Inji Thayir

Ginger yogurt — fresh ginger grated or finely minced and mixed directly into beaten yogurt with salt, then tempered with mustard seeds, dried red chilli, and curry leaves in sesame oil poured over the surface. The ginger provides a sharp, warming, digestive heat that cuts through the coolness of the curd; together they produce a preparation that is simultaneously cooling and warming. Eaten at the beginning of the Tamil Brahmin meal (first course on the banana leaf) to prepare the stomach for the heavier courses to follow. Also eaten as the final thayir (curd) course with plain rice. The ginger-curd combination is one of the most practised Ayurvedic food principles in Tamil Brahmin cooking.