BVC Eats: Avocado raita

This is a cold, creamy sauce or soup that you can serve with tacos, curry, rijstafl, jerked meat, or anything spicy that wants a cool side dish or sauce for contrast. It’s also insanely green, which is cool all by itself!

It works best if you have a blender, because avocados blend up to a wonderfully fluffy texture that you can control to your liking by using more or less yogurt or stock.

The curry powder and cumin may be omitted if you like your raita extra-cooling.

Ask your guests if any of them have a problem with cilantro.

AVOCADO RAITA

1 to 4 cups light chicken, fish, or vegetable stock—more to serve soup for four, less for a sauce
1 fresh clove of garlic, peeled, slice, smashed
2 to 4 overripe avocados
small bunch cilantro, well washed (optional)
1 T sugar
1 T salt
1/2 tsp fine-ground black pepper
up to 1 T curry powder or ground cumin

16 to 32 oz. plain full-fat Greek yogurt

Heat the stock for a few minutes with the smashed garlic to get the garlicky goodness all mixed in, then remove the garlic.

Blend the avocados, cilantro, and seasonings in a blender at high speed. This will make your raita fluffy.

Lower the blender speed. (Lowering the blender speed lowers the air content and de-fluffs your raita.) Add half the yogurt slowly, while blending at lower speed. Blend thoroughly.

Decant everything into a big bowl and add the rest of the yogurt, whisking until thoroughly mixed.

Add stock until the raita is the desired thickness.

Chill 2 to 4 hours before serving.