Good friends are an important part of life! They introduce you to new foods and drinks. One such friend, Deepa, introduced me to Sol Kadhi, a drink popular in Goa and the Konkan regions. This drink is made out of coconut and kokum. While it was ideally supposed to be eaten with rice, it can also be served straight up as a drink during the summer months. And there are a number of reasons why you should serve this drink!
Kokum or Garcinia indica is a superfood, known to its properties to cool the body as well as reduce acidity. Ayurveda too mentions the importance of Kokum in regulating the pitta levels in our body.
Now, my drink mentions the use of the Pink Goan variety Kokum. I specifically use this variety as it imparts certain tanginess to the drink in addition to giving it that beautiful light-
pinkish colour. So those of you travelling to Goa the next time, remember to pick this up. But even if travels are not in the books for you, don’t worry! With the existence of the miracle, that is the internet, almost everything is available online today, including this Kokum.
While I know other varieties of Kokum are available, I personally did not find any variety in Indore which gave me such a beautiful result. And, believe me; I tried experimenting with a few different ones. So my advice to you would always be to try and source the best possible ingredients as they have a huge impact on your final dish. However, feel free to try any other Kokum varieties and if you do find one that you like locally, stick to it.
As always, I appreciate all your feedback and happy to respond to any queries you may have.
| Course | Drink |
| Servings | 2-3 persons |
| Prep time | 10 min |
| Cook time | – |
Ingredients for Sol Kadhi
|
|
| 4 – 5 pieces | Dried kokum (use the Goan variety preferably) |
| 1 cup | Dabur coconut milk |
| ½ tsp | Grated ginger |
| ½ tsp | Green chili, crushed |
| 1 clove | Garlic crushed (optional) |
| a pinch | of hing or asafoedita powder |
| 3-4 | Curry leaves |
| 1 tsp | Oil for tempering |
| 1 tsp | Mustard seeds |
| Salt to taste | |
| Ice to serve | |
| handful | Chopped Coriander |
Instructions for Sol Kadhi |
|
| 1. | Soak the kokum in warm water for 10-15 minutes. Later extract the kokum water by grinding it in a mixer. Strain the mixture (It should be similar to tamarind pulp) |
| 2. | Transfer the kokum water in a bowl, add in coconut milk, salt crushed ginger, green chilli and garlic. Blend well with a blender. Refrigerate. |
| 3. | Heat the oil in a pan. Temper the mustard seeds, curry leaves and hing (asafoetida powder) |
| 4. | Add the tempering to the sol kadhi before serving. Serve chilled with crushed ice. |
| 4. | Garnish with freshly chopped coriander. |
Tip:-
Make sure the kokum isn’t too sour. You can reduce the quantity of kokum otherwise.
