Masala Dal Khichdi

“Khichdi ke chaar yaar- dahi, papad, ghee aur achaar”

Masala Dal Khichdi recipe is a light and easy to digest Indian dish made with rice and moong dal. It is nutritious and light on the tummy, healthy and comforting. My version of Masala Dal Khichdi is made with rice and yellow moong dal (or split mung beans), softened tomatoes and onion, then flavored with a cumin, coriander and turmeric. And each family has their own recipe.  It is perfect for those lazy days when you don’t really want to go all-out in the kitchen, but still want hug-in-a-bowl kinda comfort food.

As the temperature drops ,I start craving sometime warm and comforting. And for us, a humble bowl of khichdi does wonders on a cold winter afternoon. Growing up, Khichdi was a weekly affair at my Mom’s place. Whenever my pantry is out of stock and there is nothing more left I prepare a comforting bowl of this Masala Dal khichdi and everything in life seems so sorted.

Khichdi has the reputation of being bland, it isn’t actually if you include a few spices or herbs. The kind of spices, herbs, veggies you add make a huge difference to the khichdi. In fact in Indian cuisine, there are so many ways we make Khichdi. Khichdi/khichari/khichuri/ kichadi /khichri, call it by any name, you all have to agree that khichdi is just about the greatest Indian comfort food ever invented.

Khichdi ke chaar yaar

Khichdi ke chaar yaar- dahi, papad, ghee aur achaar”

This translates to – The four friends of Khichdi are yogurt, ghee, pickle and papad.

Indians and their love for Khichdi

The reason khichdi is so popular among Indians is because to most of us it is the ultimate comfort food. Most types of khichdi are wholesome and use few spices, if any, making them light on the stomach and easy to digest. It is often the first solid food a baby eats. Or simply, the food mom would make if you were sick. It’s the food you make in a hurry on a rushed weeknight. And very often the food you eat just to feel better when you are down or home sick.

Khichdi and Makar Sankrant

The humble khichdi is so integral to the festivities that Makar Sankranti is alternatively called ‘Khichdi’ in some regions of the country. Especially in Eastern Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Jharkhand. In our home, the Makar Sankrant menu always has Khichdi. A slightly different variation than this one as it uses sesame.

Reasons to make khichdi on Makar Sankrant:

• This one pot meal is considered as a symbol of unity.This means that it signifies the process of life and regeneration that further indicates the beginning of the new harvest year.
• The staple khichdi made up of rice and dals/lentils is actually supposed to be the favourite food of the Hindu god Gorakshnath, whose idol is installed in a temple in Gorakhanth. The deity is served khichdi as an offering/ naivaidya on the day of Makar Sankranti.
• The temperature during this season  fluctuates from being chilling cold to warm. Khichdi is the perfect dish to satiate the appetite and provide the body with much-needed nutrition too.

Can I use another lentil?

Different lentils can be used in khichdi, the most common one in my home is moong dal. It’s actually the most easily digestible dal and so used in khichdi. You can either substitute moong dal with toor dal (split pigeon peas), chana dal (split chickpea), or use the combination of all lentils. As chana dal and toor dal take longer time to cook, soaking them in hot water for at least 20 minutes helps cook faster.

Try our other rice recipes:

Love Rice as much as we do?

Try our Yellow Rice , Jeera Rice, Masoor Biryani

Masala Dal Khichdi

Recipe by Samrudhi MaheshCourse: Lunch, Dinner, MainCuisine: IndianDifficulty: Easy

Servings

4

servings

Prep time

15

minutes

Cooking time

40

minutes

Make my version of Masala Dal Khichdi

Ingredients

• 1 cup Rice

• ½ cup Moong Dal

• 1 teaspoon Turmeric powder

• 1/2 tablespoon Oil

• salt – to taste

• ¼ teaspoon Asafoetida (Hing)

• First Tempering

• 2 tablespoons – Ghee / Oil

• 1 onion, finely chopped

• 1 tomato, finely chopped

• 1 teaspoon Mustard seeds

• 1 teaspoon Red chilli powder

• 1 teaspoon Coriander powder

• Additional salt if required

• Second Tempering

• 2 tablespoon Ghee

• 1 teaspoon Cumin seeds

• 3 red chillies dried

• 10 curry leaves

• 3-4 garlic cloves

• Coriander leaves

Directions

• Pressure cook the dal and rice by adding turmeric powder and salt.
• In a pan heat vegetable oil and splutter mustard seeds in it. Add asafoetida followed by onions and chillies.
• Once the onions turn translucent, add ginger-garlic paste and cook for 30-40 seconds.
• Add tomatoes, red chilli powder and coriander powder cooking for a minute.
• Whisk the cooked dal and rice nicely and add water to it.
• Transfer the boiled dal and rice to the tempering and cook until it starts bubbling.
• For the final tempering, melt ghee in a tempering vessel and add cumin seeds, dried red chillies and curry leaves.
• Once it splutters pour this tempering on top of the khichdi.

Notes

• You may use other veggies in the khichdi like spinach, carrots, onion.
• To make it vegan, simply skip the ghee and use oil only.
• The khichdi tastes best when it’s warm. It will become thick once you keep it inside the refrigerator. Simply add more water and little salt and bring it to a desired consistency when heating it up again

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