Palak khichdi recipe With step by step photos – here is a one pot meal of mung lentils and rice khichdi with spinach (palak) and peanuts. Easy to prepare as well as healthy and light on the stomach. In this palak khichdi, the addition of spinach and peanuts gives a lot of nutrition boost to the otherwise healthy khichdi.
This palak khichdi recipe was shared with me by my sister. In this recipe, I have included peanuts not only for the nutritional benefit but also for the nice texture they give to the otherwise smooth khichdi.
Being from maharashtra, I am used to having peanuts in many recipes like poha and dry vegetable dishes. I also make a spicy and hot peanut – green chili mixture called as ‘thecha’ in marathi language. In fact, peanuts and cashews are two of my favorite ingredients to add crunch and texture to many recipes.
The palak khichdi has a consistency like that of thick porridge and not like that of a pulao. You can easily adjust the consistency as per your preference by adding less or more water. Its easy to digest and makes excellent food for small kids and convalescing people. Other similar recipes you can make with palak and rice are Palak biryani and Palak rice.
Serve palak khichdi with plain curd/yogurt or raita or with pickle.
How to make palak khichdi
1. Pick and rinse both ½ cup rice and ½ cup moong dal together.
2. Soak them together in enough water for about 30 minutes.
3. Measure and keep all the ingredients ready.
4. Rinse the palak or spinach leaves well.
5. Chop them. add 2 cups of chopped spinach leaves (palak) in a mixer or blender.
6. Adding very little water, make a smooth puree of spinach.
7. Keep the spinach puree aside.
Making palak khichdi
8. Heat ghee or oil in the pressure cooker. Add ½ teaspoon caraway seeds (or cumin seeds), 1 inch cinnamon, 1 tej patta (Indian bay leaf), 2 cloves and 2 green cardamoms.
9. Fry the whole spices for some seconds till they become fragrant.
10. Add 1 medium sized onion, chopped finely.
11. Saute till they become golden.
12. Add 1 teaspoon ginger-garlic paste and 1 chopped green chili.
13. Saute for about 15-20 seconds or till the raw aroma of the ginger-garlic goes away.
14. Then add 1 medium-sized tomato, chopped finely.
15. Saute till tomato begin to soften.
16. Then add ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder and 1 pinch of asafoetida (hing).
17. Stir and mix well.
18. Now add ¼ or ⅓ cup of raw peanuts and 1 medium-sized chopped potato.
19. Saute for about 2 minutes.
20. Add the spinach puree.
21. Continue to saute the spinach puree for 2-3 minutes.
22. Strain the rice and moong dal.
23. Add the strained rice and moong dal to the mixture.
24. Stir well.
Cooking palak khichdi
25. Pour 3.5 to 4 cups water.
26. Add salt as required.
27. Stir and mix well.
28. Check the taste and if required add some more salt. Pressure cook on a medium flame for 5 to 6 whistles.
29. Once the pressure settles down on its own, remove the lid. Check the consistency of the palak khichdi.
30. If the khichdi looks thick, then you can add some hot water and simmer for a few minutes.
31. Remember to stir often as otherwise the khichdi gets stuck at the bottom. If the khichdi appears thin, then simmer till you get the desired consistency. while serving, pour the palak khichdi in bowls or plates and top with ½ to 1 teaspoon of ghee.
32. Serve the palak khichdi hot with plain curd (yogurt) or raita or a simple vegetable salad.
Few more khichdi varieties
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Palak Khichdi
By Dassana Amit
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
Instructions
preparation
- Pick and rinse both the rice and moong dal together.
- Soak them together in enough water for about 30 minutes.
- Rinse the palak or spinach leaves well.
- 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.
making palak khichdi
- Heat ghee or oil in the pressure cooker. Add the caraway seeds or cumin seeds, cinnamon, bay leaf, cloves and cardamoms.
- Fry the whole spices for some seconds till they become fragrant. Add the finely chopped onion and saute till they become golden.
- Add the ginger-garlic paste and the chopped green chilies. Saute for about 15-20 seconds or till the raw aroma of the ginger-garlic goes away.
- Then add the chopped tomatoes and saute till they begin to soften.
- Add the turmeric powder and asafoetida and stir well.
- Now add the peanuts, potatoes and saute for about 2 minutes.
- Add the spinach puree and continue to saute for 2-3 minutes.
- Strain the rice and moong dal and add them to the spinach mixture. Stir well.
cooking palak khichdi
- Pour 3.5 to 4 cups water. Add salt and stir well.
- Check the taste and if required add some more salt. Pressure cook the khichdi on medium flame for 5 to 6 whistles.
- Once the pressure settles down on its own, remove the lid. Check the consistency of the khichdi.
- If the khichdi looks thick, then you can add some hot water and simmer for a few minutes.
- Remember to stir often as otherwise the khichdi gets stuck at the bottom. If the khichdi appears thin, then simmer till you get the desired consistency.
- While serving, pour the palak khichdi in bowls or plates and top with 1/2 to 1 tsp of ghee.
- Serve hot with plain curd/yogurt or raita or a simple vegetable salad.
Notes
- Skip the asafoetida for a gluten free version of this khichdi.
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I made this in the pressure cooker as a comforting meal during winter weather. It was such a tasty way to get vegetables, fiber, and protein in one meal! I loved having peanuts in it. I think that, in the future, I’ll boil the peanuts separately so that they don’t get too soft while pressure cooking. Thank you Dassana for your delicious recipes as always 🙂
thanks anjali for this nice feedback on the palak khichdi recipe. i agree the peanuts taste too good. usually we prefer the peanuts to be cooked well. so i add them in the with the other ingredients. but yes you can even boil the peanuts separately. most welcome anjali ?
Thanks for the recipe I tried and came out
Well my kid also liked it very much
welcome sangeetha. glad to know this.
Hello!
I followed this recipe and the Palak Khichadi turned out to be awesome. Everyone in the house loved it!
Thanks so much Dassana Amit 🙂
thanks a lot reema for sharing your positive review on the recipe.