Mixed Lentils & Vegetables Khichdi – A vegetarian, one-pot, gluten free dish with lentils, rice and vegetables, cooked in ghee, turmeric and red chili powder makes an amazingly flavorful comfort meal!
Khichdi, Khichadi or Kitchari is a nourishing porridge-like dish cooked with lentils and rice. Referred to as the Indian “comfort food”, it is often used for babies and the elderly, a healthy meal that is easy to chew, digest and SO good for the body!
I grew up eating khichdi for a LOT of dinner meals. My mom cooked this soft, mushy and lightly spiced dish that was so comforting and light that it always made a perfect dinner. She had many variations of this dish, so when someone asks me about khichdi, there are so many different recipes that come to my mind.
This khichdi recipe was developed over the years, adding and changing the combination of vegetables and spices so as to not over power the dish. I now have a recipe that I love and is my signature dish! A recipe I was so proud to share with my mom, who absolutely loves it and has on a repeat list.
Step by step recipe for mixed lentils & vegetable khichdi in the Instant Pot:
- Turn Instant Pot to Saute Mode and heat ghee. Add cumin seeds and ginger. Cook for a 30 seconds. Add all the vegetables (carrots, beans, peas, tomato, potato, cauliflower, cabbage and spinach). Mix well.
- Add turmeric, red chili powder and salt. Mix well. Add rice and mixed lentils. Add 6 cups of water. Give everything a quick stir and close IP lid with pressure valve to sealing. Press the rice button (12 mins) followed by natural pressure release .
- Open the Instant Pot and garnish the khichdi with cilantro. Serve hot with roasted papad and pickle.
Variations for Mixed Lentils & Vegetable Khichdi:
- Substitute the 4 different lentils I used with any lentils you may have on hand. It could be just 1 cup of moong daal or 1/2 cup of moong daal and 1/2 cup of chana daal. Just make sure you take 1 cup of lentils.
- You can use any combination of vegetables. Just make sure to add about 4 cups of chopped veggies. Frozen mixed vegetables also work well in this recipe.
- To make this khichdi with brown rice, simply increase the pressure cook time to 20 minutes.
- To make this recipe vegan, simply substitute ghee with cooking oil.
- The water ratio in this recipe is 3 times the rice and lentils together which makes a soft, porridge like consistency for the final dish. To make dry-ish khichdi reduce the water to 4 cups.
Here is a quick video to make Mixed Lentils & Vegetables Khichdi in the Instant Pot:
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- 2 tablespoon ghee
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 1 tablespoon ginger
- 1 carrot peeled and sliced
- ¼ cup green beans chopped
- ¼ cup frozen green peas
- 1 red potato cubed
- 1 tomato diced
- 1 cup cauliflower chopped
- 1 cup cabbage chopped
- 1 cup spinach chopped
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
- 1 to 2 teaspoons mild red chili powder
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 cup white rice
- 1 cup mixed lentils moong, masoor, toor and chana daal
- 6 cups water
- ¼ cup cilantro chopped, for garnish
Turn the Instant Pot to Saute Mode and heat ghee. Add cumin seeds and ginger.
- Cook for a 30 seconds. Add all the vegetables (carrots, beans, peas, tomato, potato, cauliflower, cabbage and spinach). Mix well.
- Add turmeric, red chili powder and salt. Mix well.
Add rice and mixed lentils. Add 6 cups of water. Give a quick stir and close the Instant Pot lid with pressure valve to sealing.
Press the rice button (12 mins) followed by natural pressure release. Open the Instant Pot and garnish with cilantro. Serve hot with roasted papad and pickle.
Recipe Video
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Author: Archana
Hey there! I am a techie turned recipe developer, cooking instructor, and food blogger. I love food and enjoy developing easy and healthy recipes for busy lifestyles. I live New Jersey with my husband and two sons.
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Thank you!
This dish looks absolutely wonderful !
Thank you 🙂
Thank you Hans!
What type of white rice do you prefer to use?
I use white basmati rice
This looks wonderful, and I think I’m going to make it later this week. Can you please confirm that you don’t need to add any liquid? Does the liquid from the vegetables cook the rice?
Jenel, it needs 6 cups of water. I may have missed adding it in the ingredients list, but it’s there in the instructions. I will add it to the ingredients list too. Do let me know how you like it! Thank you!
Oops! I see it now. Thank you, Archana. I’m looking forward to it. I made a couple of your recipes last week and loved them. Our favorite were the tandoori chicken wings. YUM! I really appreciate you sharing your knowledge like this.
Thank you so much! I am so happy to hear that you are enjoying my recipes! Hope you like this healthy khichdi too. Can’t wait to hear.
What changes (if any) would I have to make were I to use *brown* basmati rice?
I would cook it for 22-25 mins manual!
Thanks for the quick reply
Archana, if I use brown rice does the water ratio remain the same?
Yes!
Tried this last night for dinner and it was amazing! Thank you!
Thank you for letting me know! So glad you enjoyed this healthy dish!
I thought this dish was delicious – thank you for sharing! Question – could you make and freeze?
Hi Liz, Thank you for letting me know. Although I have not tried freezing, it should freeze well.
Made this recipe for dinner I forgot to put the peas and I didn’t have any potatoes but it still came out delicious! Lovely flavors really enjoyed!
Hi Laura, That is awesome! Yes, so you can def add or skip any veggies. You will still get the same flavors! Thank you for letting me know!
This was delish. My DH had seconds after saying he wasn’t too hungry. I added some garlic, didn’t have cabbage or cauliflower. I used red lentils, brown basmati and broccoli because that’s what I had available. I’ll be making this again for sure. Thanks for posting
Thank you Lorraine for your feedback! So glad you enjoyed this healthy and versatile dish. You can substitute any vegetables, lentils and rice, yet it comes out delish!
Going to make this one soon! Just wondering, have you ever used the frozen mixed vegetables in a pinch?
Hi Amie! Yes, frozen vegetables work well in this recipe. Let me know how you like it!
6 cups water sounds like a lot. Does it come out like stew?
Hi Ravinathan, Yes this is a soft khichdi.
Hi Archana, excited to try this amazing looking recipe. Quick question, I dont have instant pot so no rice setting. I have an electric pressure cooker though so can set minutes and high, medium and low. Do you have any thoughts on how long I would cook this and for how long? Thank YOU! x
Hi Rachelle! I do not have an electric pressure cooker but I would cook on Low/medium setting for 12 mins to start with. You can always add more time if needed. Let me know how you like this!
Hi Archana
Thank you so much for that. I will give it a try and let you know!
All the best..
Rachelle
Looking forward to hearing from you Rachelle!
This is delicious. I am on Weight Watchers Simply Filling program and with a couple of simple changes(canola oil for ghee and brown rice for white), it is perfect. Looking forward to trying more of your recipes. Thanks for the simple, clear instructions.
Hi Suzanne, So glad to hear that you modified my Khichdi recipe for your Weight Watchers diet. Great idea to use brown rice. Quinoa will work well for this recipe too.
Thank you for this recipe! Do you think I would have to change the time if I want to use all mung beans?
Hi Angela! It will be same timing. I love mung daal in khichdi, it will come out delicious!! Let me know how you like it
How long does the NPR for this recipe take? I gave up at twenty-one minutes and forced it, and it’s steaming and steaming and steaming.
Hi! It has a lot of water and so the khichdi comes out moist and soft. So 20-25 mins sounds about right. I hope it came out good.
Hi! If i’m making this for my kids do you think i need to reduce the chilli powder? or with the given quantity is it pretty mild? Thanks!
Hi Sehr, This recipe calls for 2 tsp of mild red chili powder and the chichi come out as mild-medium spicy as there is also ginger and garlic in it. If you like you can start with 1 tsp of red chili powder. You can always add more later if needed. Hope this helps?
What does NPR and IP mean?
Hi! NPR – Natural Pressure Release, where you let the pressure release naturally after the cooking cycle in the instant pot is completed. And IP = Instant Pot!
Thanks! If using yellow mung dal, do you recommend soaking the lentils before putting in IP?
No need to soak the yellow mung daal. It cooks well in the Instant Pot for this recipe.
Made it today. Great recipe that brings me back to childhood! Thanks so much for sharing this with us.
Hi Kay! So happy that you made this! We make this recipe all the time. It is so comforting and brings back so many memories. Thank you for taking time for your feedback. Hope you will try some other Instant Pot recipes too!
My daughter (2.9 y.) loves this dish – daycare provider cooks it every day for daycare children. Now she is on vacation and I’ll try to reproduce using your receipt (daycare provider uses old fashion pressure cooker, and I have an instant pot) :).
Hi Elena, Thank you for your lovely comments. Makes me so happy when children enjoy my recipes. And yes so much easier to make this in Instant Pot. Let me know how you like it!
Hi Archana, I know the khichidi is supposed to be soft but mine turned out super watery…any ideas what might have gone wrong?
It thickens up as it cools down. What vegetables did you use? If there are more leafy veggies and cauliflower there will be extra water
If you use frozen vegetables instead, is the cook time still the same?
Hi Amy! Yes same cook time
How about using sona Masoori rice? How much water and how long to cook in rice mode?Thanks!
Hi Shwetha! Yes you can use soon masoori. I like this khichdi really soft so I sue the same water ratio with sona masoori too. If you like your khichdi dry, reduce the water by 1 to 2 cups.
Your recipes are very good and tasty can you make your site a little more Advanced so we can change the no of servings we need so adjusting the amounts of ingredients needed. I am sure you seen food websites that are able to do that like Yummly , All recipes etc etc.
TIA
Will work on it!
Hi Archana, do you soak the rice and lentils in advance?
Hi Protima, No soaking is needed. With Rice mode, it takes time to build pressure which also acts as soaking time.
I just love this meal so much. I was not raised with it but when I tasted this khichdi for the first time I felt the comfort described, it was surreal. Thank you!!
Awesome! Thank you for your lovely feedback and I am so happy you love this khichdi as much as we do.
2 Questions: If you (or any followers) have tried this recipe with brown rice- how did it turn out? Also, how would I go about freezing this (6 servings is a lot for just my husband and I)?
It tastes amazing with brown rice. You will have to increase the cook time to 22 mins within natural pressure release. I have not tried freezing this but should work.
Hi Archana! I love your recipes, they are always a sure thing!!! If I try this recipe with just organic green lentils and almost no veggies, is the water and cook time the same?
Hi Vanessa! Thank you for your kind words. Yes, same cook time and water.
I used the basmati rice. The end result is a bit too mushy for me. Like porridge. I will try again with less water. Very bland may have to tweak the flavor. I like the variety of vegetables.
Thank you! Yes this is not a very spicy dish, I would suggest you add a teaspoon of garam masala. Also reduce the water to 4 cups for dry khichdi.
We enjoyed this recipe! Came together quickly with the veggies I had in the fridge, as promised. I used 4 c of water for the drier version, since I thought that was what my family would prefer. Going into winter rotation – so nourishing and comforting. Thanks!
Thank you for the feedback. So glad you are adding this to your winter rotation
This recipe was absolutely delish! I added different veggies, and it still tasted great. I loved the mix of dals. I used brown rice, added bay leaf, cinnamon, garlic and green chillis, and a pinch of red chili powder. The recipe would’ve been just as delicious as stated in the instructions. Thank you! I’m going to check out your other recipes now.
Thank you for the feedback. So glad you enjoyed it. You can really change up a lot of ingredients in this recipe and it will still come out delish.
This turned out great! one of my first Instant Pot attempts. Tasted just as good if not better reheated today and i have plenty more. Tried it with mung and this weekend will try masoor. Thanks so much!!
Awesome! Thanks for the feedback
My Pakistani spouse took some convincing, because of course his mama never added vegetables. Now we make this all the time with whatever vegetables we have on hand! We also love your veggie biryani recipe – we can’t believe how consistently great it turns out in the instant pot! We usually double the spices.
Yay!! I am so glad both of you are enjoying the instant pot recipes ❤️
I adore this recipe. The flavors are wonderful, it’s so easy, and you can switch up the vegetables as you like. This is now a staple for me, especially if I’m not feeling well or I overindulged on restaurant food. I make a pot and have it for dinner, and eat it exclusively for a few days. I think it tastes even better the next day. It freezes well too.
Thanks!
Thank you for the lovely feedback. So glad to hear you are enjoying this easy versatile recipe.
Hi- Thanks very much for this. Its my first time making it and not sure it came out right. The rice is mushy- is that how its supposed to be? The thing i ran into when selecting “Rice” on my Instant Pot is that the automatic setting showed “Low Pressure”. I couldn’t find anything on this anywhere, so I just left it. Figured others would comment if it was wrong. So I am not sure if the fact that it was low pressure contributed to the mushy. Or if that’s correct. Another thing is the natural release. I didn’t monitor it since it goes to warming anyhow, so it was there for 40 minutes. I don’t know if that would contribute to the mushy. Thanks for any suggestions.
Hi Elizabeth, Thank you for trying and your detailed feedback. So this khichdi is supposed to have mushy almost stew-like texture. The rice and lentils will cook cuper soft. Also you can always do natural pressure release after 10 minutes but if not it can totally stay at keep warm mode until you are ready to open. If you like non-mushy rice, you may want to check out the vegetable biryani instead – https://ministryofcurry.com/vegetable-paneer-biryani-instant-pot/
Thanks for your reply. I love biryani! I will certainly try that. The kitchari tastes good anyhow. I am eating it as part of an Ayurvedic cleanse. I think mine may be a bit too mushy. When I put the remaining batch in the refrigerator, it became difficult to differentiate. Its like a paste. I can scoop out balls, as if i were serving ice cream. Is this how mushy it is supposed to be? I may play with the water a bit, if not. I only want to be sure I am doing it correctly. Like I said, the taste is not an issue and it is surprisingly filling! I am not on a diet, only a cleanse, but i can sure see how this would be a great meal for dieting. Thanks again.
Depending on the variety of rice it could have different texture. Next time you can quick release after 5 mins of natural pressure release and also reduce the water by 1 cup