Indian & South Asian · Lunch · Dinner
Khichdi
खिचड़ी (Khichdi)
A soft, comforting one-pot dish of basmati rice and split yellow moong dal, gently spiced with cumin, ginger and turmeric and packed with vegetables. Light on ghee but full of warmth, it is India's favourite bowl of comfort food.
- Prep
- 20 min
- Cook
- 40 min
- Total
- 60 min
- Serves
- 4
Calories come from: Carbs 72% · Fat 12% · Protein 16%
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Ingredients
For 4 servings- 3/4 cup150 gbasmati rice
- 3/4 cup150 gsplit yellow moong dal
- 1 tbsp14 gghee
- 1 tspcumin seeds
- 1 tbsp10 gfresh ginger, grated
- 1 small5 ggreen chilli, finely chopped
- 1 medium110 gonion, finely chopped
- 1 medium120 gtomato, chopped
- 1 small60 gcarrot, diced
- 1/2 cup75 gfrozen green peas
- 2 cups60 gbaby spinach, chopped
- 1/2 tspground turmeric
- 1 tsp6 gsalt
- 5 cups1,200 gwater
- 2 tbspfresh coriander, chopped
- 1 tbsp15 glemon juice (optional)
Steps
- 1
Combine the rice and moong dal in a bowl and rinse under cold water until the water runs mostly clear.
- 2
Cover the rinsed rice and dal with fresh water and soak for 15 minutes, then drain; discard this soaking water.
- 3
Meanwhile, chop the onion, tomato, carrot, chilli and spinach and grate the ginger.
- 4
Heat the ghee in a large heavy pot over medium heat and add the cumin seeds; let them sizzle for 30 seconds.
- 5
Add the onion and cook for 4–5 minutes until soft and lightly golden.
- 6
Stir in the ginger and green chilli and cook for 1 minute.
- 7
Add the tomato, carrot and turmeric and cook for 3 minutes until the tomato softens.
- 8
Add the drained rice and dal and stir for 1 minute to coat in the spices.
- 9
Pour in the 5 cups of water, add the salt and bring to a boil.
- 10
Reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer for 25 minutes, stirring now and then so it does not stick.
- 11
Stir in the peas and spinach, cover and cook for 5 more minutes until the rice and dal are very soft and porridge-like; add a splash of hot water if it is too thick.
- 12
Taste and adjust salt, then stir in the lemon juice if using.
- 13
Sprinkle with fresh coriander and serve hot.
Swaps, storage and make-ahead
Swaps
- Use a neutral oil such as rapeseed or sunflower instead of ghee to make it vegan and dairy-free.
- Swap the baby spinach for chopped kale or small cauliflower florets if that is what you have on hand.
- Use brown basmati rice instead of white, adding extra water and about 10 to 15 more minutes of simmering.
- Replace the fresh green chilli with a pinch of chilli flakes, or leave it out for a milder, family-friendly pot.
Storage
Cool leftovers quickly and refrigerate in a covered container within 1 hour, then eat within 24 hours. Khichdi thickens as it cools, so stir in a splash of water when reheating, heat until steaming hot all the way through, and reheat only once.
Make ahead
Chop the onion, tomato, carrot and chilli and grate the ginger up to a day ahead, keeping them covered in the fridge. You can also rinse the rice and dal ahead, but soak them just before cooking.
Nutrition values are for the recipe as written.
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Allergens and nutrition
Contains: Milk
Check the labels of packaged ingredients for allergens and suitability for your diet.
Full nutrition
| Per serving (492 g) | Per 100 g | |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 344 kcal | 70 kcal |
| Protein | 14 g | 2.8 g |
| Carbohydrates | 62.9 g | 12.8 g |
| of which sugars | 6.3 g | 1.3 g |
| Fiber | 9.3 g | 1.9 g |
| Fat | 4.6 g | 0.9 g |
| of which saturated | 2.4 g | 0.5 g |
| Sodium | 648 mg | 132 mg |
Nutrition is calculated from USDA FoodData Central data and may differ from what you cook.
