Khichadi Kadhi

Khichadi  is a mish mash of rice and lentils and Kadhi is a yogurt based curry.This khichadi and kadhi is a match made in heaven and our favourite comfort food. With the temperatures plummeting in our neck of the woods and winter making its presence felt, it is the perfect time for some hot and soul warming khichadi kadhi. This simple meal paired with some pickle and papad on the side is just what I need on these cold winter nights. It does not take long to make it and the meal is ready in no time which of course is an added advantage. 

I knew that khichadi and kadhi is healthy but beyond that had not really given a thought to its nutritional aspects. A quick google search told me that white basmati rice which I use for making khichadi has a  Glycemic Index (GI) of 52 (as against a GI of 79 for other white rice varieties) making it a low GI food, which is great as it makes the healthy list and makes me feel less guilty about consuming white rice. GI measures how a carbohydrate containing food raises blood glucose. A food with high GI raises blood glucose more than foods with low or medium GI.  I also used  http://www.myfitnesspal.com to calculate the nutrition facts of khichadi kadhi using only the main ingredients which was probably not required but whatever..it satisfied my curiosity ! Knowing that this meal is a low calorie and a healthy option, I can enjoy it even more henceforth. Here are the nutrition facts followed by the recipe.

Ingredient	Calories	Carbs  g	Fat g	Protein g	Sugar g
Khichadi
1 cup cooked White Basmati Rice	205	45	1	4	0
1/4 cup cooked yellow moong dal	75	27	0	11	2
1 tbsp olive oil	119	0	14	0	0
Total	399	72	15	15	2
Kadhi
2 cups plain 1 % low fat yogurt	308	34	8	26	34
2 tbsp chickpea flour	44	6	0	2	2
1 tbsp ghee	112	0	13	0	0
Total	464	40	21	28	36
Total calories in Khichadi kadhi	863
As this quantity serves 4 the total calories per person would be approximately 300.

Khichadi Kadhi

Kadhi


Ingredients

• 2 cups plain yogurt
• 2 cups water
• 2-3 tbsp chickpea flour / besan
• 4 green chillies slit
• few curry leaves
• 1 red chilli broken into pieces
• 1/4 tsp hing
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 1/4 tsp methi seeds
• 1 tsp ginger paste or freshly grated ginger
• 3 cloves
• 2 tsp sugar / or some jaggery
• ghee for tempering
• salt to taste

Method

1. Churn the yogurt with besan and water and set aside.
2. Heat ghee for tempering. Add hing, methi seeds, cumin seeds, green chillies, red chilli, curry leaves and ginger.
3. Add the churned yogurt to the tempering.
4. Add sugar / jaggery, cloves and salt.
5. Bring to a boil, garnish with chopped cilantro and serve hot.

 Khichadi

Ingredients

• 1 cup white basmati rice
• 1/4 cup moong dal
• 3 cups water
• oil for tempering
• 1/4 tsp mustard seeds
• 1/4 tsp hing
• 1/8 tsp turmeric powder / haldi
• 1/2 tsp red chilli powder
• 1/2 tsp goda masala (optional)
• salt to taste

Method

1. Mix rice and moong dal and wash them a few times. Drain and keep aside.
2. Heat oil. Add mustard seeds. Wait till they splutter and add hing and turmeric powder.
3. Add the washed and drained rice and dal mixture.
4. Add red chilli powder, goda masala and salt.
5. Stir for some time and then transfer it to a rice cooker.
6. Add 3 cups water and cook.
7. Serve hot with kadhi.

Notes

•  Goda masala is a Maharashtrian spice mix. It can be  replaced  with garam masala or you can leave it out completely.
• The khichadi can be pressure cooked instead of using the rice cooker.
• Add vegetables of your choice to the khichadi to make it more nutritious.