This lovely dish is called kitchari - a blend of moong dal and basmati rice combined with the holy trinity of garlic, ginger and onion. In Ayurveda, this dish is often eaten for its ease of digestion and its detoxifying qualities, so it's a great dish if you feel like your tummy could do with a break and a little helping hand. The ginger, garlic and onion not only provide a delicious flavour, they also help to boost your immune system, and help to lower cholesterol and blood pressure. However, if you have trouble digesting onion and garlic, then just miss them out as the asafoetida will provide a hint of this flavour. This is the ultimate Indian comfort food which has the added benefit of being cleansing and nourishing; a great dish to make if you are feeling stressed or a little under the weather and also a great dish if you fancy doing a bit of a detox or cleanse (this can form part of a 3 day cleanse, eat this for your meals and drink plenty of fluids - make sure that you research a cleanse fully before undertaking to ensure that you take any necessary nutritional supplements). If you like dhal, then you'll love this, and the added benefit of using the moong dal (as opposed to any other type of bean or lentil) is that it's super easy to digest and doesn't produce any intestinal gas :-)
Makes 10 servings
Ingredients
1 tbsp ghee (or vegetable oil or coconut oil)
1 onion, finely chopped
1 inch ginger, grated
1 tsp garlic paste (2 or 3 garlic cloves, crushed)
240g wholegrain basmati
240g moong dal (yellow split lentil)
2 litres of cold water
1 vegetable stock cube
2-3 tsp sea salt
2 bay leaves
400g frozen peas
300g spinach
2 tbsp ghee (or vegetable oil or coconut oil)
1 inch ginger, grated
1 tsp garlic paste
1 heaped tsp ground coriander
1 heaped tsp ground cumin
1 tsp whole cumin seeds
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp asafoetida
1 tsp cayenne chilli pepper
Juice of 1-2 lemons
Large bunch of fresh coriander, roughly chopped (reserve a little for sprinkling over before serving)
Lemon wedges to serve
Directions
Heat 1 tbsp ghee in a large pan.
Add the chopped onion and fry gently for 5 minutes.
Add the grated ginger and garlic paste and fry over a gentle heat for 5 minutes more, stirring regularly (if you aren't using the onion and garlic, just fry the ginger gently for a couple of minutes).
Add the moong dal, rice, bay leaves, stock cube and water and bring to a slow boil.
Cook for 30 minutes, over a medium heat with the lid on until most of the water is absorbed (however, you don't want it to be dry, it should be like a thick soup), stirring every 5 minutes (check after 20 minutes and add more water if necessary).
Add the peas and spinach and cook for a further 5 minutes until the spinach has wilted and the peas are cooked through (again, add a little more water if desired, depending on how wet you want the final dish to be).
Season well with the salt and taste to check for seasoning, adding more if required.
Heat 2 tbsp ghee in a heavy based pan.
Add the cumin seeds and the mustard seeds and sauce until they pop gently.
Add the ginger, garlic and all of the other dry spices.
Saute, stirring regularly, for 1-2 minutes or until your kitchen is filled with a delicious spice aroma.
