Red Lentil & Amaranth Kichari
Hi I’m Evangeline! Welcome to my blog. I am mom and lover of all things health and wellness. By profession- a Registered Massage Therapist and Yoga & Ayurveda consultant. I started this blog back in the early days of Covid19 as a way to stay in touch with my clients, and it’s grown into a space to share what I love most. Here you’ll find health tips and nourishing recipes I make for my family, sprinkled with Ayurveda and Yoga wisdom. My hope is that these posts inspire you to care for yourself in small, joyful ways and feel a little more balanced in everyday life.
Kichari is a traditional Indian dish, naturally rich in nutrients. Made with lentils and grains, it’s a simple one-pot meal that can come together in as little as 20 minutes. With the wide variety of grains, “pseudo-grains”/seeds (such as quinoa, amaranth, and buckwheat), lentils, and spices available, there are countless ways to prepare kichari. What they all have in common is that kichari is a complete meal—providing protein, carbohydrates, and healthy fats. When kept simple and balanced with the right spices, it is gentle and easy on digestion. Explore my growing list of kichari recipes here.
Red Lentil & Amaranth Kichari
Serves 2-3 servings
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
INGREDIENTS
⅓ cup red lentil, soaked for 10 minutes and rinsed well
⅓ cup amaranth
2 tsp Digestive Spice mix
5 curry leaves
1 - 2 tsps ginger root, sliced thin
½ - 1 small Thai green chilli (optional)
2 ½ - 3 cups water
1 carrot
Handful of broccoli
Handful of zucchini, or lauki squash (opo)
Soma salt or natural salt to taste
INSTRUCTIONS
Soak lentils and grains for 10-15 minutes, and rinse well, until the water is clear. Set aside. While they are soaking, prep the spices and vegetables.
On medium-low heat, put the ghee or olive oil, digestive spice mix, curry leaves, ginger and chilli- if using in a medium size pot. Stir until aroma is released- about a minute.
Add well rinsed lentils and amaranth, and incorporate with all the spices.
Add water, and turn up to medium-high heat to a full boil.
Turn down heat to low and cover with a lid to cook for 20 minutes. Amaranth naturally soaks up a lot of water. open the lid half way through cooking, stir to the bottom of the pot, and add broccoli and zucchini, or lauki squash if using.
Stir in a bit more water towards the end cooking if you’d like it more soupy.
Add salt to taste.
Serve warm with a few squirts of fresh lime.
Enjoy!
Ayurvedic Profile of Spices
Ginger- anti-inflammatory, aids with digestion; heating quality- use dry ginger (sunthi) with high pitta dosha
Curry Leaves- cleans the liver
Thai Green Chili- heating quality, channel opening; contains more soma than thai red chili and not as fiery burning heat as red chili
Soma salt- also known as Soma Lavan, a rock salt; written in the Ayurvedic texts as the best salt “Queen of the salts”; a cooling salt beneficial for high pitta dosha
Digestive Spice Mix:
Fennel - aids in digestion balancing digestive agni; has a cooling quality
Coriander- ushers out toxins and heavy metals; cooling quality
Cumin - helps in absorption of nutrients
Turmeric- “friend to the liver”, cleans the liver, antioxidant, anti-viral, antibacterial, anti-inflammatory
Red Lentil & Amaranth Kichari with Ginger Root, Curry Leaves, Thai Green Chili, Digestive Spice mix, with Carrots, Broccoli and Lauki Squash Cooked in Ghee.
References
Vaidya R. K. Mishra- Notes from Shaka Vansiya Ayurveda Courses, Practicum, Conferences and Lectures 2003-2015
