Sabudana Khichdi (Tapioca pearls with peanuts and potatoes)

Sabudana Khichdi (literally meaning a ‘mishmash’) is a very popular breakfast dish, especially in Maharashtra. Growing up in Mumbai, one sees and consumes this everywhere and even now this is a firm favourite in our household, especially on weekends when one has the opportunity for a more leisurely breakfast.

Sabudana or Tapioca pearls are a processed form of the Tapioca root, and are a common ingredient in Indian kitchens. Sabudana is an accepted food during most religious fasts (vrat) and so it is used extensively on such days to make a variety of foods from breakfast dishes, fried snacks and even desserts.

This recipe is by my wife. I am a huge fan of her cooking, and she makes this dish just the way I like it, with plenty of potatoes and peanuts. This particular version is not suitable for fasting or vrat meals as it contains onions, but if you need it for that purpose, then just leave out the onions.

Ingredients

• Sabudana (tapioca pearls) – 2 cups
• Red peanuts – 1/2 cup
• Medium onions, chopped – 2
• Medium tomatoes, chopped – 2
• Medium potatoes – 2
• Green chillies, chopped – 1 or 2 (to taste)
• Mustard seeds – 1 tsp
• Curry leaves – 7-8
• Sugar – 1 tsp
• Salt – to taste
• Oil, for cooking – 1 tbsp
• Coriander leaves – for garnish

Method

• Wash the sabudana in water and then place in a pan and cover it with water until the liquid is an inch above the level of the sabudana pearls. Ideally, leave it to soak overnight, otherwise minimum of 4 to 5 hours are required.
• Dry pan roast the red peanuts. These can be used whole. The dish is better if the peanuts are peeled and crushed, but that takes time and effort, so if you’re short of time use them whole.
• Add the oil to a pan and splutter the mustard seeds, curry leaves and the green chillies. Then add the onions and sauté until they are translucent and just turning golden.
• Then add the chopped tomatoes and cook further.
• While these are cooking, take the potatoes, cut them into small pieces. Par boil them by putting them in a covered dish in the microwave (with a little water) for 4 minutes (first cook them for 2 minutes then check, stir and microwave for another 2 minutes). The potatoes can be cooked directly in the pan, but prepping them in the microwave first saves time.
• Once the potatoes are done, add them to the pan, and mix them well into the masala.
• Check the seasoning at this time, you want it to be saltier than you like, as the sabudana is yet to come in and that will absorb a lot of the saltiness.
• The sabudana should have absorbed all the water used for soaking. Fluff it up with a fork to separate out the grains. Then add it to the pan and mix well into the masala.
• Cover the pan and let it cook for a further 5-7 minutes.
• Uncover, sprinkle 1 tsp of sugar and the peanuts and mix well.
• Garnish with coriander leaves and serve.

Tagged: fasting, peanuts, sabudana, sago, vrat