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Dhay (fermented chili paste): recipe illustration
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Dhay (fermented chili paste)

Dhay is a paste of fermented chilies, salt and garlic that accompanies almost every Bhutanese meal. Its texture is smooth, and its taste is salty, sour and spicy. It is eaten as a condiment, spread over rice or vegetables.

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Ingredients

Ingredients

Spices & seasoning

Optional extras

On the side

Nutrition facts

43 kcal per serving

Protein
1.8 g
Carbohydrates
7.4 g
of which sugars
4.2 g
Fat
0.3 g
Fiber
1.7 g

Ecomely’s estimate, calculated from the ingredients with the ANSES Ciqual food composition table, excluding sides and seasoning added to taste.

Instructions

  1. Soak the dried chilies in lukewarm water for 20 minutes, until they are nicely soft, then drain them, keeping a little of the water.
  2. Deseed the chilies if you want a milder taste, then roughly chop them.
  3. Peel the garlic and crush it in a mortar with the salt until you have a paste.
  4. Add the chilies and pound them with the garlic, gradually adding the soaking water, until you have a smooth, thick paste.
  5. Transfer to a clean jar, add the lime juice, cover and leave to ferment at room temperature for 2 to 3 days, stirring once a day.
  6. Taste: once the sourness is pleasant, store in the fridge, where it keeps for several weeks.

Variations and tips

Fresh version. Replace the dried chilies with 300 g of fresh chilies, and serve the dhay right away without fermenting.

Using what's available here. Dried Cayenne peppers from the supermarket work very well instead of Bhutanese chilies.

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Original Ecomely recipe.