Palak Kichdi Recipe

Palak Kichdi is an one pot meal which is a delicious mix of vegetables, dal and rice with a twist. High in protein great for growing kids and easiest way to include your servings of greens for the day. Alternately you can even use quinoa or millets in place of rice to make it even more healthier.  Rice, Pink Masoor Dal (Split), Spinach Leaves (Palak), Garlic, Onion, Green peas (Matar), Broccoli, Tofu, Cinnamon Stick (Dalchini), Cumin seeds (Jeera), Bay leaf (tej patta), Green Chillies, Garlic, Turmeric powder (Haldi), Asafoetida (hing), Garam masala powder, Tomato, Ghee   1/2 cup Rice 1/2 cup Pink Masoor Dal (Split) 1 cup Spinach Leaves (Palak) , tightly packed and cleaned 1 tablespoon Garlic , finely chopped 1 Onion , finely chopped 1/4 cup Green peas (Matar) 1/3 cup Broccoli , florets cleaned 50 grams Tofu , diced 1 inch Cinnamon Stick (Dalchini) 1/2 teaspoon Cumin seeds (Jeera) 1 Bay leaf (tej patta) 2 Green Chillies , slit 3 cloves Garlic , cut into strips 1/4 teaspoon Turmeric powder (Haldi) 2 pinch Asafoetida (hing) 1/2 teaspoon Garam masala powder , (optional) 1/2 Tomato , sliced Ghee , or oil as required     15   30     To begin making the Palak Kichdi recipe, In a pressure cooker add rice, dal, broccoli, peas, turmeric, one pinch of hing, little oil and 2 -1/2 cups of water and pressure cook.In a saucepan, bring water to a boil and add the cleaned spinach leaves and let it sit for a minute in the pot while the flame is still on. Now drain it in a colander and transfer it into a bowl of cold water. Once its cool grind it to a paste in a mixer grinder and set aside.In a wide pan, heat some oil and add bay leaf, jeera, chopped garlic, pinch of hing, green chillies, chopped onions and saute it until the onions have started to change colour to this mixture.Once it is done, add the pureed spinach and mix everything properly.Lower the flame, add the cool dal and rice mixture into the pot and mix until combined with the palak mixture, add the chopped tofu, some water if necessary and season with salt.Also add the garam masala if using at this stage. Cook for 2-3 minutes and turn of the flame.In a tadka pan, add some ghee/oil add sliced garlic and cook till its starts to brown, pour this onto the khichdi.Garnish with sliced tomatoes and it is ready to be served. Serve Palak Kichdi with Lauki Raita, Avocado Raita or any other raita of your choice for a comforting weekday meal.