Kichari - Sweet Rice Lentil Mash
Servings 4
Ingredients
- 1 cup moong dal also called kichadi parippu
- 1 cup pachari or basmati rice
- 1/2 cup sugar as per sweetness
- 1 tin 400 ml coconut milk
- 400 ml milk measure in the coconut milk tin
- 1 cup water
- 5 tbsp grated coconut optional
- 1/2 tsp cardamom powder
- A pinch of salt
- Ghee for serving
Instructions
- Wash the rice and dal well till water runs clear.
- Soak the rice-dal in water for around 30 minutes.
- Drain off the soaking water and add along with the rest of the ingredients in a pressure cooker.
- Close the lid and cook upto 3 whistles on medium flame, then reduce the flame to minimum and cook for around 15 minutes.
- Switch off the flame and allow the pressure to go by itself.
- Open the lid of the pressure cooker, mix all well and serve with a dollop of pure ghee!!!
Notes
Soaking the rice and dal is optional but recommended to shorten the cooking time. If you don't soak, then keep the kichari on low flame for an additional 10 minutes.
The proportion of rice to dal need not be half. There are times when we add more lentil to rice, since that tastes better, even though my personal preference is half-half.
The liquid to rice-dal ratio is slightly higher than double. The lentils tend to soak up a lot of water and can leave the kichari dry, so adding a little extra water will not do any harm.
Serve it hot. Keeping it to room temperature tends to harden it. To loosen up the mixture, add hot water and mix till the consistency is reached.
You can use only milk or coconut milk, instead of both together. At times I run out of both, I add equivalent amount of water and mix in coconut milk powder or milk powder (4-6 heaped tbsps approximately, in total and whisk well, before adding.
The proportion of rice to dal need not be half. There are times when we add more lentil to rice, since that tastes better, even though my personal preference is half-half.
The liquid to rice-dal ratio is slightly higher than double. The lentils tend to soak up a lot of water and can leave the kichari dry, so adding a little extra water will not do any harm.
Serve it hot. Keeping it to room temperature tends to harden it. To loosen up the mixture, add hot water and mix till the consistency is reached.
You can use only milk or coconut milk, instead of both together. At times I run out of both, I add equivalent amount of water and mix in coconut milk powder or milk powder (4-6 heaped tbsps approximately, in total and whisk well, before adding.