Khichdi isn’t exactly the height of culinary sophistication – but sometimes we don’t want culinary sophistication. Hands up those living away from family who, after a series of spice-laden oily meals outdoors and countless packets of instant noodles, crave simple home-cooked khichdi?
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On to this easy recipe, a life-saver on days when your tummy asks for comfort and nothing more, and you have only rudimentary cooking equipment / ingredients at your disposal.
This khichdi is cooked without a pressure cooker – it’s simmered in a kadhai instead. The no-pressure-cooker method gives you more control on the level of doneness of rice and dal: just plan more cooking time than you would for pressure cooking.
Ingredients:
[Serves 2]
- Rice – 3/4 cup (preferably use the short-grain variety, such as sona masoori)
- Yellow moong dal – 3/4 cup
- Water – 5 cups (plus 3 cups for soaking)
- Turmeric powder – 1/2 teaspoon
- Salt – 1/4 teaspoon (adjust to taste)
- Ghee – 1 tablespoon (plus more for topping, if you wish)
The above is all you need for a simple khichdi. Add these whole spices to the tadka if you have them on hand:
- Black peppercorns – 10
- Cloves – 4
- Cinnamon – 1-inch stick
- Cumin seeds – 1 teaspoon
How To Make Khichdi without Pressure Cooker:
Wash the moong dal and rice together in several changes of water till the water runs clear.
Soak the washed rice and dal in 3 cups of water for 30 minutes. Drain.
Heat a tablespoon of ghee in a kadhai or pan.
When the ghee is hot, set heat to low and add to it a teaspoon of cumin seeds.
As soon as the cumin seeds crackle [this takes just a couple of seconds], add the whole garam masala: cloves, cinnamon stick and peppercorns. Be careful: cloves tend to pop.
Tip into the pan the washed rice and dal.
Cook for a minute, then add turmeric, salt and 5 cups of water.
Bring to a boil.
Set heat to low, cover the pan and let it simmer. Check the pan after 15 minutes to stir and add more water if you want the dish soupier.
Continue to cook for about 25 minutes, or till the rice and dal have softened and come together. Let the pan stand covered for another five minutes.
Khichdi is ready.
Serve piping hot.
Khichdi Accompaniments:
There is a saying in Hindi:
Khichdi ke teen yaar
Papad, chokha aur achaar
which means:
Khichdi has three friends – papad (crisp flatbread), chokha (boiled mashed vegetables, usually potato) and achaar (pickle, usually chili or mango).
These are the most popular accompaniments that add a burst of flavor to this otherwise plain food. A bowl of homemade yogurt and some bhujiya (chopped vegetables fried to a crisp, such as brinjal or plantain) go very well with khichdi too.
In the thali below: khichdi with tomato coriander chutney, aloo pyaz ki bhujiya, okra bhujiya, plantain chips, plain yogurt with roasted cumin.
Recipe Tips and Legacy Notes:
- Khichdi isn’t just a modest recourse for a sparse kitchen. In Bihar, it is festive food: on the day of Makar Sankranti, we have khichdi for lunch after a morning meal of dahi chura.
- Also in Bihar, it is customary to eat khichdi on Saturdays. I have never understood why, it just is so. [Talking of Bihar – learn more here about Bihari recipes.]
- Embellish the dish if you like with vegetables. I like to throw in some peas, cauliflower florets, carrots and onions after the tadka, before adding rice and dal.
- If you are having khichdi to soothe your delicate tummy, cut down on the ghee, add more water and cook a few minutes longer for a softer, thinner khichdi. Also try out other tummy-friendly dishes: pudina chutney, buttermilk, ginger lime moong dal.
Quick-reference recipe card:
Khichdi without Pressure Cooker
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup Rice (preferably use a short-grain rice such as sona masoori)
- 3/4 cup Yellow moong dal
- 5 cups Water (plus 3 cups for soaking)
- 1/2 tsp Turmeric powder
- 1/4 tsp Salt (adjust to taste)
- 1 tbsp Ghee (plus more for topping, if you wish)
Spices
- 10 Black peppercorns
- 4 Cloves
- 1 inch Cinnamon stick
- 1 tsp Cumin seeds
Instructions
- Wash the moong dal and rice together in several changes of water till the water runs clear.
- Soak the washed rice and dal in 3 cups of water for 30 minutes. Drain.
- Heat a tablespoon of ghee in a kadhai or pan.
- When the ghee is hot, set heat to low and add to it a teaspoon of cumin seeds.
- As soon as the cumin seeds crackle [this takes just a couple of seconds], add the whole garam masala: cloves, cinnamon stick and peppercorns.
- Tip into the pan the washed rice and dal.
- Cook for a minute, then add turmeric, salt and 5 cups of water.
- Bring to a boil.
- Set heat to low, cover the pan and let it simmer.
- Check the pan after 15 minutes to stir and add more water if you want the dish soupier.
- Continue to cook for about 25 minutes, or till the rice and dal have softened and come together.
- Let the pan stand covered for another five minutes.
- Khichdi is ready. Serve piping hot.
Notes
Related Recipes:
Craving more simple food such as this khichdi? Let me share a few more comforting meal ideas:
- sattu chokha or parval chokha, on the side with plain rice, dal and dahi
- osaman (spiced moong bean stock) with plain rice and aloo
- vegetable masoor dal – have this as a standalone soup or with some toast or chapatis
you are SAVING me in lockdown right now!!!! thanks
Hi preetal, Happy to be of service! All the best, stay safe and well fed during the lockdown!
Thank you for your recipe. Very detailed and it turned out great. :)
Hi Sameer, you are most welcome!
I tried with brown rice and whole green mong dal.
Rice and dal does not come together, dal doesn’t even break.
I didn’t use pressure cooker, how do i make my khichdi more soupier?
Hi Amit, Both brown rice and green moong dal need much longer cooking time than white rice and yellow moong dal.
I haven’t tried cooking them without a pressure cooker, but my guess is – even if you soak overnight and cook for double the time, brown rice and green moong would not disintegrate.
I would do one of these:
(1) enjoy these ingredients in a tehri-like dish, not try to make them into a soupy khichdi
(2) get myself a pressure cooker
(3) if pressure cooker is not an option, cook long and slow in a pan and use a hand blender to help the ingredients come together
Awesome!
Thank you!
I tried your recipe with a 3:1 moong/masoor dal mix. It was a hit. The only change I would reccommend would be to wrap the cinnamon, cloves, and pepper corns in a cheese cloth so they can be easily removed before serving. Hungry eaters enjoyed eating, but not fishing out the three…..
Thanks for the tip, Zareen!