Khichdi with tadka
Why It Was Awesome:
I recently learned about khichdi, a rice and legume porridge. Maybe I’m just paying more attention to foods in other cultures, but I feel like this dish has popped up multiple times from Indian cooks that I follow.
I’ve learned that khichdi is traditionally a “babies first food” or a “sick day food”. The simplicity of khichdi reminds me of pastina, the Italian star-shaped pasta that was my “sick day food” growing up. I love that cultures around the world have their form of a porridge with the locally available carbohydrate, a little fat, a little love. These porridges are filling, nourishing, easy to digest, and comforting.
I also love this recipe because I threw it together in 5 minutes, set it and forgot it, and was eating a hot lunch in 40 minutes.
The Recipe, My Way: adapted from https://myfoodstory.com/khichdi-recipe/ and https://www.seriouseats.com/2020/06/what-is-tadka-tarka-chaunk-chhonk-baghaar.html
2 Tablespoons butter
1 Teaspoon cumin seed
6-8 whole peppercorn
1 bayleaf
4-5 whole cloves
2 green cardamom pods
1/2 cup red split lentils
1/2 cup long-grain rice
large pinch of cayenne
1 teaspoon turmeric
3 carrots, cubed
4 Cups water
Salt
Measure out your rice and lentils in a small bowl and cover with water. Set aside as you chop your carrots and portion out spices.
In a pressure cooker/Instant Pot on saute, melt the butter and add the whole spices. Toast for a few minutes, stirring frequently until they smell toasty.
Drain the rice/lentil mixture, and give it a quick shake dry. Add to the pot, and stir constantly. Cook for a few minutes until the rice and lentils are dry and starting to toast. Add 4 cups of water, turmeric, cayenne, salt and carrots.
Cover. Manually cook under pressure for 30 minutes and release naturally.
When the cooking time is up and you are waiting for the pressure to release, make the tadka
Tadka Ingredients:
Olive oil
Sesame seeds
Mustard seeds
Cumin seeds
Garlic powder
Onion powder
Coriander powder (use whole if you have it)
Cayenne
Heat up 2-3 tablespoons of oil in a small, tall pot (why yes, I do love my tiny and *totally* extra butter warmer).
Add a teaspoon or so of each of the whole seeds. Swirl the pot constantly, until the spices are toasty. Pull the oil mixture off the heat, and add a pinch each of your powdered spices.
To serve:
Spoon out your khichdi in a bowl, and top with tadka. If you have any roasted vegetables (I had potatoes!) you can also put those on top.