Sabudana Khichdi (Maharashtrian Tapioca Pilaf) Recipe (2024)

I grew up eating Sabudana Khichadi every week and when I moved to the US i had to learn how to cook it. This recipe is more complicated than what my mother does but it’s simplicity is deceptive because it’s very easy to mess it up. Some tips: - Don’t over-soak the sabudana. - There’s no need to microwave it. We never had a microwave growing up and it’s not needed. - No need for a food processor either. You can just chop chilies and grate ginger. - Use ghee instead of oil. 1/2

This is one of our typical breakfast foods. One thing that makes it tastier is if you soak the pearls in yoghurt rather than just water. It imparts a nice tangy flavor in the final dish.

Did not expect to see Sabudanachi Khichadi recipe but, yayy! This is comfort food. For the microwaveless:You don’t need a microwave. The entire recipe can be made on the stovetop. 1. Soak sabudana2. Fry chilis and cumin. Add grated ginger3. Add potatoes4. Add sabudana. Mix everything together5. Cook until translucent and soft6. Add ground up dry roasted unsalted peanut6. Garnish w/cilantro& coconut

Thus is very tasty and easily made comfort food. A few suggestions however- The water to soak tapioca should be just enough to cover it in the bowl. This will be absorbed completely and no need to drain. The potatoes can easily be cooked in microwave. Cut the potatoes in half, place in microwave safe bowel with water. For 4 potatoes use 4 cups water. Cover and microwave for 7 minutes at full power(1100w) remove and let it cool before removing skin. You are done !

2/2 - No need to boil the potatoes. Just slice them thin enough that they fry in the ghee and cook when covered. - Add grated coconut on top with the cilantro. Sorry I can’t recommend alternatives to cilantro or peanuts. It would be heresy.

Actually Sabudana is not tapioca at all, it is sago pearls. Luckily, these can be substituted by (or for) tapioca pearls. I buy a good quality Sabudana that requires NO cooking at all and doesn’t clump. So I make the whole recipe but just stir in the pre-soaked Sabudana at the end. Also, I cut the potatoes small and fry them in the cumin/ginger/chilli so they are much tastier, and I don’t grind the peanuts, I just coarsely pound them in a mortar so they keep more solidity and add more crunch.

A more specific description/explanation of "medium tapioca pearls" would be helpful - at my grocery store, there are somewhat-bigger tapioca pearls next to the standard smaller ones used in pudding, both made by Reese. I also have larger ones I got from a Chinese grocery to make bubble tea. Would either of these work, or is there something different (in addition to size) about subadana?

Sabudana is made from sago pearls which look like tapioca pearls but are from another plant. One of my favorite breakfasts!I usually toast cumin seed in a pan with a lot of melted butter, turn the heat to medium, add and cook the diced boiled potatoes until slightly brown. Then add the roasted peanuts and soaked sago, stirring gently until the pearls are translucent - a few minutes. Add salt, lemon and cilantro to taste. Eat with dahi (yogurt). Either way, yum.

I'm thrilled to see this in the NYT - my Maharashtrian mom made this every other weekend growing up in California. Now as everyone gets more conscious of carb intake and prediabetes, she makes the same dish with quinoa instead of sabudana. It's different but it scratches the same itch!

All chilies originated in the tropical Americas. "Thai" or bird's-eye chilies have small fruit, and are typically bright red when mature. They're fruity and pretty hot, but much milder than the C. chinense family (e.g., habanero). Substitute whatever you have around: many Indians who make this dish have never heard of Thai chilies and couldn't locate Thailand on a map - they just use cayennes, the most widely grown variety in India.

Any tips for cooking the tapioca pearls for those of us who don’t have a microwave?

For a truly delightful experience, use ghee instead of oil! If you're in dire need of a crunchy contrast that is nut free, look for mini tapioca papad at the Indian store, and fry those up to serve alongside (or lightly crumbled on top.)

1) Every chilli has its distinctive flavour, so jalapenos will taste strange in this dish. Try to use Indian chillis in Indian food, or in a pinch Malaysian or Thai chillis. Some dishes taste better with red chillis, others with green. S.American or African chillis don’t go well in Indian food (nor olive oil) - the flavours don’t match.2) This dish absolutely needs coriander for taste, peanuts (or a crunchy item) for crunch. It needs soft sago vs crunchy nuts, and sweet vs salt, sour vs chilli.

One of my kids is allergic to all nuts - soy nuts, pumpkin seeds, or crunchy chickpeas would be good for crunch (many brands of the latter, like Saffron Road, has a nut cross-contamination warning, but Target's brand does not, the last time I checked).

I learned to make this after lots of epic fails but have finally reached a point where I can whip out a decent version consistently. The imp part is soaking the tapioca—overnight with just enough water to slightly cover the top; drain well before cooking. Peanuts can be roasted and kept handy in an airtight container. I start with cooking thinly sliced potato in ghee; add cumin and chilies tadka; add tapioca, salt and sugar and toss until translucent (3-5 min med heat). Add peanuts and cilantro.

Ok hear me out.First, definitely use ghee and plenty of it. This recipe is pretty tasty when it’s fresh. When it’s cold out of the fridge, notsomuch. I picked up a 3-pack of silicone baking mats from Costco. I trimmed one to fit my air fryer. Best decision ever. Now I can use it for things like toasting coconut and heating other tiny foods. And reheating this sabudana recipe. The pearls get crunchy and amazing. The spices spring back to life. It’s even better than when it’s fresh.

I think I needed to clue in on the term 'comfort food' being used regularly. I guess I just found it a bit unexciting. Assuming you manage the Thai chiles properly, I can totally see this as a go-to dish for small children or when you stomach is feeling a bit off. It did not work well as a main meal course without a vibrant/rich counterpoint.

I just made this dish and though it was amazingly tasty, the consistency of the tapioca was like glop. I used tapioca pearls from a Korean market. So next time I’ll definitely get the sabudana. I used a jalapeño, which tasty good but was very spicy. Hopefully I can find Thai chiles somewhere near me in Iowa next time I try it.

The microwave did not work for me: the tapioca became instantly mush in one minute. I threw it out and started over the next day. I used Asian topic pearls frommy pantry. It worked fine. I fried the tapioca pearls at the end after the rest of the mixture (potatoes, ginger, chilis, etc) was ready. I used ghee for cooking. I caramelized onions to add to it-- a tasty addition. I added unsweetened coconut to it and poured unsweetened yogurt over the top. With these changes, it was very tasty

I am confused with the terms. I thought sabudana is from the sago plant originally from southeast Asia and tapioca is from the cassava plant from Brazil. Can someone please clarify?

Pearl couscous can be substituted for Sabudana. Cook the couscous according to package directions, and use it in place of soaked sabudana. It cooks a lot faster, and tastes quite delicious. Nutritionally, couscous is a better alternative. Another variation is adding chopped onion to Step 5 above. Cook the onions until translucent and add a teaspoon turmeric powder. Adds a different flavor to the khichadi.

Now I understand the warning not to over soak. I thought it looked kind of dry so I added more water and soaked it for several hours. The whole thing has melted into a huge gooey mass in the microwave. It still tastes good, but it will be a hard sell for breakfast in the morning. I would recommend saving the nuts to sprinkle on top, I subbed cashews and they are getting soggy in the microwave. I will try again but stick to the soaking instructions.

I must’ve done something grievously wrong because this was inedible. I followed the recipe exactly. The raw-but-for-microwaving ginger and chilies were overwhelming, and I love hot food. I’m really disappointed.

So glad you included microwave instructions! So much better than the stovetop, so much faster and nearly foolproof.In fact I toasted the peanuts and cumin mixture in the microwave as well. Worked like a charm and fewer dirty dishes.

Love this recipe! It is the easiest recipe on the heart to make, no need for a microwave as a lot of other people said, glad this is in NYT but the easy versions in the comments are also great! I add roasted and crushed peanuts and they teast AMAZING in this dish!

This was surprisingly delicious. It's not particularly appetizing looking, but it takes great! I will be making this often.

I've been wanting to make this ever since Hrishi raved about it on the podcast and finally got all my ingredients. This is my kind of comfort food - I just have to NOT eat the whole thing in one go. I followed the recipe as closely as possible. Could not get the chilies so I added extra ginger. Thank you Samin for this recipe.

I followed a commentor's advice, but even so the tapioca all clumped together and might have ben too small. I'd be interested in trying it again to get it right, but I don't think the flavor is good enough to interest me.

After years of trying to get the pearls to not stick, I’ve got this method that I’ve been trying at home that works every single time. For the first two rinses of water, collect and pour that water in the garden. The third time should have just enough water to to be half inch above the pearls. Leave this to soak for 30minutes and you see no more water left. Drain this off in a colander and cover with muslin cloth overnight. Next day morning, make khichadi! Yum!

This is utterly delicious. Have no microwave, so just added a bit of water w the sabudana mixture (soaked 6 hrs) to the pan/pot. I’ve never had this before, but will make it on repeat going forward!