Bhuna khichuri recipe | How to make bhuna khichuri | Bhuna khichuri bangladesh

Bhuna khichuri recipe is an exemplary moong dal khichuri which is immensely popular in Bangladesh, West Bengal and few other parts of north east India. The texture of bhuna khichuri is completely different from other khichuri recipes. It is dry and grainy in texture exactly like pulao with extraordinary taste and flavour. In this preparation, gobindobhog chaal (Small grain rice) and shona moong dal (Split yellow lentils) are fried together and then cooked in hot water with some specific spices and fried onions. It always requires a side for a complete meal. It is mostly accompanied with egg curry, chicken curry, mutton kosha or paneer curry.

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Bhuna khichuri is a pure Bengali delicacy and it is also known as bhuni khichuri. Here both the words ‘Bhuna’ and ‘Bhuni’ means fried and ‘khichuri’ means a rice-lentil mishmash. For the dry and grainy texture like pulao, rice and lentil both are fried together thoroughly before cooking in water and hence its specifically called Bhuna khichuri or bhuni khichuri.

Bhuna khichuri recipe is prepared in myriad ways. Every house has their own composition and preferences in preparing any khichuri recipe. In many houses, bhuna khichuri is prepared with different types of lentils like masoor dal (red lentils) or chana dal (split chickpea) other than moong dal (yellow lentils).

In fact, bhuna khichuri can be prepared in both the ways, like vegetarian and non-vegetarian. Bhuna khichuri with mutton or chicken is an exclusive non-vegetarian khichuri recipe which is crazily popular among Bengalis, especially in Bangladesh.

In vegetarian category, it can be prepared in two different ways, one by using onion-garlic and another is a no onion no garlic recipe. Without onion garlic recipe for bhuni khichuri recipe aka niramish bhuna khichuri is mostly prepared in puja festivals like Durga Puja, Laxmi Puja, Saraswati puja etc. and is offered to the goddesses as Prasad.

Today, I am going to share the bhuna khichuri recipe using onion garlic which is regularly prepared in any Bengali house during gloomy or rainy days.

Bhuna khichri is a delectable and comforting meal which is loved by the people of all age groups. Bengalis have an eternal love with the any khichuri recipe which has retained the recipe with unparallel popularity from ages.

As a bong, I have grown up eating different varieties of khichuri recipe and every time it totally engages me with its irresistible taste, unbeatable flavour and amazing texture. I have thousands of good memories with the traditional Bengali food and whenever I talk about it, I always feel nostalgic.

To prepare bhuni khichuri recipe, you would need a little bit of arrangement and ample amount of time to cook the food. It is a pure Bengali delicacy and requires core Bengali ingredients, including the specific rice variety to get prepared. The best part of preparing moong daler khichuri is that you can prepare it in huge quantities investing equal amount of time and energy.

Honestly, bhuna khichuri is a tricky recipe and it should be prepared using proper techniques and measurement. If either of the one goes wrong, then the whole dish may collapse. The soggy bhuna khichuri never tastes the same as a perfectly cooked pulao, like dry and grainy bhuna khichuri. So, I must say the difficulty level of preparing this dish is moderate.

I have kept the khichuri recipe as simple as possible so that you don’t need to face much difficulties during the time of cooking it. I have cooked the khichuri in a pan aka kadai like traditional way. Many people use shortcut to prepare the bhuna khichuri in pressure cooker. But I must say the pressure cooker cooked bhuna khichuri will not give you the same texture and taste. I personally prefer the traditional way to prepare it for best result.

Bhuna khichuri recipe with step by step photos and instructions have been provided in the ‘Instructions’ section of the recipe. I have included all the tips and tricks to prepare perfect the Bengali khichuri. If you follow the steps precisely then you will get perfectly cooked and non-sticky pilaf-like bhuni khichdi. But before directly jumping into the recipe, let me share few interesting facts about the Bengali veg recipe.

• Always use Gobindobhog rice (an aromatic small grain rice) for the recipe. Don’t replace it with Basmati rice.
• Always take the rice and lentil in 2:1 proportion. I mean for 2 cups of rice, take 1 cup of lentil.
• Dry roast the moong dal separately for some time and then wash the dal. It gives better flavour to the khichuri. Don’t mix rice and dal together and wash them together before frying.
• Roasted moong dal always takes longer to get cooked than rice. So, soak the moong dal at least for an hour in boiling water before cooking.
• Don’t reduce the amount of oil or else the rice and lentil won’t get fried properly.
• Use any flavourless oil like vegetable oil, soya oil, olive oil or sunflower oil to cook the khichuri.
• Fry the rice and dal together thoroughly with the masala. The texture of the khichuri partially depends on this step. As much nicely you fry them, the khichuri will become perfect in texture.
• Always use hot water to cook the bhuna khichuri recipe.
• Add double amount of water for measured Rice-Lentil.
• Add the measured amount of water in one batch and allow it to cook. Don’t add water slowly in batches.
• Follow the timeline to cook the khichuri perfectly.
• Don’t skip ghee, garam masala, crispy onion fry at the end. These ingredients give incredible flavour to the bhuna khichuri.

Gobindo Bhog Chaal (Rice) is very famous in West Bengal. In Bengal, this rice is specially used in preparing Kheer and Pulao. It is very tiny grained aromatic white Rice. It is mostly cultivated in few districts of West Bengal.

To prepare the bhuna khichuri, first dry roast the sona moong dal (Split yellow lentils) for some time in medium flame and then soak it in boiling water for an hour. Drain the water and keep the sona moong dal aside. It will almost be double in size. This step helps the dal to get cooked quickly.

Then wash the gobindobhog rice (Small grain rice) and strain the water completely. Keep it aside for air drying.

Take a pan and add ½ cup of oil into it. Once the oil is hot, add onion slices and fry it over medium flame to prepare birista. Keep the crispy fried onion aside.

Add whole spices – cinnamon stick, cloves, cardamoms and bay leaves for tempering. Then add sliced onion into the pan and fry them for 4-5 minutes. Add ginger paste, garlic paste and cook it on medium low flame till the raw smell goes away. Add tomato chunks into the pan and close the lid. Cook it over medium low flame till mushy.

Add turmeric powder, red chilli powder, cumin powder, coriander powder and give a nice mix. Cook it in lowest flame for a minute.

Add the gobindobhog rice into the pan and fry it on medium high flame for 2-3 minutes. Then add the soaked moong dal into the pan and mix it well. Fry both the rice and dal over medium flame for 6-8 minutes until the rice becomes opaque and a sound comes during the time of stirring. Stir the mixture continuously. This step takes some time to get the rice and dal fried properly but you need to be patient at this point.

Add hot water into the pan. Add salt, sugar and give a gentle stir. Cover the pan and cook it over medium flame for 5-6 minutes till the rice becomes visible.

Add green chillies, garam masala powder and give a nice stir. Put the flame in lowest and cover the pan. Put a towel over the lid so that the steam does not come out of the pan. Cook it for 15 minutes.

Then take off the lid of the pan and give a gentle stir. Sprinkle birista (Crisy fried onion), chopped coriander leaves, ghee into the pan and again close the lid of the pan and reseal the pan with towel. Cook it for another 10 minutes in lowest flame. At this stage, you can also place the pan on a warm tawa and cook, instead of cooking directly over the hob. Switch off the flame and don’t disturb the pan for further 10 more minutes.

Then pour the bhuna khichdi into a large mixing bowl or else they may stick to each other in the hot pan.

Many bengali veg recipes have already been shared in my previous posts. You can check few of them like

Bhoger khichuri
Basanti pulao
Chanar dalna

..And Many more…

Measurement: 1 cup = 250 ml

• 2 cups Gobindobhog Chal (Small grain rice)
• 1 cup Sona Moong dal (Yellow Split lentils)
• 1 large Onion, thin sliced and separated for birista
• 1 large Onion, thin sliced
• 1 tablespoon Garlic paste
• ¾ tablespoon Ginger paste
• 1 Tomato, deseeded and diced
• 3-4 tablespoons Coriander leaves, chopped
• 4 green Chillies
• 1 Bay leaf (Tejpatta)
• 4 Cardamoms (Elaichi)
• 5 Cloves (Laung)
• 2 inches Cinnamon stick (Dalchini)
• 1 teaspoon Turmeric powder
• 1 teaspoon Chilli powder
• 1 teaspoon Cumin powder
• ½ teaspoon Coriander powder
• 1 teaspoon Garam Masala powder
• 1 tablespoon Sugar
• Salt to taste
• 1 tablespoon Ghee (Clarified Butter)
• ½ cup Oil for cooking
• 6 cups hot Water

1. First take a pan and let it become completely dry. Add the moong dal into the pan and dry roast it over medium flame for 3-4 minutes until the nutty aroma comes up from the dal.
2. Transfer the dal on a separate utensil and wash the dal once. Then soak the dal in boiled water and cover it. Let the dal soak for an hour and then drain the water. Keep the moong dal aside.
3. Wash the Gobindobhog chaal 3-4 times until the water gets clear. Then strain the excess water with a strainer and keep it aside to become air dry.
4. Put a pan on flame and allow it to become completely dry. Then add ½ cup oil into the pan and allow it to become hot.
5. Once the oil is hot, add thin sliced onion into the pan and fry it over medium flame till crispy golden brown. Then strain the excess oil and transfer the crispy fried onions (Birista) on a separate plate. Keep it aside.
6. Now in the same pan, add whole spices – cinnamon stick, cloves, cardamoms, bay leaves for tempering. Let the spices crackle.
7. Add sliced onion and fry it over medium flame for 4-5 minutes till soft and translucent.
8. Add garlic paste, ginger paste into the pan and give a nice mix. Cook it over medium flame for another couple of minutes until the raw smell goes away.
9. Add chopped tomatoes and give a nice mix. Close the lid and cook the masala in lowest flame for another 4-5 minutes until the tomatoes become mushy.
   Note: Addition of tomatoes make the masala moist and easy to cook.
10. Add 1 teaspoon turmeric powder, 1 teaspoon chilli powder, 1 teaspoon cumin powder, ½ teaspoon coriander powder and give a nice mix.
11. Add 1 tablespoon of water into the pan to cook the masala. Cook the masala over medium low flame until the moisture evaporates and the masala releases oil.
12. Add the gobindobhog rice (Step 3) into the pan and give a nice mix. Cook it over medium flame for 2-3 minutes.
13. Add the soaked moong dal (Step 2) into the pan and give a nice mix.
14. Fry both the rice and dal over medium flame for 6-8 minutes until the rice becomes opaque and a sound comes during the time of stirring. Stir the mixture continuously. This step takes some time to fry the dal-rice properly, but you need to be patient at this point.
15. Add hot water into the pan.
16. Add salt, sugar and give a gentle stir. Cover the pan and cook it over medium flame for 5-6 minutes till the rice becomes visible.
17. Add green chillies, garam masala powder and give a nice stir.
18. Put the flame in lowest and cover the pan. Put a towel over the lid so the steam does not come out of the pan. Cook it for 15 minutes.
19. Take off the lid of the pan and give a gentle stir. Sprinkle birista (Crisy fried onion), chopped coriander leaves, ghee into the pan.
20. Again, close the lid of the pan and seal the pan with towel. Cook it for another 10 minutes in lowest flame. For the perfect textured bhuna khichuri, timing is very important.
21. Switch off the flame and allow the pan to sit for further 15 more minutes. Don’t take off the lid or remove the towel during that time.
22. Take off the towel and lid of the pan after 15 minutes interval and give a gentle mix. Pour the bhuna khichuri into a separate large mixing bowl for fluffy texture, or else it may stick to each other sitting into the hot pan.

Serve the portions of Bhuna khichuri on serving plates. Serve hot or warm for the best taste. Pair up the authentic dish with dimer dalna, kosha mangsho or paneer curry and enjoy the eternal taste of Bengali food.

Bhuna khichuri recipe | How to make bhuna khichuri | Bhuna khichuri bangladesh

Serves: 4 Prep Time: 10 minutes (Excluding soaking time of dal) Cooking Time: 50 minutes 50 minutes

Nutrition facts: NA calories NA fat

Rating: 3.0/5

( 3 voted )

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Ingredients

Measurement: 1 cup = 250 ml

• 2 cups Gobindobhog Chal (Small grain rice)
• 1 cup Sona Moong dal (Yellow Split lentils)
• 1 large Onion, thin sliced and separated for birista
• 1 large Onion, thin sliced
• 1 tablespoon Garlic paste
• ¾ tablespoon Ginger paste
• 1 Tomato, deseeded and diced
• 3-4 tablespoons Coriander leaves, chopped
• 4 green Chillies
• 1 Bay leaf (Tejpatta)
• 4 Cardamoms (Elaichi)
• 5 Cloves (Laung)
• 2 inches Cinnamon stick (Dalchini)
• 1 teaspoon Turmeric powder
• 1 teaspoon Chilli powder
• 1 teaspoon Cumin powder
• ½ teaspoon Coriander powder
• 1 teaspoon Garam Masala powder
• 1 tablespoon Sugar
• Salt to taste
• 1 tablespoon Ghee (Clarified Butter)
• ½ cup Oil for cooking
• 6 cups hot Water

Instructions

1. First take a pan and let it become completely dry. Add the moong dal into the pan and dry roast it over medium flame for 3-4 minutes until the nutty aroma comes up from the dal.
2. Transfer the dal on a separate utensil and wash the dal once. Then soak the dal in boiled water and cover it. Let the dal soak for an hour and then drain the water. Keep the moong dal aside.
3. Wash the Gobindobhog chaal 3-4 times until the water gets clear. Then strain the excess water with a strainer and keep it aside to become air dry.
4. Put a pan on flame and allow it to become completely dry. Then add ½ cup oil into the pan and allow it to become hot.
5. Once the oil is hot, add thin sliced onion into the pan and fry it over medium flame till crispy golden brown. Then strain the excess oil and transfer the crispy fried onions (Birista) on a separate plate. Keep it aside.
6. Now in the same pan, add whole spices - cinnamon stick, cloves, cardamoms, bay leaves for tempering. Let the spices crackle.
7. Add sliced onion and fry it over medium flame for 4-5 minutes till soft and translucent.
8. Add garlic paste, ginger paste into the pan and give a nice mix. Cook it over medium flame for another couple of minutes until the raw smell goes away.
9. Add chopped tomatoes and give a nice mix. Close the lid and cook the masala in lowest flame for another 4-5 minutes until the tomatoes become mushy.

Note: Addition of tomatoes make the masala moist and easy to cook.

10. Add 1 teaspoon turmeric powder, 1 teaspoon chilli powder, 1 teaspoon cumin powder, ½ teaspoon coriander powder and give a nice mix.
11. Add 1 tablespoon of water into the pan to cook the masala. Cook the masala over medium low flame until the moisture evaporates and the masala releases oil.
12. Add the gobidobhog rice (Step 3) into the pan and give a nice mix. Cook it over medium flame for 2-3 minutes.
13. Add the soaked moong dal (Step 2) into the pan and give a nice mix.
14. Fry both the rice and dal over medium flame for 6-8 minutes until the rice becomes opaque and a sound comes during the time of stirring. Stir the mixture continuously. This step takes some time to fry the dal-rice properly, but you need to be patient at this point.
15. Add hot water into the pan.
16. Add salt, sugar and give a gentle stir. Cover the pan and cook it over medium flame for 5-6 minutes till the rice becomes visible.
17. Add green chillies, garam masala powder and give a nice stir.
18. Put the flame in lowest and cover the pan. Put a towel over the lid so the steam does not come out of the pan. Cook it for 15 minutes.
19. Take off the lid of the pan and give a gentle stir. Sprinkle birista (Crisy fried onion), chopped coriander leaves, ghee into the pan.
20. Again, close the lid of the pan and seal the pan with towel. Cook it for another 10 minutes in lowest flame. For the perfect textured bhuna khichuri, timing is very important.
21. Switch off the flame and allow the pan to sit for further 15 more minutes. Don’t take off the lid or remove the towel during that time.
22. Take off the towel and lid of the pan after 15 minutes interval and give a gentle mix. Pour the bhuna khichuri into a separate large mixing bowl for fluffy texture, or else it may stick to each other sitting into the hot pan.