Palak Khichdi is a one-pot Indian main course made with rice, lentils and spinach puree as key ingredients. Spinach Khichdi is comfort food and served hot with sides like raita, papad and mango pickle. Quick soul satisfying weekday dinner that serves a crowd.
Palak Khichdi recipe I share today is made using brown rice, masoor dal or red lentils and spinach puree.
Khichdi can be made with Basmati Rice or Sona Masoori rice. You can choose yellow moong dal, toor dal or a combo of lentils as well to make it healthy, hearty and wholesome.
We also love Vegetable Khichdi which is a combination of lentils, rice and mixed veggies. Easy recipe to use leftover veggies from the refrigerator and turn it into a wholesome family dinner.
The recipe can be customized according to available ingredients. If you don't have spinach puree readily available, feel free to add finely chopped fresh spinach. Refer to notes in recipe card for more details.
Palak Khichdi is gluten-free. To make it Vegan, simply substitute ghee with oil.
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Ingredients
Brown Rice - Short grain brown rice is used for the recipe. Rinse and soak the rice for 10-15 mins before cooking.
Substitute brown rice with white rice (sona masoori, ambe mohar, kolam, ponni) or Basmati Rice (white or brown) depending on availability.
Masoor Dal or Red Lentils - Red Lentils cook quickly. As a variation, I use different lentils like yellow moong dal or toor dal during the week.
Palak Puree or Spinach Puree - Frozen Spinach puree is a life saver. This post on How to make spinach puree shared on the blog will give you a fair idea on how a big batch of spinach puree that can be stored and used for a variety of recipes.
Palak Khichdi is full of flavor thanks to sauteed onions, tomatoes, ginger garlic paste all cooked in ghee. I have not included any chili, making the dish kid-friendly too.
Indians love khichdi with ghee. Feel free to use oil.
Ghee or clarified butter - Khichdi tastes best when cooked in ghee.
How to make Palak Khichdi recipe
In a bowl, measure and add brown rice and red lentils (masoor dal).
Rinse the rice and dal under running tap water 2-3 times until water runs clear. Soak the rice and dal for 15 - 20 mins.
After 20 mins, drain the water used for soaking, add 2 cups of water and salt to taste. Pressure cook for 4 to 5 whistles. Allow the pressure to release naturally (whistle to come down). The rice and lentils should appear mushy (refer pic below). Keep aside.
Heat a pan, add 1 tablespoon ghee, cumin seeds (jeera). Once cumin roasts and appears brown, add ginger garlic paste and sauté for 30 seconds.
Next add finely chopped onions, tomatoes and turmeric powder. Saute for 2-3 minutes. The tomatoes should appear mushy.
Note - Deglaze the pan with 1 tablespoon of water, if required, to prevent the ingredients from sticking to the pan or burning.
Now add the cooked rice and lentils and spinach puree
Mix well, taste check and add salt as required. Adjust the consistency of khichdi with hot water. Let khichdi cook for 1-2 mins on low heat (uncovered). Switch off flame, serve hot or warm with accompaniments of your choice.
Serving Suggestion
Dal khichdi tastes best with Kadhi.
Dal Palak Khichdi tastes best with plain yogurt or Raita. Some of our favorite Raita recipes - Cucumber Raita, Vegetable Raita, Okra Raita and Beetroot Raita.
Papad or Poppadums, Mango and Lime Pickle are perfect accompaniments.
Storage
Store leftovers in an airtight container and refrigerate. Stays fresh for 3-4 days.
Khichdi thickens with time. Add hot water to adjust consistency. Re-heat on stove-top or microwave.
One-Pot Rice recipes
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Palak Khichdi Recipe | Spinach Khichdi
Equipment
- Pressure Cooker
Ingredients
1 cup is 250 ml, 1 tbsp is 15 ml and 1 tsp is 5 ml
- ½ cup Brown Rice
- ½ cup Masoor Dal or Red Lentils
- 1 cup Spinach Puree Check Notes
- ½ cup Onions 1 medium size Onion, finely chopped
- ½ cup Tomatoes 2 small tomatoes, finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon Ginger Garlic Paste
- ½ teaspoon Turmeric Powder or Haldi Powder
- 1 tablespoon Ghee or Clarified Butter use oil for vegan recipe
- 1 teaspoon Jeera or Cumin Seeds
- Salt to taste
- 3 ½ cups Water to cook Check Notes
Instructions
- In a bowl, measure and add brown rice and red lentils (masoor dal).
- Rinse the rice and dal under running tap water 2-3 times until water runs clear. Soak the rice and dal for 15 - 20 mins.
- After 20 mins, drain the water used for soaking, add 2 cups of water and salt to taste. Pressure cook for 4 to 5 whistles. Allow the pressure to release naturally (whistle to come down). The rice and lentils should appear mushy.
- Heat a pan, add 1 tablespoon ghee, cumin seeds (jeera). Once cumin roasts and appears brown, add ginger garlic paste and sauté for 30 seconds.
- Next add finely chopped onions, tomatoes and turmeric powder. Sauté for 2-3 minutes. The tomatoes should appear mushy. Note - Deglaze the pan with 1 tablespoon of water, if required, to prevent the ingredients from sticking to the pan or burning.
- Now add the cooked rice and lentils and spinach puree
- Mix well, taste check and add salt as required. Adjust the consistency of khichdi with hot water. Let khichdi cook for 1-2 mins on low heat (uncovered). Switch off flame, serve hot or warm with accompaniments of your choice.
Notes
- Water to cook - I have used 1 cup to soak the rice and lentils, 2 cups to pressure cook khichdi and around 1/2 cup to adjust the consistency of the khichdi (semi thick). Total 3 & 1/2 cups used for the recipe.
- It took me 4 whistles in a 10 litre pressure cooker to cook the rice and dal. Usually 3 whistles are good enough for white rice. If you don't have time to soak, you might have to add extra whistles, especially when using brown rice as it takes time to cook.
- Cooking rice and dal on the stove top takes a long time so pressure cooking is ideal.
- I have not used garam masala or whole spices. Feel free to add whole spices (bay leaf, cardamom and peppercorns) while tempering.
- Palak Khichdi is gluten-free. To make it Vegan, simply substitute ghee with oil.
- Substitute Masoor Dal with Yellow Moong dal or Toor Dal.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container and refrigerate. Stays fresh for 3-4 days.
- Khichdi thickens with time. Add hot water to adjust consistency. Re-heat on stove-top or microwave.
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We will be back again with yet another exciting recipe .. Until then, stay healthy and happy!
Vidya Narayan