Mixed Vegetable Raitha / Yoghurt Salad

I could potentially be vegetarian. But I could never be vegan. I love yoghurt way too much. I grew up on this elixir of MY life. Some white rice slapped with homemade yoghurt and a side of some sort of vegetable and I was set. To this day, it is my comfort food.

There are lots of variations of Raitha. If I'm having Biryani , I pair it with an onion raitha. When I went to India, I discovered a fruit raitha (mostly with pineapple). You could do any version with either one vegetable/fruit, or more than one. Today, I did a mixed vegetable raitha to go with some store bought (trader joes, for the win) garlic naan.

Serves 2-4

Ingredients:
Carrot- finely chopped 1
Roma Tomato - finely chopped 1 (I added the seeds as well)
Fresh Green Chilli- 1/2 (omit this if you can't take the heat. I've been using chillies that I pick up at the local Persian or Indian market. Looks like they aren't as spicy as Serranos or Jalapenos; though I've used serranos too for this recipe and I didn't feel the heat).
Red Onion - finely chopped 1/4-1/2
Cucumber- 3-5" long piece don't add the seeds finely chopped

Cumin - 1/4 tspn (optional)
salt to taste
some water
Plain yoghurt (1/2 cup)- i use non-fat or 98% fat free.

Cilantro/Coriander - finely chopped

Method:

1. Combine all the veggies (including cilantro) in a bowl with salt.

2. Add the yoghurt and some water to make it come to a dressing consistency. Yoghurt in india is very liquidy, so we dont normally add water. But the Yoghurt in America is SO thick!

3. Mix well, taste and add salt if required. Add the cumin powder and mix again. Some people like the flavor of cumin in their raitha and some don't. I would recommend testing it out before you add cumin to the main bowl.

4. Optional: garnish with some red chilli powder for color. Serve cool.

note: You can douse this over some crisp Iceberg and eat it with some naan or pita. so delish!