Khichdi is wholesome one pot meal made with lentil and rice and a great comfort food for us . There are many variations of khichdi recipes in Indian cuisine, using dal and rice in different proportions. For making dal khichdi, mostly moong dal is used, in some areas arhar/toor dal khichdi is also popular. But the Chana dal khichdi which I am sharing today is a punjabi khichdi recipe.

Khichdi is basically a wholesome easy one pot meal in which various ingredients are mixed and cooked together. There are variety of khichdi recipes that are cooked in India. Sabudana khichdi, Dal Khichdi, oats khichdi and recently quinoa khichdi is also quite popular. I mostly add a good amount of vegetables in any of the khichri I am making. That makes it even more nutritious and wholesome. Earthiness and flavour from whole spices that I add, makes this vegetarian khichdi quite aromatic.

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 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!