Dahi substitute

Best substitute

Plain whole-milk yogurt

Use the same amount as the dahi you are replacing

Best for raita

Close match

Use plain whole-milk yogurt, 1:1, that is essentially what dahi is. If yours is thick Greek-style, whisk in about 1 tablespoon of milk or water per half cup to loosen it to dahi's softer, spoon-droppable set. For a curry or marinade, full-fat plain yogurt is best; sour cream thinned with milk also works. Avoid anything sweetened or vanilla-flavored, and avoid fat-free yogurt in cooked dishes because it splits.

Other dahi substitutes

Ranked, with the exact amount to use

2Greek yogurt thinned with milk or water
Different texture
Use 1 cup dahi for every ¾ cup Greek yogurt + ¼ cup water or milk
Greek yogurt is yogurt with the whey strained out, so straight from the tub it is too thick and too tangy.
What changes
Thinning it back down restores dahi's pourable consistency and softens the sourness.
Best for
curries and gravies, marinades, raita, baking
Whisk the liquid in a spoonful at a time or it stays lumpy. Undiluted Greek yogurt in a curry will make the sauce pasty and noticeably sharper.
3Sour cream thinned with milk
Different taste
Use 1 cup dahi for every ¾ cup sour cream + ¼ cup milk
Sour cream brings the same lactic tang but far more butterfat, so a korma or a yogurt-based gravy made with it tastes richer, rounder and less bright, and the finished dish is heavier on the palate.
What changes
Best for
rich curries and kormas, marinades, cold sauces and dips
Its high fat content makes it very stable in heat, so it will not curdle. Add a squeeze of lemon juice if you want the sharper edge dahi normally provides.
4Buttermilk
Different texture
Use the same amount by volume in dishes where the dahi is thinned anyway
Cultured buttermilk is already thin and sour, so it slots straight into anything liquid, kadhi, chaas, a marinade, a batter.
What changes
It cannot stand in for spoonable dahi in a raita, where it just makes a puddle.
Best for
kadhi, chaas and buttermilk drinks, marinades, dosa and idli batters
If you need a cup of dahi's worth of body, use 1 cup buttermilk and whisk in 1 teaspoon of cornstarch before heating so the sauce does not look watery.
5Unsweetened coconut or soy yogurt
Different taste
Use the same amount
The best dairy-free route.
What changes
Soy yogurt is closest in protein and tang and behaves most like dahi in a marinade. Coconut yogurt is milder and slightly sweet, and it will leave a faint coconut note in a raita, which suits a cucumber or pineapple raita but is more obvious in a plain one.
Best for
vegan raita, vegan marinades, smoothies and lassi, chilled soups
Buy unsweetened and unflavored. Plant yogurts have little protein and split easily, so stir them into a curry off the heat.
6Milk soured with lemon juice (last resort)
Taste and texture differ
1 cup milk + 1 tablespoon lemon juice, rested 10 minutes
This is the honest least-bad option and it only works in one situation: batters and baked goods, where you need acid to react with baking soda and a bit of dairy liquid.
What changes
It has no cultured flavor, no body and no thickness, so it fails completely in raita, in a yogurt gravy or in anything where dahi is the texture.
Best for
quick breads and cakes, pancake and pakora batters
Expect a thinner batter and a flatter, less complex sourness. Do not use this in a marinade expecting it to tenderize the way yogurt does.

What is Dahi?

Dahi is plain unsweetened yogurt cultured from whole milk, the everyday Indian curd used in raita, marinades, curries and cooling drinks.

Cooking tips

Dahi does three separate jobs depending on the recipe: it is the acid that brightens and tenderizes, the fat and protein that give a gravy body, and the cooling element that tames chili heat. Work out which job it is doing before you pick a swap, a marinade needs the acid, a korma needs the body, a raita needs both plus a spoonable texture.
Always whisk dahi or its substitute completely smooth before it goes anywhere near heat, and take the pan off the burner when you add it. Yogurt curdles because the proteins seize when they hit boiling liquid, not because of the acid.
If a curry with yogurt in it has to simmer, stir 1 teaspoon of cornstarch or chickpea flour into each cup of yogurt first. The starch coats the proteins and the sauce stays smooth even at a bubble.
Homemade dahi is thinner and more sour than American store yogurt because it is cultured longer at room temperature. If a recipe from an Indian cookbook tastes underpowered with store yogurt, add a squeeze of lemon rather than more yogurt.
To make your own dahi, whisk 2 tablespoons of any live plain yogurt into 4 cups of milk warmed to about 110F, cover, and leave it somewhere warm for 6 to 8 hours until set, then chill it.

Frequently asked questions

Is dahi the same as yogurt?

Yes. Dahi, curd and Indian curd all mean plain unsweetened yogurt. The only real differences are that dahi is usually made from whole milk, cultured at room temperature, and left unstrained, so it is softer set and often a touch more sour than a typical American tub of plain yogurt.

Can I use Greek yogurt instead of dahi?

Yes, but thin it first. Greek yogurt has had its whey strained off, so it is thicker and tangier than dahi. Use about 3/4 cup Greek yogurt plus 1/4 cup water or milk for every cup of dahi, whisking the liquid in gradually. Used straight, it makes gravies pasty and raita stodgy.

Can I just leave the dahi out?

In a marinade, no, the yogurt is what carries the spices onto the meat and keeps it moist, and without it tandoori-style dishes come out dry and bland. In a finished curry you can leave it out and add a splash of cream plus a squeeze of lemon instead, which gives you fat and acid separately. In a raita there is nothing to leave out, since the dahi is the dish.

Can I use flavored or sweetened yogurt?

No. Vanilla, fruit and honey-sweetened yogurts will make a savory curry taste strange and cloying, and the added sugar browns and can catch in the pan. If plain yogurt is genuinely unavailable, thinned sour cream is a far better choice than sweetened yogurt.

Why did my yogurt curdle in the curry?

Almost always heat shock. Yogurt proteins tighten and separate when they hit a boiling sauce. Whisk the yogurt smooth, take the pan off the heat, stir in a ladle of the hot sauce to temper it, then add the mixture back and keep it below a simmer. Full-fat yogurt is much more forgiving than low-fat or fat-free.

Related substitutes

More dairy substitutes

Dahi substitute

Other dahi substitutes

2Greek yogurt thinned with milk or water

3Sour cream thinned with milk

4Buttermilk

5Unsweetened coconut or soy yogurt

6Milk soured with lemon juice (last resort)