Dal Khichdi

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Dal Khichdi is an Indian dish made with rice and lentils, usually moong dal or toor dal, and sometimes includes vegetables. It’s a warm and healthy soupy meal that many people in India enjoy, especially when sick or recovering, because it is light and easy to digest, yet full of nutrition. In northern India, Khichdi is often made on Saturdays to use up leftover vegetables from the week.

What is Dal Khichdi

Dal khichdi is a dal rice combined dish dominantly prepared in the Northern states of India. It is an Indian one-pot comfort food that combines rice, lentils or dal, and vegetables with some basic Indian spices and herbs in one dish.

Traditionally dal khichdi is made with moong lentils, as moong is higher in protein compared to other lentils and is the easiest to digest. But arhar or toor dal, masoor dal(red lentils) are also used for preparing this dish.

Adding vegetables is completely optional, but adding them increases the nutrition of the dish. The most common vegetables used for making dal khichri are potatoes, tomatoes, green peas, carrots, green beans, and cauliflower. 

Dal khichdi uses very few ingredients and is therefore a quick and easy meal to prepare. If you want to prepare a meal that is simple yet healthy and nutritious, think no further and try this delicious bowl of soupy comfort, it will soon become your go-to meal for weeknight dinners and lunches for a lazy or busy day.

About this Recipe

Every Indian household has its dal khichdi recipe, but this one-pot, pressure cooker dal khichdi recipe is my favorite. I often prepare dal khichri when I feel too lazy to prepare dinner, it is very quick to prepare and you can avoid preparing rice, dal, and vegetables separately, making it a one-pot complete meal.

I have only used peas and potatoes in my recipe. Still, you can add any vegetable of your choice (like carrots, cauliflower/gobi, beans, raw banana, etc.). The khichadi can be made with both moong dal and toor dal.

This is a basic mung dal chawal khichdi which I have tempered with cumin, pepper, and cloves. The cloves and pepper add a distinct flavor to the khichdi and elevate its taste.

More Dal Recipe

• Green Moong Dal

Ingredients Notes and Substitutes

Rice: Any variety of raw rice can be used for making dal khichri. The most common is white rice, like sona masoori, basmati rice, kolam, or jeeraga samba rice. Brown rice or broken rice also be used for this recipe but the cooking time and the amount of water used for cooking may vary as brown rice takes longer to cook. It would also be good to soak brown rice for at least 30 minutes before cooking. Khichdi can also prepared using leftover cooked rice. If you are using cooked rice then add the rice when the dal is 80% cooked, to get the correct consistency.

Dal/Lentils: Mung dal is used for this recipe. Different kinds of lentils can be used for this recipe like tur/arhar dal, masur dal(red lentils), or green mung dal(gota moong or mung beans).

Vegetables: Carrots, onions, green peas, and tomatoes are used but other vegetables like potatoes, cauliflower(gobhi), french beans, and zucchini can also be used. Do not add soft vegetables like brinjal/baingan or ladyfinger/bhindi, it will change the texture of the whole dish.

Whole Dry Spices: Cumin, cloves, black pepper, and bay leaf are used. Other spices that can be used are mustard seeds, cinnamon sticks, and dry red chillies.

Ground Spices: Basic spices like turmeric, red chili powder, or paprika, and hing. But if you want to make the recipe gluten-free then skip hing/asafoetida. Coriander powder, cumin powder and garam masala can also be used if you want to add extra masala to the dish.

Fresh Spices: Freshly chopped or crushed ginger and garlic are used for this recipe. Green chillies can also be used to add some extra heat and spice.

Herbs: Fresh coriander leaves are used for garnish. Curry leaves and mint leaves can also be used.

Ghee: Cow ghee is used for frying vegetables and spices, and for garnish. If you want to make dal khichdi vegan then you can substitute ghee with olive oil or coconut oil.

Salt: Adjust the salt as per taste preference.

Water: Use enough water to soak the dal and rice. For cooking the dal khichdi a general ratio of rice+dal to water is 1:4, that is, for every, one part dal+rice, 4 cups of water is needed for cooking. Add more water is you prefer a thinner consistency of khichdi.

Garnish: Fresh coriander and ghee is used for garnish. Add lemon juice to add some acidity to the meal.

How to Make Dal Khichdi (Step-by-Step Guide)

Preparation:

• Wash 1/2 cup moong dal and 1/2 cup rice, 2-3 times with enough water.
• Soak the dal and rice for at least 15 minutes.

In the meantime, we can chop the vegetables and get the ingredients ready.

• Peel and chop one red onion.
• Crush or chop 4-5 garlic cloves and a piece of ginger.
• Cut the carrots and tomatoes into small pieces.

Cooking in a Pressure Cooker:

1. Heat a pressure cooker and add ghee. Then add the whole spices (cumin/jeera, cloves/laung, black peppercorns, and bay leaf) and hing. Sauté for half a minute.

2. Now add the chopped onion and crushed ginger-garlic and sauté this for 2 mins.

3. Now add the chopped tomato, carrot and peas. Cook this for a minute. 

4. Then add turmeric powder and red chili powder. Sauté this for a minute.

5. Now add the soaked rice and dal and fry for a minute.

6. Add salt and 5-6 cups of water and mix everything well.

7. Cover with the pressure cooker lid and cook till 3-4 whistles on medium-high heat. The rice and dal should be cooked very well. The number of whistles may vary according to the size and build of your pressure cooker.

8. After removing from the stove, wait till the pressure cooker has released all the pressure. Open and serve hot immediately, garnished with freshly chopped coriander leaves and ghee.

Serve the khichadi hot with papad and pickles.

Cooking in an Open Regular Pot:

1. Heat a heavy bottom large pot. Add 1 tbsp ghee. Then, add the whole spices (cumin/jeera, cloves/laung, peppercorns, and bay leaf) and hing, sauté for a few seconds. 
2. Add the chopped onions and crushed garlic and sauté this for 2 mins.
3. Now add the chopped tomato and sauté for another minute. Add the cut carrots and green peas. Cook this for a minute. Then add the turmeric powder, and red chili powder and sauté this for a minute.
4. On high heat/flame add 4 cups of water and salt and mix everything well. Check the salt, it should taste salty like seawater. Bring the water to a boil, then add the soaked rice and dal. Give it a good stir and let it come to a boil.
5. Reduce the heat to medium flame and partially cover with a lid. Cook till the dal and rice are overcooked and getting mashed easily when stirring with a spoon. Keep stirring in between and add more water if it gets too thick (always add hot water when cooking the dish).
6. After removing from the stove, garnish with freshly chopped coriander leaves and a dollop of ghee. 
7. Serve the khichdi hot with papad and pickles.

Making Khichdi with leftover rice

• For making dal khichdi with leftover rice, soak the dal for at least 15 minutes and skip the raw rice. 
• Then follow the steps for making dal khichdi in a pressure cooker up to adding the spices and vegetables. 
• Now add the soaked dal and cook in a pressure cooker till 2 whistle on high flame. Remove the pressure cooker from heat and let the pressure be released completely before opening the lid.
• Add the leftover rice and mix well, then pressure cook on high flame for another 2 whistles. Remove from heat and let the pressure from the cooker be released. 
• Open the lid and garnish with some freshly chopped coriander leaves (dhaniya patta) and 1 tbsp of ghee. Mix and serve hot.
• Since leftover rice is used it is best to consume the dal khichri immediately.

Video Tutorial

How to Serve Dal Khichdi

The best accompaniments for dal khichdi are pickles, papad, curd, or fried potatoes. In Hindi a common phrase is used for the accompaniments used with dal khichdi: ‘khichdi ke chaar yaar’. Which translates to the 4 friends of khichdi. These are:

• Pickles
• Papad
• Dahi/Yogurt
• Ghee

This dish is best when served hot and immediately after preparation, as the dish tends to thicken when it cools. Some side dish options for dal khichdi are : 

• Serve fried potatoes 
• Fried/roasted brinjal
• Aloo chokha 
• Baigan ka chocka
• Roasted or fried papad
• Raita

How to Store and Reheat Dal Khichdi

Store the leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to one day. The dal khichdi will harden when kept in the refrigerator so to reheat the khichdi add ½ -1 cup water and mix it well with a big spoon, and then heat it on low heat to avoid it from sticking at the bottom of the vessel while stirring occasionally. It is better to reheat it on a stovetop and avoid reheating it in the microwave.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What type of lentils are best for making Dal khichdi?

Dal khichdi can be prepared using moong daal, toor dal, masoor dal, green moong dal, and urad dal.

What vegetables are best for preparing dal khichdi?

Potatoes, carrots, onions, tomatoes, green beans, peas, and cauliflower taste best with dal khichdi. It is better to avoid using soft vegetables like brinjal and bhindi(lady’s finger, okra) for this recipe.

Is Dal Khichdi Vegan and Gluten-free?

To make a vegan dal khichdi substitute the ghee with plant-based butter or any vegetable oil. Use a gluten-free hing to make dal khichdi gluten-free or just skip the asafoetida.

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*I have recently updated this recipe. Just made some small changes as the recipe evolved in my kitchen in the past few years. Hope you enjoy it!