Thechi mooli / Kumaoni radish raita

Thechi, in Kumaon means bruised or battered. This dish is made by bruising the radish, leaving it for some time with salt and then adding spices and seasonings. I remember my childhood days when it was almost a routine to sit out in the sun during winters and prepare this dish. The preparation itself used to be so tempting with scraping the radish in a steel thaali, bruising it on a sill, salting it and meanwhile peeling the lemon, taking out the filaments. It used to be a joint activity with everyone gossiping and sometimes popping a segment of lemon in mouth in between :)

Ingredients:
2 radish, washed and peeled
3 tbsp bhaanga seeds or sesame seeds
1 tbsp coriander and green chilli paste
1 tsp roasted cumin seed powder
lime wedges, only filaments needed
2 cups yogurt
sugar to taste
salt

Method:
Wash, peel radish.

Cut into long strips. This makes thrashing easier.

Cut them further into pieces.

A grinding stone (सिल बट्टा ) gives the best result. The long strips are placed on the stone and the radish are thrashed thus bruising them.
I don't have that grinding stone so used my pestle over a chopping board.

Take care of your fingers :(

Transfer the bruised radish to a bowl. Add salt liberally to the bowl. Mix properly.
Leave it for 10 to 15 minutes.
The purpose behind adding salt is to remove the juices from radish. Bruising breaks open the cell walls and is more effective than grating and salting them.

Squeeze to remove the juices. Throw the juice away, you wouldn't need it.

bhaanga

The above seeds are called bhaanga (भांगा) and impart a very good flavor to this dish. Bhaanga are the seeds of Cannabis. The seeds though come from the same plant have no psychoactive constituent and are completely safe to eat.
The roasted seeds have antiflatulence property and are added to vegetables which create flatulence as cabbage, pumpkin, radish. It is also made into a spicy chutney. The seeds are roasted and made into a powder. Since I did not have bhaanga seeds, I have substituted them with sesame seeds.
I will say that using sesame seeds in no way comparable to  bhaanga seeds but impart some nutty flavor.

In the hills, huge limes called jamir are used. But, in absence of those, one is contented using whatever lemon variety is available.

Put sesame seeds in a pan and roast on medium flame.

Roast seeds till light brown. Cool and grind into a powder.

In a bowl, add squeezed radish pieces, sesame seed powder, green chilli and coriander paste, lemon filaments, roasted cumin seed powder. Add salt according to taste.

Add curd, mix. I like a blend of flavors so add sugar to balance the sourness. Amount of sugar depends on your taste.
Stir, check seasonings.

Lastly, add chopped corinader leaves and green chillies.
Enjoy the sweet and sour lip smacking raita !