If you are new to the sattvic diet or slowly transitioning, this dish will be your new favorite go-to. The sattvic diet revolves around nutritious foods that are easy to digest - that's exactly what Kitchari is. Kitchari (pronounced kitch-a-ree) translated to mixture or mess, is an Indian dish composed of mainly rice and mung beans along with vegetables or spices.
Read on to learn a kitchari recipe that can work as a basic dish in your sattvic diet and also how it can help you perform a cleanse.
Kitchari
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup basmati rice
- 1 cup yellow split mung beans
- 6 cups of water
- 2 tsp. Ghee
- 1/2 tsp. Cumin powder
- 1/2 tsp. Turmeric powder
- 1/2 tsp. Coriander powder
- 1/2 tsp. Whole cumin seeds
- ½ tsp. Coriander seeds
- 1/2 tsp. Mustard seeds
- 1 bay leaf
- ½ stick of cinnamon
- ½ an inch of fresh ginger (optional)
- ¼ cup of fresh cilantro leaves
- ½ cup of vegetables chopped ( carrots, beans, sweet potato)
How to prepare?
- Wash the mung beans and rice twice with water, keep a look-out for any stones or impurities in the dal, discard if any.
- Soak the beans and rice for 2 hours before cooking, soaking will drastically reduce flatulence and bloating discomfort associated with beans.
- Add rice and beans together with 6 cups of water. (if you prefer using a pressure cooker add both the rice and beans to the cooker along with 3 cups of water).
- Add cumin, turmeric, coriander powder, bay leaf, and cinnamon to the rice and mung beans, cover it, bring to boil and cook it for 20 mins till it becomes soft. (in case of the pressure cooker bring to pressure and cook for 15 minutes).
- Drop the rest of the spices into a grinder till it forms a coarse powder.
- In a small pot heat ghee and add the ground spices, saute for a few minutes on medium heat till the spices become fragrant.
- Add the chopped vegetables to the pot and cook on medium flame till it becomes soft. To this add the cooked rice and mung beans. Mix them well and add salt to taste
- Transfer the kitchari to a plate and garnish it with a dollop of ghee and cilantro leaves.
Note: Add water according to your preference, 6 cups of water will give you a more soupy texture while 3 cups will give you a semi-solid and fluffy texture.
Nutrition breakdown
Rice is considered a staple for any diet as it is composed largely of carbohydrates which are easily digested.
Mung beans are rich in protein and fiber that are also digested well by our stomach, the protein content provides the required amino acids to build up our body. Fibers also supports your gut health and digestion.
Ghee in this recipe gives the daily dose of fat and is also rich in Vitamin A, D, E and K. Ghee may also be substituted by virgin coconut oil both of which aids in digestion by lubricating our digestive tract.
Spices such as cumin, coriander also augment digestion and reduce flatulence and bloating disturbances the mung beans may cause.
Turmeric is a must for Indian dishes as it helps digestion, heart health and also supports the body's natural response to inflammation.
The Kitchari Cleanse
Kitchari is a dish you can have at any time of the day. This easily digestible dish also soothes the digestive system, which makes it perfect for intermittent fasting or for a periodic cleanse. In case of a cleanse you can opt for a simple kitchari recipe that can be made without adding the additional spices and vegetables.
