Masala Khichdi, also known as Vegetable Khichdi, is a comforting one-pot Indian dish made with rice, lentils, and vegetables along with ghee and simple spices. It’s a staple across India and loved for its soft texture and soothing flavors. Make it in a pressure cooker or Instant Pot easily in less than 30 minutes.
I have shared my simple khichdi recipe before. But this masala khichdi is even better with veggies included. We make this khichdi almost weekly at home. It is wholesome with rice, lentils, and vegetables, all cooked in one pot. Easy to make, and my family loves it.
is also called Vaghareli Khichdi in the western Indian state of Gujarat. Khichdi is enjoyed with pickle, papad, yogurt, and lots of ghee.
Khichdi is like a porridge, hence we add more water when making khichdi. If you like rice grains separate and not all mixed up, then try this Vegetable Pulao.
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Why eat Khichdi?
✓ The combination of lentils, rice, and veggies makes khichdi a complete meal. Lentils provide the protein, rice provides carbs, and the veggies provide a whole lot of nutrients.
✓ Easy to digest, which makes it a great meal for babies and the elderly.
✓ It is also a perfect meal when you are under the weather and looking for something light.
✓ It is vegetarian and gluten-free. To make this recipe vegan, replace the ghee with your favorite plant-based oil.
✓ This dish is very versatile; you can use the split lentils you like and the veggies you have available, and it always turns out great. Isn’t that wonderful? A no-fail dish.
Khichuri Featured
I got really excited when I saw Khichdi or Khichuri featured on NPR recently. They called this “An Ancient Indian comfort dish with a Global Influence”. This is so true, all over India, Khichri is prepared in a variety of ways, and we find similar things in other cultures too.
According to the NPR article, the Anglo-Indian variant of Khichuri is Kedigree, but it omits the lentils. Khichri is also thought to be the ancestor of Egypt’s national dish, koshary, which is made with rice, lentils, and macaroni. Khichri is also similar to mujaddara, another Middle Eastern comfort dish with rice and lentils. It is a small world!
How to make Vegetable Khichdi in the Pressure Cooker?
Khichdi is rice and lentils cooked well or sometimes even overcooked. Unlike other rice dishes, where the grains must be separate after cooking, in Khichdi, they are supposed to be softer, maybe a little mushy. However, you can adjust the consistency to your liking by adding less or more water.
As I mentioned, there are many ways of making khichdi. Today I will be making it with split green moong lentils and veggies. I previously shared a recipe for making khichdi with yellow moong lentils, without the veggies. I also shared a recipe for quinoa khichdi.
Here are all the ingredients I used to make Masala Khichdi, minus the spices.
I did not add any whole spices or garam masala, but you can add spices such as black peppercorns and cinnamon to get their wonderful aroma to the dish, or add 1/2 teaspoon of my homemade garam masala. I used fresh vegetables this time, but you can use frozen vegetables as well.
In most recipes, you will find that khichdi is prepared with 1 part lentils and 2 parts rice. I like to increase the lentils and make the ratio 1:1, that way we can get more protein in our meal.
Start by heating ghee, then add the cumin seeds and ginger. A variation of khichdi is to not add ginger or onions. I love ginger too much to skip it 🙂
Now add in the veggies and spices. You can use any veggies you have available. I had carrots, tomatoes, potatoes, and green peas in the refrigerator. But go for your favorite veggies. I have used cauliflower, broccoli, edamame, and spinach previously.
Then add the washed split green moong lentils and rice. Add in the water, and you are done! Close the lid with the vent in the sealed position, then cook on high-pressure mode for 5 minutes. Do a 10-minute natural pressure release, and the khichdi will be ready for you to enjoy.
Serving Suggestions
Enjoy khichdi with some yogurt raita, salad, or papad. Some people also like to enjoy khichdi with kadhi or chaas.
You can also top khichdi with a tempering. It can be a simple tempering of ghee with cumin seeds, hing, and, optionally, some red chili powder.
If you like it tangy, then squeeze a little lime or lemon juice on top. Oh..and don’t forget to top it off with lots of ghee.
Storing Leftovers
Masala khichdi thickens as it cools. You can store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. When reheating, add some hot water and heat in the microwave.
Want to find other easy Instant Pot Indian Recipes? Here are 23 Best Instant Pot Indian Recipes for you to try!
More Rice Recipes You’ll Love
Beetroot Rice Pulao (Instant Pot & Stovetop)
Vegetable Rice Pulao / Pilaf – Instant Pot Pressure Cooker
Brown Rice Mushroom Pilaf
Saffron Rice with Nuts & Raisins
Indian Vegetable Khichdi (Masala Khichdi)
Video
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup Split green moong lentils, washed
- 1/2 cup White Rice, washed
- 3 cups Water
- 1 tablespoon Ghee
- 1/2 teaspoon Cumin seeds (Jeera)
- 1/8 teaspoon Asafoetida (Hing)
- 1/2 tablespoon Ginger , paste
- 1/2 Onion, small, chopped
- 1 Tomato, chopped
- Cilantro , to garnish
Vegetables
- 1 Potato, small, cut into small pieces
- 1/2 cup Carrot, cut into small pieces
- 1/2 cup Green peas
Spices
- 1/4 teaspoon Ground Turmeric (Haldi powder)
- 1/4 teaspoon Cayenne or Red chili powder
- 1 teaspoon Salt
Instructions
- Start the Instant Pot on Sauté mode and heat ghee in it. Add cumin seeds, asafoetida, and let them bubble for 30 seconds. Then add onions and ginger. Let them cook for a minute.
- Add all the veggies and spices. Stir them well.
- Add the lentils, rice, and water. Stir them well with the veggies.
- Close the Instant Pot lid, and set it to pressure cook mode for 5 minutes at high pressure with the vent in the sealing position.
- When the Instant Pot beeps, do a 10-minute NPR. This means release the pressure manually 10 minutes after the Instant Pot beeps.
- Garnish with cilantro. Serve hot with additional ghee to top it.
Stovetop Method
- To make this khichdi on a stovetop pressure cooker, follow the same steps and let it cook for 3 whistles.
Notes
- You can add more spice with green chilies or increase the quantity of red chili powder in this khichdi. I kept it mild, so everyone in the family can enjoy it.
- You can vary the vegetables added to this khichdi.
- I used split green moong lentils for this khichdi; you can use yellow lentils too.
This was a great intro to making kichdi in the instant pot. I used yellow split pigeon peas and should have soaked them, as they did not cook well enough. It came out too liquidy for me so I burned some off in saute mode afterwards. Also, I doubled the spices. I’ll make modifications next time.
Hey Sabrina – Thanks for sharing your experience. Sometimes lentils can take more time to cook depending on how old they are. Please do make modifications to your taste. Thank you 🙂
Do I have to change cooking time for if I cut the recipe in half? And what is the cooking time for toor dal?
Hey Devanshi – Cutting the recipe in half does not change the cooking time. With toor dal, you can do the same cooking time. Anything below 4-5 mins will not cook the rice well. Hope you enjoy the khichdi 🙂
This was a really nice change! I only used 2.5 cups of water and it turned out really well, next time I will make it spicier
I served this with tandoori chicken !
Hey Koty – Glad to hear you enjoyed the khichdi. It is a weekly dinner in our house (especially when I am lazy :-))
WOW DELICIOUS and the easiest dal type dish I’ve made yet. I’m so grateful for you fast and clear IP directions – keeps all the flavor and saves me hours of my life. I can’t wait to try many more recipes from your site. Thank you!
For those Spicy Lovers like me – I doubled the cayenne and added 3 serrano chili’s. Heat was perfect for me! And I added 1/4 cup roasted peanuts for crunch and more protein. Yum!
Hi Dee – So happy to hear you enjoyed the Khichdi. Peanuts are a great addition. I love the spice too, but have reduced it now for my 4yo daughter 🙂
Really delicious and SO EASY. I made this as written except I added an additional cup of vegetables in place of the potato. Really flavorful, healthy, and has a nice creamy texture without adding a lot of fat.
Glad to hear you liked it, Samantha!
If I wanted a more traditional 2:1 ratio for lentils how would I adjust this?
Sure, I understand you want to do 1 cup rice and 1/2 cup lentils. To get a similar porridge consistency as I have made increase water to 3.5 cups. If you like a less liquid consistency, keep the water at 3 cups.
Should the lentils be soaked?
Amazing site by the way, I absolutely love the story behind every recipe and the detailed instructions. I just bought an IP and I’m so glad I found this site.
Hey Brad – thank you! Glad you liked the site. Feel free to send any feedback you have.
You don’t need to soak the lentils or rice. Just rinse them in water similar to rice and use them. Do use split lentils. Let me know how it turns out ????
my daughter doesn’t like khichdi but when I was tried this recipe really she likes it and eat it. really I am very happy.
It came with too much liquid even though I mesured everything precisely…. 🙁
Oh sorry…it did not work as you expected. Khichdi is supposed to be like porridge, not necessarily watery. Let me know if I can help.
Quantity of water depends on the type of rice you are using. The recipe is for basmati rice. If you use Jasmine rice, it will be watery as Jasmine rice does not absorb much water.
Thanks for the comment, Vas. I agree that the quantity of water needed to prepare rice certainly depends on the type of rice used. Also khichdi inherently is supposed to be like a porridge. I hope you enjoyed it!
How much longer do I need to cook it if I use brown rice? Thanks! It looks delicious.
Thanks! Brown rice take much longer to cook, about 22 minutes, which could be too long for the lentils. I will have to try this before suggesting how to cook Khichdi with brown rice.