Dal Tadka Khichdi

Normally, Khichdis are cooked by mixing dal with rice grains and then putting them together on the flame. I use slightly different technique. Making khichdi my way is a lot simpler. Lets discuss the recipe:

Ingredients:

For Rice:
1 cup Basmati Rice
2 cups water
--> Wash the rice grains thoroughly. Boil the rice on medium flame with double quantity of water. Use Basmati rice specifically since its long grains add grace to your Khichdi. Once the rice is cooked properly, take it off the flame and keep aside.

For Dal:
2 tbsp Ghee
1 cup dal
1/2 Onion sliced
1/2 Tomato chopped
4-5 Cloves of garlic sliced( like flakes)
1 tsp Mustard seeds
1 tsp Cumin seeds
2 Dry red chilies
1 tbsp Red chili powder
1 tsp Turmeric powder
1 tbsp Garam Masala powder
1 tsp Kasoori methi powder
Salt
Water

For tempering(tadka):

2 tbsp Ghee
1 tsp Cumin seeds
2 Dry Red Chilies
6-7 Fresh curry leaves
1.5 tsp Ginger-Garlic paste

Preparation:

1. Boil the rice as instructed above.
2. Wash the dal properly and add 1.5 times water to it and boil the dal. 
3. Heat ghee in a wok.
4. After the ghee melts completely, add mustard seeds. When mustard seeds start crackling, add cumin seeds and red chilies.
5. Add the garlic flakes and sliced onion.
6. Saute the onion for a minute and add chopped tomato. Cover the wok with a lid and let the tomato cook nicely.
7. Add turmeric and red chili powder.
8. Then add the boiled dal to this mixture followed by garam masala.
9. Add 1 tsp Kasoori methi powder.
10. Add very little water. Remember, the quantity of water in dal should be less so that the dal is semi-thick. Add about 4-5 tbsp of water. I guess that should be enough.
11. Add salt, mix well and cover it for couple of minutes.
12. Once the dal is ready, add the boiled rice to dal mixture and mix well. Check if extra salt needs to be added.
13. If dal has excess water, heat the rice and dal mixture on low flame for some extra time so that the water evaporates leaving behind a perfect khichdi.
14. Now, for tempering, take ghee in a tadka-maker ( bowl sort of thing with a long handle used specially for tadkas).
15. After it melts, add 1 tsp cumin seeds followed by 2 red chilies.
16. Add 1 tsp ginger-garlic paste and ultimately, add curry leaves. 
17. Heat the tempering mixture nicely for 2 min and pour over the khichdi.
18. Serve hot with kadhi or papad or serve with chaas(buttermilk).

So if you have yesterdays dal-fry and boiled rice in the fridge and you are wondering what is to be done with it, follow these simple steps:

1. Heat ghee in a pan and add the dal-fry to it. Add some kasoori methi and mix well.

2. Add boiled rice to this dal mixture and let it cook for 2 min on medium flame.

3. Prepare tempering as suggested above and pour over the khichdi.

Nobody will ever realize that the yummy khichdi you made is a product of yesterday's leftovers! Normal dal and rice wont be in demand but the khichdi is always in!