Kitchari Recipe
Kitchari is a traditional Ayurvedic dish that is cleansing, nourishing and most importantly, delicious.
This staple meal of Ayurveda is used as a pre-cleansing treatment to Panchakarma (Clinical Cleansing Therapies). Today’s recipe takes this traditional dish and gives you options to liven it up for everyday eating. What is so amazing about Kitchari is how it balances every body type. Kitchari is both easy on the budget and simple enough for even the most inexperienced cook to whip up.
Makes 5-6 servings
Ingredients:
Spices:
1 tsp Coriander
1 tsp Pink Himalayan Salt
1/2 tsp Cumin
1/2 tsp Fennel
1/4 tsp Turmeric
1/2 tsp Black Pepper
Dressings: (Optional)
- Avocado
- Sesame Seeds
- Yeast Powder
- Apple Cider Vinegar
Everything Else:
2 tbsp Ghee
1/2 c Cilantro
1/2 Fennel Stalk, cut into small chunks
1c Rice ( Basmati Rice, Red Rice, Brown Rice, Quinoa or Barley)
1/2 c Sprouted Mung Beans ( See instructions)
4 c Water
2 c Broth ( Veggie or bone broth)
3 c assorted veggies ( Ex: Zucchini, Carrots, Broccoli, Purple Cabbage, Beet, Yam or Sweet Potato, Cauliflower, Celery, Bell Peppers… etc)
Instructions:
1) Sprout Mung Beans: Place beans in a bowl. Fill bowl with just enough water to cover mung beans. Leave covered for 24 hours until the beans sprout. You can also buy sprouted mung beans at some local grocery stores
2) Blend all of the spices together by using a mortar & pestal or by using a regular blender. Fresh spices are more potent than pre-blended spices.
3) Prep the veggies, fennel stalk and cilantro. Chop Cilantro finely and cut veggies/ fennel stalk into thick bite size pieces. Set to side.
4) Add Ghee to large pot. Heat over medium until it becomes liquid.
5) Add Spices. Gently stir spices to combine with Ghee. Use a wooden spoon.
Spices Photo ( explanation of spices
6) Once you begin to smell aroma of spices, add the cilantro. Gently stir cilantro for 30 seconds.
7) Add mung beans, rice & fennel stalk. Stir for 1 minute.
8) Add Water.
9) Bring to a boil for 5 minutes. Add veggies.
10) Add broth. Bring to a boil again for a few minutes..
11) Bring to a simmer. Set lid slightly ajar.
12) Let kitchari cook for 30-45 minutes, depending on the grain that you’ve chosen. Basmati rice cooks the quickest. You can choose to leave the Kitchari more soupy or less soupy, depending on what you fancy.
13) Serve in individual dishes with 1 tsp of plain ghee or with optional toppings.
Health Benefits
Coriander: Cools any burning sensations in the body. Soothes an irritated digestive system. Helps strengthen digestion. Clears flatulence and bloating.
Salt: Renowned for stimulating digestion and helping to retain fluids.
Cumin: Its Sanskrit name means ‘promoting digestion. Treats sluggish digestion. Helps the absorption of nutrients. Helps bloating and gurgling.
Fennel: Warms digestion, preventing congestion and stagnation in the center. Helps digestive discomfort, cramps, nausea, flatulence and weak digestion.
Turmeric: Helps reduce pathogenic bacteria and destroys toxins. Plays a preventative role in bowel cancer. Treats stomach ulcers. Enhances digestive abilities to nourish blood and plasma. Clears intestinal infections and mucous conditions.
Black Pepper: Warming, drying and stimulating to the circulatory, digestive and respiratory systems. Helps clear low appetite, sluggish digestion, abdominal pain and toxins.
Mung Beans: High source of nutrients ( manganese, potassium, magnesium, folate, copper, zinc, B vitamins), high in protein and dietary fiber. Mung beans are very filling.
Red Rice: Superior grain. Loaded with fiber, which supplies energy. Good source of antioxidants, which minimizes risks of cardiovascular diseases. Good source of calcium and magnesium, which helps in bone strength.
Cilantro: A cooling herb, which aids digestion, prevents gas, burns toxins away.
Fennel Stalk: Stimulates appetite. Detoxifying.
Ghee: Clarified butter. Suitable for individuals with lactose and casein sensitivities as those are boiled and removed from the ghee. Nourishing to all tissues. Ghee is a digestive oil, meaning it stimulates digestive enzymes and helps you better metabolize food.