The beloved one-pot dish of mung dal and basmati rice cooked soft with ghee and gentle spices, ayurveda's signature food for cleansing days and delicate digestion.
Lunch · 10 min prep · 30 min cook · serves 3 Newly added
Ingredients
- ½ cup basmati rice , rinsed
- ½ cup moong dal (split yellow) , rinsed until the water runs clear
- 4 cups water
- 2 tbsp ghee
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- ½ tsp mustard seeds
- ¼ tsp turmeric powder
- 1 pinch asafoetida (hing)
- 1 tsp ginger (fresh) , grated
- 6 curry leaves
- to taste rock salt
- 2 tbsp coriander leaves , chopped, to serve
Preparation
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Rinse the rice and dal together until the water runs clear; drain.
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Heat the ghee in a heavy pot and pop the mustard seeds, then add cumin, ginger, curry leaves, turmeric and asafoetida.
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Add the rice and dal and stir to coat in the spiced ghee for a minute.
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Pour in the water and salt, bring to a boil, then simmer partially covered 25–30 minutes until everything is very soft and porridge-like.
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Rest 5 minutes, stir well, and serve garnished with coriander and an extra spoon of ghee.
In the tradition
Kitchari sits at the heart of ayurvedic cookery: rice and mung together make a complete, easily absorbed protein that is gentle enough for the sick and satisfying enough for everyone else. During panchakarma, the classical cleansing regimen; patients eat nothing but kitchari for days so that agni can rest while the body still receives nourishment. Soft, warm and mildly spiced, it is the one dish traditionally said to balance all three doshas at once.
Sources & further reading
- Ayurvedic Cooking for Self-Healing , Vasant Lad & Usha Lad (kitchari as the mono-diet of panchakarma)
- Aṣṭāṅga Hṛdaya , Vāgbhaṭa (Sūtrasthāna 6, mung among the most wholesome of pulses)
Classical citations mark where a tradition is drawn on; modern books are shared as further reading, not as prescriptions.