Risotto, or as the Indian call it “Khichdi”, is the mix of rice with a range of other ingredients. The best part of risotto is that you can practically pair the rice with any vegetable of your choice, and it will turn out tasty, soothing every time and a perfect meal for kids. In this recipe, the rice is cooked with not only a mix of vegetables, but there is also some use of red lentils and chicken in the recipe. Now you can imagine the richness of this meal, which is literally offering every other nutrient you can think of in a single platter. With the minimal use of spices and seasonings, this recipe offers some finger-licking flavors, given that it is served fresh and warm.
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup Kalijeera rice
- 1/4 cup Red lentils
- 1 Tomato, chopped
- 2 Carrots, chopped
- 2 Pointed gourds, peeled & diced
- 1 Potato, peeled and diced
- 3 Spring onions, chopped
- 1/2 Cauliflower head, chopped
- 1/2 Broccoli head, chopped
- 1 cup Malabar spinach, chopped
- 1/2 cup Chicken boneless, cubed
- 2 Garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 1 Yellow onion, finely chopped
- 1 Green chili, chopped
- 1 tbsp Cooking oil
- 1 tbsp Butter
- 1/2 tsp Turmic
- Salt to taste
- 600 ml Water
Instructions
- Take a large glass bowl and add rice along with red lentils to this bowl. Pour in enough water to soak the rice and lentils. Leave this bowl for 10 minutes then drain the rice and lentils.
- Dice the boneless chicken into medium-sized cubes and finely chop the garlic, ginger, onion, and green chili on a cutting board and keep these ingredients aside, ready for use.
- Place a large-sized cooking pot over medium heat and add butter to melt in it. Add green chili, ginger, garlic, and onion to the melted butter for tempering. Stir in one tomato, and ½ cup chicken cubes then sauté for 1 minute. Add all the diced vegetables to the cooking pot and stir fry them for 2 minutes.
- Stir in the drain lentils, and rice then mix well with the veggies except for the spinach and spring onion. Finally, pour in 600 ml water and allow the lentil rice mixture to boil. Now cover the pot and cook it on low heat for 15 minutes approximately until the rice and lentils are al-dente.
- If the rice mixture gets too dry, add more water if needed and give this mixture a gentle stir twice during the cooking.
- Remove the lid and the mix the khichri well, then add spring onion and spinach to the khichri. Mix well it all until the spinach gets wilted. Add salt to adjust the seasoning, then let it simmer for 4 minutes on low heat.
- Serve warm and fresh.
Tips
- Kalijeera rice is the long-grain white rice; however, if not available, you can use any kind of rice you like for cooking this risotto.
- For a vegetarian treat, skip the use of chicken in the recipe and focus more on the vegetables.
- Since pointed gourds are not commonly available in all parts of the world, it is completely fine to cook this risotto without the use of this gourd.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!