Mock Sabudana Khichdi, The Kooky Way

Sorghum with Potato & Elephant Foot Yam, The Indian Way

• Servings: 2
• Time: 90mins plus soaking and boiling time
• Difficulty: easy
• Print

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It looks like sabudana khichdi. When it is being prepared, the smell wafting through your kitchen is that of sabudana khichdi. In terms of taste, it is very close to sabudana khichdi. But this is no regular sabudana khichdi – it is my kooky adaptation of the popular Indian dish.

This recipe has been on my “must blog” list even before I started this blog. I had made it about a year back when I was really craving sabudana khichdi. But sabudana (tapioca pearl) has no nutritional value.

My mock version is made from whole jowar (sorghum) which comes close to sabudana in terms of looks and texture.

The first time I made this, I made it only with potatoes (just like sabudana khichdi).

The second time I made this, I was planning on replacing potato with suran (elephant foot yam). My flatmate friend wanted to be in on the experiment and she is a huge potato lover so I decided to use both.

In terms of taste, it is very close to the traditional dish. The main difference lies in the texture. Jowar is chewier than sabudana and so the grains have a bit of bite to them.

healthy, nutritious and delicious alternative to the very popular Indian khichdi

This recipe requires a bit of time and patience. You need to soak the whole jowar for 8 to 12 hours after which you boil it till tender. I did this in a pressure cooker (2 whistles on high flame and 45 minutes of low). You can boil the grains in microwave if you prefer.

When you are actually cooking the khichdi, even after you add the boiled grains, you will have to cook it on slow flame for about 50 minutes.

Also, this khichdi only tastes good if cooked in ghee. You can make it in oil if you like but it won’t taste the same. Ghee has plenty of goodness and so it is definitely in my good books :-).

The end result is definitely worth it. Personally, I like this version better than the traditional one. I guess it boils down to personal preference?!

Ingredients

1 Cup uncooked jowar

2 Medium potato

250 Grams suran

6-7 Fresh green chilli

Fresh ginger the size of your thumb

1/2 Cup roasted, powdered peanuts

1 Tablespoon cumin seeds

8-10 Black peppercorns

1 Teaspoon asafoetida

15-20 Fresh curry leaves

1-2 Tablespoons ghee

Juice of 2 lime or lemon

Salt to taste

Method

1. Soak the jowar grains for 8 to 12 hours.
2. Cook them with a pinch of salt either on the stove top in boiling water or in a pressure cooker or in a microwave till tender. Time will depend on the boiling method you use.
3. Once tender, drain and set aside. You can drink the cooking water, it is quite delicious.
4. Wash and finely dice the potato.
5. Peel, wash and dice the suran the same size as the potato.
6. Wash and mince or finely chop the green chilli.
7. Peel, wash and finely grate the ginger.
8. Wash and roughly chop the curry leaves.
9. Take a wok like pan and heat the ghee.
10. Once the ghee is hot, lower the heat and add the cumin seeds.
11. Once the cumin seeds start crackling, add the peppercorns, curry leaves and asafoetida.
12. Stir for 30 seconds.
13. Next, add the diced potato, diced suran, minced chilli, grated ginger and salt to taste.
14. Mix well, cover and cook for about 10 to 15 minutes till the vegetables are tender.
15. Uncover and add the boiled jowar, juice of lime or lemon and powdered peanut.
16. Again, mix thoroughly.
17. Cover and cook on low flame for about 45 to 50 minutes.
18. Check in between to prevent the khichdi sticking to the bottom of the pan.
19. Once the time is up, take the wok off the heat and let it sit for 5 minutes before serving.

Note:

1. You can adjust the quantity of powdered peanut and lemon juice according to your own taste.