Toor dal khichdi, also called arhar dal khichdi is a light, simple one-pot comfort food of India made with split pigeon peas and rice. The dish is flavored with a few basic Indian spices. If you are looking for a comforting vegan or vegetarian meal recipe that can be enjoyed in every season then this Toor dal khichdi recipe is a great option.
Khichdi is a one-pot comfort food from India that's delicious, nutritious, and very easy to make. It's made by cooking rice, lentils, vegetables, and spices in a single pot.
The dish is made in a lot of different ways and every region of India has a slightly different way of making khichdi. But, the most common khichdi recipe is moong dal khichdi which I have already shared on my blog. You can also try my vegetable quinoa khichdi recipe.
Today, I am sharing another very tasty khichdi recipe- Toor dal khichdi, which is also called arhar dal khichdi, tuvar dal khichdi, or masala khichdi.
It's made with split pigeon peas and rice.
This delicious meal is vegan and can easily be made gluten-free just by skipping one ingredient-asafoetida or using gluten-free asafoetida.
Jump to:
- Ingredients needed
- Ingredient notes and substitute suggestions
- How to make toor dal khichdi (step-by-step process)?
- How to serve?
- Storing and reheating tips
- Recipe tips, tricks, and variation suggestions
- Frequently asked questions
- More easy Indian vegetarian dinner recipes
- More vegetarian one pot meals
- Recipe
Ingredients needed
To make khichdi with toor dal, you will need the following ingredients:
Ingredient notes and substitute suggestions
- Lentils: Khichdi is made with different lentils, but for this recipe, you need toor dal which is split pigeon peas. You can easily find it in an Indian grocery store. It's also called arhar dal.
- Rice: For khichdi, use short or medium-grain rice otherwise you won't get the creamy consistency that you need for khichdi.
- Onion: Use red onion in Indian recipes.
- Curry leaves: These are very aromatic and flavorful leaves that are used to flavor a lot of Indian savory dishes. Though nothing tastes better than fresh curry leaves, if you can't find fresh curry leaves, frozen or dried leaves can be used too.
- Green chili: You may skip adding chili, if your heat tolerance is low or remove some seeds.
- Whole spices: I have used both black mustard seeds and cumin seeds to temper khichdi. You can use either of them too.
- Powdered spices: Use only basic Indian spices, that too in moderation to flavor Khichdi. It tastes better with mild spices. I have used coriander powder, red chili powder, turmeric powder, and asafoetida. You can skip red chili powder if you want to make milder khichdi. Other spices like cumin powder and ground black pepper can also be added.
- Cooking oil: Use any cooking oil of your choice. Non-vegans may also use ghee.
Other ingredient details and nutritional information is shared in the recipe card ahead.
How to make toor dal khichdi (step-by-step process)?
To make khichdi with toor dal, follow the easy step by step instructions given below:
Step 1: Start the preparation for toor dal khichdi by mixing the lentils and rice in a large bowl. Rinse them well and then soak in water while you chop the vegetables and do other preparation.
Step 2: Heat oil in a pressure cooker. Add cumin seeds and mustard seeds, let them splutter.
Step 3: Add asafoetida and curry leaves. Saute for just 10 seconds as they get burned very fast.
Step 4: Add chopped onion and cook until the onion starts turning brown.
Step 5: Add chopped ginger and green chilies. Saute for a few seconds.
Step 6: Add coriander powder, red chili powder, and turmeric powder. Saute for another few seconds.
Step 7: Add chopped tomato and salt.
Step 8: Cook until the tomatoes turn mushy.
Step 9: Strain the soaked rice and lentils. Discard the water in which they were soaked and add the rice and lentils to the pressure cooker. Saute for a minute.
Step 10: Add water and mix everything.
Step 11: Put on the lid of the pressure cooker. Cook on medium heat for 3 whistles. Turn off the heat.
Step 12: Allow the pressure to get released naturally and then open the lid. Give it a good stir to mix everything well. Garnish with chopped cilantro. You may also add some lime or lemon juice before serving.
Your delicious and comforting one pot meal- toor dal khichdi is ready to be enjoyed!
How to serve?
Always serve khichdi hot, it tastes the best like that.
Traditionally, it's served with a dollop of ghee (clarified butter) on top and people generally consider khichdi incomplete without ghee. However, if you are a vegan, you can enjoy it without ghee too.
Other side dishes that are served with it are roasted popadums, Indian pickles or chutney like mint chutney, coriander tomato chutney, or green mango chutney.
You can also serve a simple Indian salad like kachumber salad, spicy onion salad, or Indian baby potato salad with khichdi.
Some people also like having khichdi with Indian-style vegetable dishes (sabzi) like aloo matar, aloo gobhi, patta gobhi aloo, or aloo beans.
It's also served with plain yogurt or raita like cucumber raita, onion raita, or potato raita.
Storing and reheating tips
To store leftover khichdi, allow reaching room temperature then transfer to an airtight container. Refrigerate for up to 3 days.
When you leave the khichdi for a few hours, it thickens. So while reheating add some hot or warm water to adjust the consistency and then reheat.
To reheat, either microwave for a few minutes, stirring once or twice in between until evenly heated. Or, reheat it on the stovetop covered until heated well.
Since water gets added to the khichdi while reheating to adjust the consistency, check and reseason it if required.
Recipe tips, tricks, and variation suggestions
- Always use short or medium-grain rice to make khichdi. Long-grain rice like basmati rice is not suitable to make it as you won't get the same creamy texture that's required in a khichdi if you use long-grain rice.
- You can adjust the amount of water to get the consistency of khichdi you prefer. Generally, khichdi has a porridge like consistency but you can add more water if you prefer a thinner consistency.
- You can make toor dal khichdi with vegetables by adding chopped vegetables of your choice. Some vegetables that taste good in khichdi are potatoes, carrots, green peas, green beans, cauliflower, or broccoli. If adding vegetables, don't chop them into very small pieces otherwise they will melt in the pressure cooker.
- Add some spinach to this recipe to make palak khichdi. Other leafy greens like fenugreek leaves, mustard greens, or spring onion can also be added.
- To give this arhar dal khichdi a taste similar to sambhar rice, you may add 1-2 tablespoons of sambhar powder to it. You can also add tamarind paste to it.
- If you don't have a pressure cooker, a regular pot with heavy bottom can also be used to make this dish. It will just take more time around 1 hour to cook toor dal khichdi without a pressure cooker. If using a regular pot, soak rice and lentils for a longer period i.e. at least an hour to fasten the cooking process. Also, add more water (around 7 cups) in that case.
Frequently asked questions
Yes, you can use lentils of your choice to make khichdi. I have already shared the recipe for moong dal khichdi on my blog which is made with split and skinned mung beans. You can also make it using other lentils like red lentils (lal masoor dal), brown lentils (sabut masoor dal), white lentils (dhuli urad dal), or split Bengal gram (chana dal). The cooking time may vary depending on the type of lentils you are using.
Yes, brown rice can also be used to make khichdi. But, soak it in water for a longer time i.e. at least 30 minutes. Brown rice will also take a longer time to get cooked.
Naturally, asafoetida is gluten-free. However, some brands add flour to it while processing making it unfit for people on a gluten-free diet.
To make gluten-free khichdi, either skip adding asafoetida or use gluten-free asafoetida.
More easy Indian vegetarian dinner recipes
If you liked this recipe and want to try more easy Indian vegetarian or vegan dinner recipes then don't miss to check out the following links:
More vegetarian one pot meals
If you are looking for more easy one-pot vegetarian or vegan recipes then do checkout the following links:
If you liked this recipe, please leave a star rating ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ in the recipe card below. You can also follow me on Instagram, Youtube, and Pinterest.
Recipe
Toor dal khichdi
Equipment
- 1 Pressure cooker stovetop or electric (instant pot)
- Knife
- Chopping board
- Spatula
- large bowl to soak rice and lentils
Ingredients
- ½ cup short grain rice or medium grain rice
- ½ cup toor dal (arhar dal)
- 1 small red onion finely chopped
- 1 medium tomato finely chopped
- 1 green chili finely chopped
- ½ inch piece of ginger finely chopped or grated
- 7-8 curry leaves
- ¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
- ½ teaspoon black mustard seeds
- ½ teaspoon cumin seeds
- ½ tablespoon coriander powder
- ½ teaspoon red chili powder
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
- ⅛ teaspoon asafoetida
- Salt to taste
- 1 tablespoon cooking oil of choice
- 4.5 cups water or as required to get the desired consistency.
Instructions
- Start the preparation for making toor dal khichdi by mixing rice and toor dal in a large bowl. Wash well and then soak in water for around 15 minutes or until you chop the vegetables for the khichdi.
- Heat oil in a pressure cooker. Add cumin seeds and black mustard seeds.
- When the seeds start spluttering, add asafoetida and curry leaves. Saute for around 10 seconds.
- Add chopped onion and cook until the onion starts turning brown.
- Add chopped ginger and green chilies and saute for a few seconds
- Add coriander powder, red chili powder, and turmeric powder. Saute for another few seconds.
- Next, add chopped tomato and salt. Cook on medium heat for 2-3 minutes or until the tomatoes turn mushy.
- Strain the soaked rice and lentils. Discard the water in which they were soaked. Add the rice and lentils to the pressure cooker. Saute for a minute.
- Add water and mix. Put on the lid of the pressure cooker and cook on medium heat till 3 whistles. Allow the pressure to get released naturally.
- Once the pressure gets released, open the lid. Add chopped cilantro and mix.
- Serve hot. Add a dollop of ghee on top, if you are not vegan.
Video
Notes
-
- Always use short or medium-grain rice to make khichdi. Long-grain rice like basmati rice is not suitable to make it as you won't get the same creamy texture that's required in a khichdi if you use long-grain rice.
- You can adjust the amount of water to get the consistency of khichdi you prefer. Generally, khichdi has a porridge like consistency but you can add more water if you prefer a thinner consistency.
- You can make toor dal khichdi with vegetables by adding chopped vegetables of your choice. Some vegetables that taste good in khichdi are potatoes, carrots, green peas, green beans, cauliflower, or broccoli to khichdi. If adding vegetables, don't chop them into very small pieces otherwise they will melt in the khichdi.
- Add some spinach to this recipe to make palak khichdi. Other leafy greens like fenugreek leaves, mustard greens, or spring onion can also be added.
- To give this arhar dal khichdi a taste similar to sambhar rice, you may add 1 tablespoon of sambhar powder to it. You can also tamarind paste to it.
- If you don't have a pressure cooker, a regular pot with heavy bottom can also be used to make khichdi. It will just take more time around 1 hour to cook toor dal khichdi without a pressure cooker. If using a regular pot, soak rice and lentils for a longer period i.e. at least an hour to fasten the cooking process. Also, add more water (around 7 cups) in that case.
- More recipe tips and tricks are shared in the post above, please follow them to make this recipe.
Leave a Reply