Spicy Oats Khichdi

Name: Spicy Oats Khichdi
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 40 min
Ingredients: 1/4 cup ghee or oil; 1/2 cup oats (steel cut, rolled or instant oats); 3/4 cup yellow lentils (moong dal - soaked in water for 10 minutes); 2 whole tomatoes (chopped into cubes); 1 tablespoon garlic ginger paste; 1 teaspoon turmeric (haldi); 2 teaspoon salt (or to taste); 2 teaspoon cumin seeds (zeera); 1 teaspoon red chili powder; 1 teaspoon crushed red chili flakes; 3 whole serrano green chilies (sliced); 4 cup water; Lemon Juice; 1 cup brown fried onions; cilantro leaves; butter

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Spicy Oats Khichdi is here to feed your palate and your soul. Indulge in this spicy porridge, which will quickly become your go-to guilt-free comfort food. Made with yellow lentils and oats, these spicy masala oats have the power to be the most versatile dish in your weight loss arsenal. Make it soupy or thick like porridge or Haleem; you control how the dish turns out.

Ok, full confession, I need to trick my brain into eating better. I make the tangy lentil oats sometimes, or the delicious bottle gourd curry (lauki ki bhujia) on my vegetarian days of the week. Keeps my nutrition in check with zero compromise on flavor or deliciousness.

These oats khichdi or masala oats are my go-to on days I need to eat mindfully. Made with simple Pakistani/Indian spices, they are such a perfect base to add toppings to and make into a whole meal, like you do with poke bowls (More on this later)

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Ingredients
Instructions
Variations and Toppings
Expert Tips
Frequently Asked Questions
More Vegetarian Recipes:
Spicy Oats Khichdi

Ingredients

Here are a couple of pointers and notes about the ingredients.

Oats – There is no restriction as to what kind of oats you use in this recipe. Steel cut, rolled, or quick. Use any oats you have at hand.
Lentils – I make this recipe with yellow lentils, but feel free to experiment and use others that you like. Masoor dal or red lentils also work!
Tomato – I use fresh tomatoes, but tomato puree or canned tomatoes work for this recipe just as well.
Chilies – This oats khichdi uses three kinds of chilies: whole (green), crushed, and powder (red). It doesn’t pack as much heat as you think it would, so I won’t term this recipe as too spicy.
Ghee – Ghee or butter gives it more than oil would, but you are welcome to use any option you like: Ghee, butter, or oil.
Fried onions – Brown fried onions are used as a garnish here. Simply brown fry 1 to 2 onions in oil and remove them, and set aside. You can also buy pre-fried onions from any Asian grocery store or fry onions at home.
Other Garnish – Lemon juice, some ghee, and cilantro. Lemon juice really adds that kick to this recipe. You can also do add-ons like chilli oil or chat masala (optional)

See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities

Instructions

I’ve put together all the steps in a simple pictorial for you to see how easy this is to make.

green chilies and cumin seeds in oil in a pot.

Step 1: Fry cumin seeds and green chilies in ghee/oil in a deep pan at medium heat.

Step 2: Add tomato, garlic ginger paste, and spices.

khichdi base ready with tomatoes and spices tempered and semi cooked.

Step 3: Add a splash of water and let the tomatoes cook until mushy when pressed with the back of a spoon.

raw yellow lentils and whole oats added to pot.

Step 4: Add oats and yellow lentils.

Step 5: Add water and allow it to come to a boil.

Step 6: Cover with a lid and let it cook for 40 to 50 minutes at medium low heat.

Step 7: Stir occasionally at 10-minute intervals.

Step 8: At the 40-minute mark, check the thickness of the khichdi. Cook longer if you want a thicker version, or turn off the heat and let it sit for 10 minutes before serving.

spicy oats khichdi served in bowl garnished with cilantro and fried onions.

Garnish with crispy fried onions, lemon juice, a dollop of ghee or butter and cilantro. Serve hot!

Variations and Toppings

The beauty of this oats khichdi is that it is the ideal base to create customized pokebowl-style Mains. You can create so many different versions with just the same recipe. For added nutrition, you can also try adding chicken broth or stock instead of water to cook the khichdi.

khichdi topped with multiple toppings like cilantro, achaar, onions, red chilies and shredded chicken.

Here are a couple of topping ideas for you to try:

Leftover chicken, shredded or fried.
Any other sauteed protein, like lamb chunks or beef.
Achaar or pickles
Pickled or fresh sliced onions.
More green or red Thai chilies
Sautéed vegetables like carrots or peas.
Fried crisps like pappad, chips, or tortillas.
Masalas like chaat masala, dahi bara masala, or paprika.
Sauces like Harissa or Schezuan Sauce would go beautifully with this recipe.

Like I said, make it your own, bruh! The topping possibilities are endless. Personally, I use this as a fridge clean-up opportunity. IYKYK.

Expert Tips

Use a heavy-bottom pot or pan to avoid your khichdi from burning.
Always allow the Khichdi to cool down for at least 10 minutes before serving to allow it to thicken on its own.
For a more haleem-like consistency, use a Haleem Ghotni (Wooden Hand Masher) from time to time when the Khichdi is cooking. (Haleem is a meat and lentil South Asian porridge)
Add raw chicken while frying the cumin seeds to create a more Haleem-like Khichdi.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long can the Oats Khichdi last in the fridge?

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Can I freeze the khichdi?

Yes! Allow the khichdi to cool down. Do not add the garnishes. Transfer the cool khichdi into a ziplock bag or an airtight container and freeze. To thaw, put the khichdi block into a saucepan with 1/2 cup of water and heat it up.

Is Oats Khichdi good for weight loss?

Weight loss is personal and different for different people. This recipe is great if you are trying to go on a deficit and still feel full and satiated. You can also add shredded chicken or beef to add protein to this recipe.

Can I make this Oats khichdi without the dal/lentils?

Oats Khichdi without dal is simply masala oats. You can absolutely do that, but increase the oats quantity to compensate for the dal, as the spices will become too overpowering otherwise.

More Vegetarian Recipes:

Looking for other vegetarian recipes? Try these:

Do you have any questions? I’m happy to help! And of course, If you try this recipe, I’d loveeeee to see it or simply hear about it! Hit me up in the comment section below and I’ll get back to asap! Happy Cooking!