Desi

Desi yogurt is made in the North West of England for South Asian households, and the name says what it is aiming at: the thick, mildly sour dahi that families once set at home overnight in a steel pot. It is a whole milk, live set yogurt with no artificial flavourings or colours, gluten free and suitable for vegetarians.

The family size pot sits in yogurt, part of yogurt and desserts in our chilled and dairy department. Because it is set in the pot, not stirred, it lifts out in firm spoonfuls and stays thick when mixed with spices, salt or fruit, which is what most Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi recipes expect.

Whisk it with salt, roasted cumin and grated cucumber for raita, or with water, sugar and cardamom for a sweet lassi; salted chaas with ginger and curry leaves is the South Indian version. It is the souring and thickening agent in Punjabi kadhi with pakoras and in Gujarati kadhi made with besan, the marinade for chicken tikka and tandoori lamb, and the base of shrikhand when hung in muslin overnight. In the south, curd rice with a mustard seed tempering is the cooling end to a meal.

Keep the pot in the fridge, use a clean spoon each time and finish it within a few days of opening. A couple of spoonfuls stirred into warm milk will set your next batch of homemade dahi. For more from the chilled shelf, see paneer and lassi and flavoured milk, and for the roasted cumin, browse cumin powder.