Instant Sabudana (Sago) Khichdi
No overnight soak. Perfectly fluffy, non-sticky pearls in ten minutes of cooking — the Navratri fasting fix.
Too busy to soak overnight? This is the instant version — perfectly fluffy, non-sticky pearls with ten minutes of cooking, and no midnight bowl of water on the counter.
Whether you are fasting for Navratri or just want a fast, filling breakfast, the technique below is the whole game.
The technique · Barely cover, then coat
Rinse until the water runs clear, then soak in just enough water to barely cover the pearls — not a bowlful. Three to four hours and a pearl should smash between your fingers with no hard centre. Then toss it in crushed peanut powder before it goes near the pan: the peanut coats each pearl and is why the khichdi stays grainy instead of gluing together.
Method
-
{{ s.section }}
{{ s.n }}{{ s.title }}
{{ s.body }}
- {{ b }}
What goes wrong, and why
- Sticky, gluey khichdi. Too much soaking water, or the peanut coating was skipped.
- Hard centres. Under-soaked. Test one pearl between your fingers before you start.
- It broke into mush. Stirred too hard. Fold gently, twice at most, on a low flame.
- Bland. Rock salt, sugar and lemon all three — the sugar is not for sweetness, it is for balance.
Serve it with
Plain yogurt or a simple mint chutney, and more fresh coriander than looks sensible. A cup of chai alongside makes it breakfast.
Watch us make it
What a properly soaked pearl looks like is the one thing worth seeing.
More from the kitchen
Made it?
Tell us how it turned out
Every question we have ever been asked about this one came from someone's kitchen at 8pm. Ours is open.