Bhuni Khichdi recipe for Makar Sankranti. Khichdi is wholesome one pot meal made with lentil and rice and a great comfort food. There are many variations of khichdi recipes in Indian cuisine. I am sharing Punjabi Khichdi recipe that is made with chana dal and rice. This Bhuni khichdi is cooked for Makar Sankranti.
What Is Khichdi?
Khichdi is a wholesome light and easy to digest one pot Indian dish made with rice and dal. Any type of khichdi is nutritious, comforting and easy to make. This Dal and rice porridge is tastes best with Curd, raita and papad.
You can make a variety of khichdi recipes. Sabudana khichdi, Dal Khichdi, oats khichdi and recently quinoa khichdi is also quite popular. South Indian style Pongal, Bisibelle bath, sambar Sadam also can be categorised under khichdi recipes.
The best thing about these variations is although technically these are khichdi but each one tastes very different from each other. So even if you eat one type of khichdi every day you will have a different taste and never get bored.
I am sharing with you here is Punjabi bhuni khichdi recipe that tastes almost like a pulao.
Why We Love Khichdi?
- An easy to make one pot meal.
- Wholesome and nutritious with dal rice and vegetables all in one dish.
- Gluten-free and vegetarian.
- Easy to digest, easy to cook meal.
- Has enough spice that it does not taste bland.
Ingredients for Khichdi
- Chana Dal: Chana dal is skinned & split whole brown chickpeas. Also known as Bengal gram. You can find it any Indian store.
- Rice: use any short grain rice or basmati as per your personal preference.
- Ghee: For the tempering.
- Fresh peas: Optional but fresh peas taste good in this khichdi.
- Spices and Seasonings: Red Chilli, Turmeric powder, Cumin, Asafoetida, Whole red chilli, Sesame Seeds.
Khichdi For Makar Sankranti
Punjabi chana dal Khichdi is cooked on Makar Sankranti in most Punjabi homes. From as long as I remember, bhuni khichdi and Chawal ki kheer are two Makar sankranti dishes Mom makes for the breakfast. I on the other hand like to make it for lunch. If you like to try plain khichdi recipe you can try this Khichdi Recipe.
Makar sankranti falls on next day to lohri. Makar Sankranti falls on next day of a very popular festival of Lohri (a Punjabi festival), which is celebrated on 13 January every year. Another prominent memory of makar Sankranti is lots of colorful kites in the sky against the blue sky, a colorful sight to behold.
Traditionally, this is harvest festival, so grains and fresh produce is the focal point of makar sankranti food in most of the India.
How to make Bhuni Khichdi
Coming back to Punjabi bhuni khichdi, this is made differently from the normal khichdi recipe which is more liquid (gruel) in texture and mushy. This is more like a pulao type of recipe where grains stand separate and whole spices are used.
How you prepare khichdi is actually a taste preference. I personally prefer mushy texture when making moong dal khichdi but with chana dal this rice pulao like texture actually tastes better.
You can make khichdi in pressure cooker or instant pot, both recipes are easy to make. You can cook it a bit extra and add little more water in this recipe if you like more liquid and gruel like khichdi.
What is not to be missed with any type of khichdi is ghee, Papad, Achar and dahi. Especially the ghee, if you are thinking of skipping the ghee, I would urge you to watch the video recipe.
I mean how gorgeous that melting ghee looks, and ghee is nutritious if consumed in small amount. So unless you are a vegan, a little bit ghee on top of khichdi is a MUST!
Khichdi Variations
In India, khichdi recipes are made for occasions, but the basic ingredients remains the same. It is always made with Dal and rice. You can add one type one dal or use a mix of dal. Some people add vegetables in khichdi and some make khichdi without vegetables.
I mostly add a good amount of vegetables in any of the khichri I am making. That makes it even more nutritious and wholesome.
Top Tip
- Do not over cook this khichdi. Bhuni khichdi tastes more like a pulao than a khichdi.
More Such Recipes
- Quinoa Khichdi
- Ven Pongal Recipe
- Dal Khichdi
- Masala Khichdi - Vaghareli Khichdi
- 7 Khichdi Recipes for One pot Dinner
- Sambar Sadam
- Masala Paratha Recipe
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Ingredients
- 1 cup chana dal
- 1 cup basmati rice
- 2 tablespoon ghee
- 1 cup Peas Fresh shelled
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
- 1 - 2 Star anise
- to taste salt
- 1 teaspoon red chilli powder
- ½ teaspoon turmeric powder
For Tempering
- 1 tablespoon ghee
- 2 - 3 red chilli whole
- 1 tablespoon Sesame seeds
Instructions
- Heat ghee in pressure cooker, add mustard seeds cumin seeds, star anise, cloves, cinnamon stick and roast in ghee for a minute.
- Add chana dal which is already washed and roast it in ghee for 2-3 minutes. Add Green peas and follow it with washed basmati rice.
- Cook them together dry for 2-3 minutes and add salt, red chilli powder and turmeric powder. Add 4 cups of water and pressure cook for 2 whistles. And let the pressure release before opening the cooker.
- To prepare tempering take a tadka pan heat 1 tablespoon of ghee and add 2-3 red chillie whole and sesame seeds. Take the pan off from heat when seeds start to splutter and pour this tadka over hot khichadi and serve it immediately.
Poonam Bajpai
Hello Mam! This khicdi is looking yumlicious and delicious. I will try this recipe. I love your cooking ?
Rekha Kakkar
Thank you! Do let me know how it turned out for you 🙂
Anjali Ajwani
Do we need to soak chana dal before cooking?
Deborah
Really good! I love the idea of Khichdi, but too many are bland. Really bland. This was exactly as advertised: fluffy, tasty, yummy. I did cut down the powdered chili to 1/2 tsp, which allowed the other flavors to roll over the tongue in waves.
sharmila
Nothing written about when to add the green peas?? The ingredient list n photo shows the green peas .Not written in the instructions!!
Tapasya Srivastava
i love khichdi very much i can't stop myself for khichdi. Awesome post. I like to visit here,. thanks a lot for sharing.