooked.
• Before serving, add Thai basil and chopped cilantro.
• Serve Thai Red Curry warm with jasmine rice.

Recipe Notes:

• If you live where Thai ingredients aren’t available, try the substitutes I have shared in the article above.
• You can use the homemade red curry paste or the readymade paste. Real Thai Red Curry Paste, Blue Elephant, Mesri and Ayam are a few of my favourite brands.
• This red curry paste recipe yields 150 grams and is medium spicy. We like our curry spicy, so I add it all to make curry for one time.
• The consistency of the curry can be adjusted to your liking. Some like it thick and saucy, while others may prefer soupy. Add the stock or water accordingly.
• Skip adding red chilli to the curry if you do not want to make it spicy, as the curry paste also has a certain amount of spiciness.
• Always taste the curry and then add salt accordingly. Because fish sauce and curry paste has some amount of salt; otherwise, you might end up with over-salted curry.

Nutrition

We follow a strict NO SPAM Policy