Khichuri is a stunningly beautiful dish that is like a treasure chest for your soul. Not only is it bursting with colors, you’ll also find a wealth of delightful flavors in this traditional festival food from Bengal. (Also known as Moong Dal Khichdi.)
Comforting and warm, the ingredients also soothe your body’s digestive system. Plus they are great for your heart, for fending off diabetes and cancer. You might even lose weight by eating khichuri.
People often eat khichuri for comforting a cold and other illnesses. And, I’m told, young adults in college love khichuri as well! It’s budget friendly, easy to make, soothing and delicious. Plus you get a lot of nutrients from khichuri. Plant-based protein, good fiber for your digestive system, antioxidants and other vitamins and minerals (depending on which vegetables you choose).
The Story of Khichuri
According to Times of India:
“Bhoger Khichuri is a traditional Bengali recipe that is prepared for Goddess Durga on Durga Puja, Lokkhi Pujo and Saraswati Pujo. After worshipping Goddess Durga, this dish is distributed among devotee as Prasad. “
But this dish has been around for so many centuries. Like the flavors in the dish, it has a rich, deep history. A story from NPR tells the history:
The Indian philosopher and statesman Chanukya (also called Kautilya), from 300 B.C., wrote that the balanced meal for a gentleman should consist of one prastha (about 1.4 pounds) of rice, quarter prastha of lentils, 1/62 prastha of salt, and 1/16 prastha of ghee or oil. Sounds like khichuri!
In 14th century A.D., the renowned Moroccan explorer Ibn Battuta wrote about people in South Asia – especially the poor – eating khichri made with rice, mung bean and butter.
The power of khichri is its adaptability to different tastes and needs. “It’s probably the most adaptable dish [on the subcontinent],” says Sen. “It can be a very simple dish that poor people eat … or it can be very elaborate.” Elaborate enough to be fit for kings, or in this case, emperors.
A recipe from the court of Akbar, the 16th century Mughal emperor, calls for equal parts of lentils, rice and ghee, says Sen. “Very rich!”
What’s Different about this Recipe
First of all, I used brown rice instead of the white rice people usually use. Brown rice has more fiber and nutrients than the white rice, which has its outer layer stripped off.
Also, my friend from Bangladesh said, “you can add whatever vegetables you like.” So, as I love garlic and onions, I included them. I’ve noticed that many make Khichuri without garlic and onions. But, as I did not know this, I put garlic and onions in my version. If you don’t want garlic and onions, you can certainly leave them out.
Further, most people make this dish with a much higher proportion of rice and lentils vs. vegetables. Admittedly, I went a little crazy with the veggies, but I do not regret it one bit. I think it’s the most delicious way to get your veggies in! I purposely cut back on the rice to lower the carbs and up the fiber.
If you want more rice to veggie ratio, use 1 cup rice, 1 cup lentils. You’ll need 2 1/2 – 3 cups water then for the dish. You can also decrease the amounts of vegetables if you like. But if you struggle to get your daily allotment of veggies in, this delightful dish makes it so easy!
Adapted heavily from Cooking with Molly
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Bengali Khichuri (Rice & Lentils with Vegetables)
- Prep Time: 30 min
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Total Time: 1 hour 30 min
- Yield: About 6 servings 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Indian
- Diet: Vegetarian
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup split yellow lentils
- 1/4 cup red lentils
- 1/2 cup brown rice
- 1 1/2 – 2 teaspoons salt, divided, (or as needed to taste)
- 1 Tablespoon ghee or vegetable oil
- 1 smell to medium onion, peeled & chopped
- 3 – 5 cloves garlic, peeled & chopped
- 1 1/2 cups chopped cauliflower
- 2 carrots
- 1 small zucchini (about 7 inches – 1 cup chopped)
- 1 inch knob of ginger root, grated
- 1 large bay leaf
- 1 stick cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon cardamom
- 1/2 teaspoon EACH: ground red pepper, turmeric and cumin
- 1 teaspoon garam masala
- Add at the end: 1 teaspoon dried fenugreek leaves (kasuri methi ), 1 cup canned tomatoes, 1 cup sweet green peas (fresh or frozen)
Instructions
- Toast the lentils in a dry nonstick pan over medium heat until some are browned. Put the lentils in a bowl with 1 1/2 cups water to soak. Then toast the rice in the pan until it’s browned and aromatic. Add 1 cup water and 1/2 teaspoon salt, bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and cover and cook for 40 minutes.
- While the rice is cooking, prep the vegetables, then in a large pan with a cover, heat the ghee or vegetable oil over medium heat and saute the onions until soft and translucent. Add the spices and cook until fragrant, then add the veggies. Remove from heat until the rice timer is up.
- Add the rice and soaked lentils to the pan along with another 1/2 cup of water. Cover and cook over medium low heat for 10 minutes or until the lentils are tender and veggies are cooked to your liking, uncovering to stir every 3 – 5 minutes or so. Stir in the peas and fenugreek leaves and cook until the peas are bright green. Taste and add salt to your liking. For extra rich flavor, drizzle a bit of melted ghee on top and stir it in.
Notes
- You can swap out some of the vegetables to whatever you like. I’m told that cabbage works well in khichuri so I need to try that next time!
- RECIPE SOURCE: Sumptuous Spoonfuls – https://www.sumptuousspoonfuls.com/ … © Copyright 2022, Sumptuous Spoonfuls. All images & content are copyright protected. Please do not use my images without prior permission. If you want to publish any of my images, please ask first. If you want to republish this recipe as your own, please re-write the recipe in your own words or link back to this post for the recipe.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: About 1 cup
- Calories: 237
- Fiber: 7 g
- Protein: 10 g
Looking for more Indian recipes?
Here are some of my favorites: (find the links to the recipes beneath the gallery)
- Spicy North Indian Baked Eggs
- Saag Paneer
- Easy Creamy Veggie Korma
- Butternut Chickpea Curry
- Summer Garden Curry Baked Eggs
- Nepalese Cauliflower Curry
- Biswa’s Winning Chicken Curry
- Golden Curry Paste
- 15-minute Subzi aka Cauliflower Asparagus Curry
3 comments
Ann, this is genius, I really enjoyed reading the history behind the dish. Combining lentils and rice is something common in the Middle East too, like mujadara, so I am eager to try it, and the veggies are the bonus here. Thank you for sharing.
★★★★★
I just love all the veggies and spices in this dish! It’s so beautiful, and I can’t wait to make it!
[…] way to use up a half cabbage I had in my fridge. Something different. After I made that fabulous Khichuri (rice and lentils with vegetables), I was really tempted to just make khichuri again, but with […]