Dal Khichdi | Comforting Lentils and Rice

Sometimes I have weeks where there’s a lot of eating out and come the weekend, I’m just craving simple home cooked meals. My go-to quick and easy recipe for times like that is this Dal Khichdi.

The word Khichdi literally means a culinary mix of lentils, rice and spices, almost like a spiced mixture. It is considered light on the stomach and tends to be served with pickle and poppadoms.

I tend to use moong dal in my khichdi as I find moong dal is easy on the tummy and digests easily. But feel free to use toor dal if you’d prefer it.

Serve hot with some carrot salad, roasted poppadoms and pickle and don’t forget a generous topping of ghee. Believe me when I say that ghee will change the flavour of the dal khichdi all together. Its like a marriage made in heaven.

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Dal Khichdi

Rice and Lentils with chilli, garlic and curry leaves

Course

Main Dish

Cuisine

Indian

Prep Time

10 mins

Cook Time

30 mins

Servings

people

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup moong dal. or toor dal
• 1/2 cup Basmati Rice
• 1/2 tsp asafoetida or hing
• 1 tsp turmeric powder
• 2 bay leaves
• 8-10 curry leaves
• 3 tbsp ghee or clarified butter
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 2-3 dried red chillies
• 1/2 inch Ginger finely chopped
• 2-3 pods garlic finely chopped
• 1 medium onion finely chopped
• 1 tsp red chilli powder
• 1 tsp cumin powder
• 1 tsp coriander powder
• Salt to taste
• 1.5 cups water

Course Main Dish Cuisine Indian Prep Time 10 mins Cook Time 30 mins Servings people Ingredients 1/2 cup moong dal. or toor dal 1/2 cup Basmati Rice 1/2 tsp asafoetida or hing 1 tsp turmeric powder 2 bay leaves 8-10 curry leaves 3 tbsp ghee or clarified butter 1 tsp cumin seeds 2-3 dried red chillies 1/2 inch Ginger finely chopped 2-3 pods garlic finely chopped 1 medium onion finely chopped 1 tsp red chilli powder 1 tsp cumin powder 1 tsp coriander powder Salt to taste 1.5 cups water

Recipe Notes

1. Wash dal and rice thoroughly and soak in water. Then add 1.5 litres of water to a pan and add the dal and rice to it. Add in asafoetida, turmeric and salt. Cook on medium heat for about 30 mins.
2. Bring to a boil and then simmer until dal and rice are cooked.
3. Once cooked, mash lightly with a potato masher or a whisk and keep aside.
4. In a deep bottomed pan on a medium heat, take some oil/ghee, once hot add cumin seeds, bay leaves , red chillis and curry leaves and fry until fragrant. 
5. Toss in the onions and a little salt and fry until onions go brown.
6. Next the ginger and garlic go in and fry until cooked.
7. Add the red chilli powder, cumin powder, coriander powder and bring everything together for about 5 mins.
8. Add in the mashed dal and rice and stir everything together. Add some more water such that it is a thick consistency. 
9. Turn off the heat and serve the dal khichdi alongside roasted poppadoms and pickle. Don't forget to add a dollop of ghee before serving.

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