Instant Pot Khichdi

Khichdi is a popular comfort food from Indian cuisine. If you are looking for vegetarian food when sick or for cold weather then vegetable khichdi with kadhi tops the list as it is easy in digestion and packed with nutrition. Instant Pot khichdi is a one-pot meal for busy weeknights.

Khichdi is a gluten-free lentil and rice porridge cooked with spices, ghee, and optionally vegetables. It is nutritious, versatile, and can be customized to adapt to your taste.

Ingredients

Khichdi is made with dal and rice cooked together in a pressure cooker with vegetables and spices. Ghee is added while cooking and also while serving.

Vegetable khichdi must not be mushy and rice, dal, and veggies must be cooked evenly. So it is best to soak dal and rice for at least 30 minutes.

Lentils like split yellow moong dal, green moong dal, masoor dal (split red lentils), and toor dal (split pigeon peas) are added. I have used basmati rice and dals in equal proportion.

I have used potatoes, eggplants, peas, carrots, and tomatoes. To cook them evenly, it is best to cube them less than an inch in size. You can also add cauliflower or sweet potatoes.

I use 1:1 of dal rice ratio to make khichdi and also like to add some cashews and peanuts for crunchiness. However, you can customize it as per your liking. You can also make this vegetable khichdi without onion and garlic.

Instructions

This vegetable khichdi is cooked in an Instant Pot with just a 1-minute high-pressure setting followed by a natural pressure release. This ensures the vegetables are not mushy and overcooked but evenly cooked with dal and rice.

First turn the saute mode on normal setting, once the container is hot, add ghee followed by peanuts and cashews. Saute them until light brown and then add the whole spices - bay leaf, peppercorn, whole red chili, mustard seeds, cumin seeds.

Saute for a few seconds and then add ginger garlic paste and optionally some serrano peppers if you want it spicy. You can make the khichdi without onion and garlic by skipping them.

Add all the vegetables, dal, rice, water, turmeric powder, and salt. Gently mix it and deglaze the pot with a spatula. To ensure the khichdi is not mushy I have used a 1:2 ratio of dal rice to water.

Press cancel to come out of the saute mode. Close the lid with the pressure valve in sealing position. Select pressure mode for 1 minute on the high-pressure setting. Once done, allow the pressure to release naturally.

Substitutions

Vegan - The only ingredient that makes khichdi not suitable for a vegan diet is ghee. You can easily replace it with a plant-based alternative like vegan butter or coconut oil and still enjoy this nutritious protein-packed comfort food.

Serving suggestions

You might find it very interesting that khichdi is served with different accompaniments in different regions in India. Kadhi, a yogurt soup, is served with khichdi commonly in the western part of India.

Some people love eating khichdi with plain homemade yogurt or buttermilk. In north India, khichdi is served with mashed boiled potatoes mixed with green chilies, garlic, and onions.

Each of the variations is worth trying as it brings out a different taste to the same dish! But you can also just enjoy khichdi as is by topping it with some ghee and some pickles.

Equipment

This Instant Pot khichdi recipe is made in the 6 qt. Instant Pot. You can easily make it in other electric pressure cookers and larger capacity Instant Pot.

Storage

Khichdi is best served warm and freshly prepared. However, if you have leftovers, you can store it in the fridge for 2-3 days. When you are ready to eat, simply reheat it in the microwave or on the cooktop.

You may need to add some water while reheating as khichdi tends to thicken and dry up once it is refrigerated.

If you liked this recipe, you may also like these recipes

• Easy peas pulao
• Mixed dal
• Chana dal
• Homemade yogurt
• Moong dal halwa
• Moong dal paratha
• Mushroom pulao
• Quinoa pulao

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