Ingredients
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▢2 cups chopped palak (spinach)
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▢¼ or ⅓ cup raw peanuts
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▢½ cup moong dal (yellow mung lentils)
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▢½ cup long grained rice or basmati rice
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▢1 medium size onion, finely chopped
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▢1 medium size tomato, chopped
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▢1 medium size potato, chopped
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▢1 inch cinnamon
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▢1 tej patta (indian bay leaf)
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▢2 cloves
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▢2 green cardamoms
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▢½ teaspoon caraway seeds (shah jeera) or cumin seeds
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▢½ inch ginger + 3 to 4 garlic – crushed in a mortar-pestle to a paste or 1 teaspoon ginger garlic paste
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▢1 green chilli, chopped
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▢¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
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▢1 pinch asafoetida (hing) * check notes
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▢salt as required
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▢2 tablespoon Ghee or oil
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▢3.5 to 4 cups water
Instructions Preparation
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Pick and rinse both the rice and moong dal together with water in a strainer or colander.
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Soak them together in enough water for about 30 minutes in a bowl.
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Rinse the palak or spinach leaves well. Drain all the water.
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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.
Making Palak Khichdi
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Heat ghee or oil in a 3 litre stovetop pressure cooker. Add the caraway seeds or cumin seeds, cinnamon, tej patta, cloves and cardamoms.
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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.
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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.
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Then add the chopped tomatoes and saute stirring often till they begin to soften.
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Add the turmeric powder and asafoetida (hing) and stir well.
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Now add the peanuts, potatoes and saute for about 2 minutes. You can choose to skip adding the potatoes.
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Add the spinach puree and continue to saute for 2 to 3 minutes on low to medium low heat.
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Drain the water from the rice and moong dal and add them to the spinach mixture in the pressure cooker. Mix very well.
Cooking Palak Khichdi
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Pour 3.5 to 4 cups water. Add salt as required and stir well.
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Check the taste and if required add some more salt. Pressure cook the khichdi on medium heat for 5 to 6 whistles.
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Once the pressure settles down on its own in the cooker, then only remove the lid. Check the consistency of the palak khichdi.
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If the consistency looks thick, then you can add some hot water and simmer for a few minutes.
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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.
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While serving, pour the palak khichdi in bowls or plates and top with ½ to 1 tsp of ghee.
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Serve hot with plain curd/yogurt or raita or a simple vegetable salad or roasted papad.
Notes
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Use fresh and tender spinach. Add the stems if they are tender. If the stems are stringy or fibrous then don’t add them. You can also use frozen spinach or baby spinach.
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Skip the asafoetida for a gluten-free version of this spinach khichdi.
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For a vegan version use any neutral flavored oil instead of ghee. Also don’t drizzle any oil while serving the palak khichdi.
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You can use any variety of non-sticky rice.
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For the lentils, you can add either yellow mung lentils like I have done or include split mung lentils with their green husks.
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If you have a nut allergy then don’t add peanuts. It will still taste good.
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When making this dal palak khichdi for small kids or people recovering from illness keep in mind their health needs. So accordingly you can skip or reduce the amount of spices like green chilies or red chili powder or any other spice or herb from the recipe.