Khichuri, a one-pot dish, is one of the most popular comfort foods in Bangladesh. Khichuri is also known as Khichdi or Khichadi. This rice and lentil dish is a complete meal that is not only absolutely scrumptious but is also quite healthy. It is a simple, flavorful, and easy-to-cook dish that is especially known to warm hearts during monsoon. The name comes from the Sanskrit word ‘Khicca’, which signifies grains and legumes. Various types of khichuri are cooked across the country, and it is a cuisine that brings us all together. Let’s take a look at 7 varieties of delicious khichuri which can be easily made at home.

7 Tasty Healthy Khichuri Recipes to Try at Home

Moong dal khichuri

This is the most common variation of khichuri. To prepare this dish, first, melt ghee or oil in a pressure cooker. Then cinnamon, cardamom, cumin, cloves, and bay leaf should all be fried whole until aromatic. When cooking the spices, the cumin should also crackle. Now add the grated ginger and cook for 5-6 seconds or until the raw ginger aroma fades. Sauté for 2-3 seconds after adding the turmeric, red chili powder, and asafoetida. Now sauté for 2 minutes with the roasted moong dal. Next, stir in the drained rice thoroughly. Pour 5 cups of water into a mixing bowl and season with salt and sugar. On medium to high heat, stir the khichuri and then pressure cook it for 4-5 whistles. Open the lid of the cooker once the pressure has settled down on its own.

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Oats khichuri

This khichuri is a healthier version of the normal khichuri. Heat 1.5 tablespoons of ghee in a 2 litre pressure cooker first. Then add 1 teaspoon cumin seeds and 1 small bay leaf. Allow the cumin seeds to pop. Then add a third of a cup of chopped onions. Cook onions until they become transparent. Then stir in half a teaspoon of coarsely chopped ginger and 1 chopped green chile. Saute for a couple of minutes. Add 13 cups of chopped tomatoes next.

Cook until the tomatoes have softened. After that, toss in the mixed vegetables. For a minute, sauté the vegetables. After that, add 1/3 cup rinsed moong dal. Mix thoroughly. After that, add 1/3 cup of oats. 1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder and 1/4 teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder are also added. Mix thoroughly with 2.5 glasses of water. Season with salt and toss one more. Cover the cooker with its lid and pressure cook for 7 to 8 minutes on medium heat.

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Panchadal khichuri

Soak the chickpeas in water for 2 hours after washing them. Except for chickpeas, combine rice and all forms of dal. They should be well cleaned. Soak for 30 minutes in water. Drain the water after 30 minutes and set it aside. In a pan, melt the ghee and oil together. When the oil is medium heated, add the mustard and cumin seeds. Add bay leaves, dry red chilies, and cloves when the seeds begin to spatter.

The next step is to add the onions and cook until they look somewhat translucent. Sauté the garlic paste until the raw aroma is gone. Sauté for 2 minutes with the potatoes and capsicum. Mix in the tomatoes thoroughly. Mix in all of the spices thoroughly. Drain the rice and add the dals. Mix thoroughly. Add 4-5 cups of water to the mix. Season with salt and green chilies. Cook, covered until done. Panch Dal Khichdi should be garnished with fried onion and coriander leaves. Serve with a dollop of ghee on top.

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Khud er bhaat khichuri

Place the rice in a sieve after it has been washed. When the oil is hot, add the onion, ginger, garlic, and chilies to the pan. Fry for another 2 minutes before adding the broken rice (khud) and salt.

Fry it for 2 minutes, then add hot water and cook it under a covered lid for another 2 minutes. After 7 minutes, give it a toss and continue to simmer on low heat with the lid closed until the rice is done. Serve with Bhorta, dal chochchori, egg omelette, and other side dishes.

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Vegetable khichuri

Drain all of the water from the rice and dal together. Set aside for now. In a mixing bowl, combine all of the vegetables with a pinch of salt and turmeric powder. Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a skillet and lightly sauté the vegetables. At this point, it needs to be removed from the heat and set aside. In a deep bottom pan, heat the remaining oil and cook 1/4 cup onions until tender. Sauté a bit with the full garam masala and bay leaves. Now add the rice-dal and cook until the water has evaporated a little. Bring 6 cups of heated water to a boil with salt. Begin cooking on a medium heat setting. Stir a couple of times.

When the mixture begins to boil, add the fried vegetables and green chilies. Season with salt if necessary. Cover and keep warm on a low heat setting. After 4 minutes, give it another stir. Once the water has evaporated, cover the pan with a tawa and cook on a very low heat for 15-20 minutes. In a separate pan, heat the ghee and brown the remaining chopped onion and whole cumin.After they have been fried, gently fold them into the khichuri. Finally, it is time to remove it from heat and keep it covered until it is ready to serve.

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Achari khichuri

With the addition of pickle gravy, a simple khichuri is elevated to a new level. In a pressure cooker, combine rice, split green gram, split Bengal gram, green chilies, turmeric powder, and salt. Add 4-5 cups of water, cover, turn on the heat, and cook under pressure for 2 minutes.

In a nonstick pan, melt the ghee. Sauté for 30 seconds with the asafoetida and cumin seeds. Mix in the cooked rice-gram mixture thoroughly. Mix in the pickle gravy thoroughly. Remove from heat and top with coriander leaves. Serve immediately.

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Keema khichuri

In a mixing dish, rinse the rice and lentils. Soak the rice and lentils in water for 20 minutes. In a deep pan, heat the oil. Cook until the cumin seeds have stopped spluttering. Fry the chopped onions until they are translucent. Fry for a minute or so with some ginger-garlic paste for flavor. Mix together the remaining spices thoroughly. Cook until the oil separates from the spices and the tomatoes become pulpy, then add the tomatoes.

Cook, stirring constantly until the ground beef is evenly browned. Combine the rice, lentils, and 4 cups of water in a large mixing bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil after thoroughly mixing. Next, it needs to be cooked for 3 minutes and then reduced to low heat. Cook with the lid on until the rice and lentils are tender. When it is done, turn off the heat and leave the khichuri to rest for 10 minutes without removing the cover. Before serving, give it a good stir.

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Bottom Line

Kichuri is popular food in Bangladesh and west Bengal. Many people love to eat khichdi at breakfast, lunch or dinner. The versatility of Khichuri recipes have made this food popular to people of diverse age and food habit including young children, vegetarians, etc. So far, we have discussed some delightful Khichadi recipes. The taste, flavor, and color of the Khichuris can vary depending upon cooking style and efficiency of the chef. The recipes can be customized on the basis of personal taste, diet and health condition.