Pranjal Date | September 5th, 2021
Which is that one dish that you used to run away from as a child but are now drawn to time and again as a grown-up?
Well, there could be quite a few of them depending on which region you come from! But one surely is the most common across all households – the ever humble “Khichdi”.
Every mother has inherited a recipe of Khichdi – a proud lineage passed through generations! All moms have tried to custom make it to their child’s liking with a never wavering belief that this is “The Super Food” – a panacea for any illness, a quick fix for mood swings or an acceptable menu for those unannounced visits of relatives at home. It often is a medium for mothers to deliver those “veggies I will never eat” into her child’s tummy.
India knows many names for this simple yet full of nutrition recipe – Tamil Nadu’s Pongal, Karnataka’s Bisi Bele Bhath, Bengal’s gratifying porridge Khichuri, Maharashtrian Khichdi are all essentially the same concoction with a different dressing/avatar meant to soothe the soul, give digestion a natural pause once in a while. Returning from a tiring travel or cooking while off-roading? This is an easy recipe to fill you up and re-energize you!
My first memory of Khichdi is how my Nana used to eat it – mixed with a dollop of cream, milk on top with the sides of mango pickle and fried papad. It used to have a surprise of cooked and sweetened chunks of whole onion! That’s exactly is how I love my Khichdi even today and will probably do so till my last meal!
I often find myself running behind my frenzied boy with a spoon full of ghee laden Khichdi in a hope of fixing his hyper soul to rest!
Well with it! Papad, Aloo Fry, Aloo Bhujiya, Pickles, Tomato Chutney, Keema, Salads?? The list goes on – you name it and you have it!
Ever feel like teleporting yourselves back to your mum’s kitchen and eating the warm soul-satisfying Khichdi? #GharKiYaad has just the right regional cuisine you are looking for!