Here is a restaurant style sweet and savoury pineapple raita recipe. Be sure to watch the video!
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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 powder 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.
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Pineapple Raita Recipe
- 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.
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
Arijit says
Very tasty looking combination. Will surely try.
Hina Gujral says
thank you so much for your feedback!
Anveshika Prajapati says
Wow just awesome recipe 😋
Hina Gujral says
thanks a million!