Khichdi (also spelt khichari) is my comfort food, easy to cook, wholesome, and delicious! There are so many different variations of khichdi based on the ingredients you use, with the base ingredient being mung lentils. I also have one that I cook with oats that tastes so good!
Dal Khichdi
I consider dal khichdi as one of the most basic and also the most delicious versions of this awesome recipe. ‘Dal’ means lentils in Hindi language. This is so easy to cook! I like it spicy, so I add fine cut green chili peppers. Add ginger and black pepper corns, the flavor and spice is awesome. Tomato and cilantro complete the dish.
Khichdi Vs Pongal
Pongal is a South Indian dish and the concept is similar to that of khichdi. Pongal is another of my all-time favorite dishes. Just as in khichdi, mung lentils and rice are pressure cooked. Ginger, cumin, curry leaves, peppercorns and cashews are sauteed and added to the cooked rice and lentils. Tastes divine!
Cooking in Ghee
Both khichdi and pongal are typically cooked in ghee. Ghee is not just flavorful, but it is a very healthy cooking medium. Check out our homemade ghee recipe here.
Khichdi is an easy-to-digest recipe that is recommended in Ayurveda. Mung lentils provide additional fiber and protein, making this a healthy snack or entrée.
Check out our delicious, wholesome, one-pot meals and sides:
- Spicy Oats Khichdi
- Vegetable Multigrain Khichdi
- Brown Rice Khichdi
- Pulihora | Puliogare with Brown Rice
- Brown Rice Vegetable Pulao
- Savory Brown Rice Pongal
- Brown Rice Matar (Peas) Pulao
- Egg Tomato Spicy Rice
- Jeera Quinoa
- Mexican Rice
- Brown Jeera Rice
- Bisi Bele Baath
- Quinoa Vegetable Pulao
Do you love our posts and recipes? We’d LOVE to see your creations so click a photo and tag us on Instagram with the hashtag #healthyindian3 and please give a star (★) rating below. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, YouTube & Tumblr for healthy, easy and delicious recipes and lifestyle tips.
*There could be affiliate links in this blog. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
Delicious Dal Khichdi!
Ingredients
- 1/2 Cup Basmati Rice
- 1/2 Cup Yellow Mung
- 1/4 Cup Tomato
- 1 Tablespoon Ginger - Fresh, crushed
- 1 Pepper Green Chili Pepper - Fine cut
- 1 Teaspoon Cumin Seeds
- 1/4 Teaspoon Peppercorns
- 1/4 Teaspoon Asafoetida (Hing)
- 1/2 Teaspoon Turmeric Powder
- 1 Teaspoon Sea Salt
- 1.5 Tablespoons Ghee
- 2.5 Cups Filtered water
- 1/8 Cup Cilantro - Fresh, fine cut
Instructions
- Wash and drain rice and mung lentils in a steel container. Add half teaspoon salt, a pinch of turmeric and hing. Add filtered water (2.5 cups), mix well, and set it in the Instant Pot (IP) container (make sure there's about a cup of water in the IP container). Set IP to pressure cook mode for 15 minutes and wait for natural pressure release.
- Add ghee to a pan set on medium heat on a stove top. Once hot, add cumin seeds, peppercorns, ginger, chili peppers, hing and turmeric. Sauté for a couple of minutes.
- Add tomato, salt and cook till tomato softens.
- Add pressure cooked rice/mung, mix well and cook for a minute.
- Garnish with cilantro and serve hot with poppadom and tomato chutney.
