Palak Khichdi is a one pot nutritious meal of mung lentils and rice cooked with spinach (palak), onions, tomatoes, peanuts, herbs and spices. It makes for a comforting delicious meal for lunch or dinner.

Recipe Snapshot

  • Prep time: 30 minutes
  • Cook time: 10 minutes
  • Total time: 40 minutes
  • Yield: 3
  • Category: Main Course
  • Cuisine: Indian

Ingredients

  • 2 cups chopped palak ((spinach))
  • ¼ or ⅓ cup raw peanuts
  • ½ cup moong dal ((yellow mung lentils))
  • ½ cup long grained rice (or basmati rice)
  • 1 medium size onion, (finely chopped)
  • 1 medium size tomato, (chopped)
  • 1 medium size potato, (chopped)
  • 1 inch cinnamon
  • 1 tej patta ((indian bay leaf))
  • 2 cloves
  • 2 green cardamoms
  • ½ teaspoon caraway seeds ((shah jeera) or cumin seeds)
  • ½ inch ginger + 3 to 4 garlic (- crushed in a mortar-pestle to a paste or 1 teaspoon ginger garlic paste)
  • 1 green chilli, (chopped)
  • ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
  • 1 pinch asafoetida ((hing) * check notes)
  • salt as required
  • 2 tablespoon ghee (or oil)
  • 3.5 to 4 cups water

Method

Preparation

  1. Pick and rinse both the rice and moong dal together with water in a strainer or colander.
  2. Soak them together in enough water for about 30 minutes in a bowl.
  3. Rinse the palak or spinach leaves well. Drain all the water.
  4. Chop them and then in a mixer or blender, make a smooth puree of the spinach adding very little water. Keep the spinach puree aside. You need about 2 cups of chopped spinach to make the puree.

Sautéing Ingredients

  1. Heat ghee or oil in a 3 litre stovetop pressure cooker. Add the caraway seeds or cumin seeds, cinnamon, tej patta, cloves and cardamoms.
  2. Fry the whole spices on low to medium low heat for some seconds till they become fragrant. Add the finely chopped onion and saute stirring often till they become golden.
  3. Add the ginger-garlic paste and the chopped green chilies. Saute for some seconds or till the raw aroma of the ginger-garlic goes away.
  4. Then add the chopped tomatoes and saute stirring often till they begin to soften.
  5. Add the turmeric powder and asafoetida (hing) and stir well.
  6. Now add the peanuts, potatoes and saute for about 2 minutes. You can choose to skip adding the potatoes.
  7. Add the spinach puree and continue to saute for 2 to 3 minutes on low to medium low heat.
  8. Drain the water from the rice and moong dal and add them to the spinach mixture in the pressure cooker. Mix very well.

Making Palak Khichdi

  1. Pour 3.5 to 4 cups water. Add salt as required and stir to mix.
  2. Check the taste and if required add some more salt. Pressure cook the khichdi on medium heat for 5 to 6 whistles.
  3. Once the pressure settles down on its own in the cooker, then only remove the lid. Check the consistency of the palak khichdi.
  4. If the consistency looks thick, then you can add some hot water and simmer for a few minutes.
  5. Remember to stir often as otherwise the khichdi gets stuck at the bottom. If the consistency appears thin or runny, then simmer stirring often till you get the desired consistency.
  6. While serving, pour the palak khichdi in bowls or plates and top with ½ to 1 tsp of ghee.
  7. Serve hot with plain curd/yogurt or raita or a simple vegetable salad or roasted papad.

Kiyaan Singh’s Kitchen Note

Keep this recipe as a working base: cook once as written, then adjust spice, texture, and serving style for your own table.