Khichdi is a one-pot comfort food from India that’s delicious, nutritious, and very easy to make. It’s made by cooking rice, lentils, vegetables, and spices in a single pot. The dish is made in a lot of different ways and every region of India has a slightly different way of making khichdi. But, the most common khichdi recipe is moong dal khichdi which I have already shared on my blog. You can also try my vegetable quinoa khichdi recipe. Today, I am sharing another very tasty khichdi recipe- Toor dal khichdi, which is also called arhar dal khichdi, tuvar dal khichdi, or masala khichdi. It’s made with split pigeon peas and rice. This delicious meal is vegan and can easily be made gluten-free just by skipping one ingredient-asafoetida or using gluten-free asafoetida.
Ingredient notes and substitute suggestions
Lentils: Khichdi is made with different lentils, but for this recipe, you need toor dal which is split pigeon peas. You can easily find it in an Indian grocery store. It’s also called arhar dal. Rice: For khichdi, use short or medium-grain rice otherwise you won’t get the creamy consistency that you need for khichdi. Onion: Use red onion in Indian recipes. Curry leaves: These are very aromatic and flavorful leaves that are used to flavor a lot of Indian savory dishes. Though nothing tastes better than fresh curry leaves, if you can’t find fresh curry leaves, frozen or dried leaves can be used too. Green chili: You may skip adding chili, if your heat tolerance is low or remove some seeds. Whole spices: I have used both black mustard seeds and cumin seeds to temper khichdi. You can use either of them too. Powdered spices: Use only basic Indian spices, that too in moderation to flavor Khichdi. It tastes better with mild spices. I have used coriander powder, red chili powder, turmeric powder, and asafoetida. You can skip red chili powder if you want to make milder khichdi. Other spices like cumin powder and ground black pepper can also be added. Cooking oil: Use any cooking oil of your choice. Non-vegans may also use ghee.
Other ingredient details and nutritional information is shared in the recipe card ahead.
Step 1: Start the preparation for toor dal khichdi by mixing the lentils and rice in a large bowl. Rinse them well and then soak in water while you chop the vegetables and do other preparation. Step 2: Heat oil in a pressure cooker. Add cumin seeds and mustard seeds, let them splutter. Step 3: Add asafoetida and curry leaves. Saute for just 10 seconds as they get burned very fast. Step 4: Add chopped onion and cook until the onion starts turning brown. Step 5: Add chopped ginger and green chilies. Saute for a few seconds. Step 6: Add coriander powder, red chili powder, and turmeric powder. Saute for another few seconds. Step 7: Add chopped tomato and salt. Step 8: Cook until the tomatoes turn mushy. Step 9: Strain the soaked rice and lentils. Discard the water in which they were soaked and add the rice and lentils to the pressure cooker. Saute for a minute. Step 10: Add water and mix everything. Step 11: Put on the lid of the pressure cooker. Cook on medium heat for 3 whistles. Turn off the heat. Step 12: Allow the pressure to get released naturally and then open the lid. Give it a good stir to mix everything well. Garnish with chopped cilantro. You may also add some lime or lemon juice before serving. Your delicious and comforting one pot meal- toor dal khichdi is ready to be enjoyed!
Traditionally, it’s served with a dollop of ghee (clarified butter) on top and people generally consider khichdi incomplete without ghee. However, if you are a vegan, you can enjoy it without ghee too. Other side dishes that are served with it are roasted popadums, Indian pickles or chutney like mint chutney, coriander tomato chutney, or green mango chutney. You can also serve a simple Indian salad like kachumber salad, spicy onion salad, or Indian baby potato salad with khichdi. Some people also like having khichdi with Indian-style vegetable dishes (sabzi) like aloo matar, aloo gobhi, patta gobhi aloo, or aloo beans. It’s also served with plain yogurt or raita like cucumber raita, onion raita, or potato raita. When you leave the khichdi for a few hours, it thickens. So while reheating add some hot or warm water to adjust the consistency and then reheat. To reheat, either microwave for a few minutes, stirring once or twice in between until evenly heated. Or, reheat it on the stovetop covered until heated well. Since water gets added to the khichdi while reheating to adjust the consistency, check and reseason it if required.
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