Degchi
Dhania (coriander)
Also written: coriander, cilantro, dhaniya, dhania powder, sabut dhania
- Urduدھنیا
- Hindiधनिया
- Banglaধনে
Dhania means coriander, and a recipe may mean either the leaf or the seed. Fresh dhania is the green herb, chopped and added at the end. Dhania powder is the ground seed, which tastes warm and slightly citrusy and goes in near the start. Sabut dhania is the whole seed, used when a recipe wants it crushed or dry-roasted.
The leaf is mostly a finisher. Begun Bhorta and Aloo Bhorta stir chopped coriander straight into the mashed vegetable with raw onion and green chilli, and Pakoray folds it into the batter with the onion and potato. Haleem Dhaka garnishes with it alongside fried onion, ginger and a lime wedge.
The ground seed behaves like any other powder: it needs fat and a little water, not a dry hot pan. Mutton Dalcha puts coriander powder into the pot with turmeric, chilli and green chillies at the start of a long simmer, and then finishes with fresh coriander over the top.
Add leaves just before serving, since heat dulls their colour and smell. If you buy a big bunch, wash it, dry it well and keep it wrapped in a paper towel in the fridge; wet leaves turn slimy within days. The stems carry plenty of flavour and are fine chopped into a chutney or a bhorta.
Recipes that use it
44 of our 247 recipes call for dhania (coriander) or a closely related ingredient. Here are a few to start with.
- Begun Bhorta (Mashed Roasted Eggplant)
- Aloo Bhorta (Mashed Potato)
- Vegetable Fritters
- Mutton Dalcha (Hyderabadi)
- Dhakaiya Haleem
- Potato-Stuffed Flatbread