Balancing Kitchari
Kitchari is a wonderful dish that has it’s roots in India. Kitchari means mixture and is a soup like dish with a combination of legumes and grains. It is easy to digest and nourishing making it a great recipe to cook when wanting to rebalance after a period of overindulging or wanted to ground ourselves.
Kitchari is commonly used in Ayurvedic medicine and is often used as a cleanse to help to reset your digestion and help to flush out toxins. It is a perfect winter dish but also one for all year round.
You can easily add variety to or alter a kitchari dish once you know the basics and it can become a consistent dish your weekly meal planning. The main ingredients being rice and mung beans. Mung beans are nutrients dense, full of antioxidants and fibre helping to fight off free radicals, balancing blood pressure and your digestive health.
Kitchari bowl
You will need
~ 4 cups of broth (you may need more liquid)
~ 3 tbsp of coconut oil or ghee
~ 2 tbsp of turmeric
~ 2 tbsp of cumin seeds (ground will also work)
~ 1 tbsp of fenugreek seeds
~ 1-2 inches of fresh ginger grated or chopped
~ 1 cup of rice (soaked for 4 hours min)
~ 2 cups of mung beans (soaked for
~ 3 garlic cloves
~ Pinch of sea salt
Optional
~ Split yellow mung or other lentils (can be used in addition or to replace mung beans) I would suggest using the lighter coloured lentils which are easiest to digest.
~ Kombu seaweed or seaweed sprinkles of your choice.
~ Sweet root vegetables such as sweet potato's, carrots etc
~ Dark leafy veg such as kale, spinach, bitter greens
~ Sesame seeds
~ Onion
~ Coriander to garnish
~ Spice options - fennel, ground coriander, ground ginger, cinnamon,
Method
~ Pre soak the rice and mung beans prior to using. If using dried mung beans I soak mine over night. This helps to soften them but also remove any properties such as physic acids they hold that stop our bodies from being able digest them.
~ Heat the oil over a medium heat then add all the dried spices you are using .
~ Add the onion if using then the fresh spices.
~ After a few minutes add the stock and bring to a boil.
~ Reduce to a simmer, add the rice and mung beans.
~ Followed after 10 minutes with the veg.
~ Add the coriander and sesame seeds as a garnish.