Healing Kitchari Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What does kitchari do for the body? ›

According to Ayurveda, kitchari is known to help you reset your body's “agni” or metabolic fire and the body's wellness is centered in your digestive health. A kitchari reset offers many benefits, like improved digestion, increased energy levels, increased mental clarity and a sense of overall balance.

This is a very gentle cleanse, as cleanses go, so you will most likely not find yourself experiencing discomfort. Having said that, you could still experience physical or emotional ups and downs, headaches, body aches, fatigue, irritability. These are all normal, make sure you sleep & hydrate loads.

While being nourishing, healing and tasty, kitchari is an amazing salve for a sick or wounded body. It decreases inflammation, promotes healing in the digestive tract, reduces gas, acts as a natural detox, facilitates weight loss and soothes the mind.

Kitchari means “mixture” and the dish is known for containing two main ingredients: rice and lentils (often moong dal). And it commonly includes spices such as turmeric, ginger, and more. In Ayurvedic medicine, kitchari is known for aiding detoxification and balancing the three doshas.

While kitchari is a nutritious meal, you don't have to commit to several days of a specific cleanse to reap the benefits. Mirchandani says you can incorporate the recipe into your diet once a week or just start cooking more with the immune-boosting spices like mustard seed and cumin.

You may keep eating kitchari for a few days, even after the cleanse is over, but you can begin to add other foods to your eating plan. Doing this will help make sure you don't upset your digestive system or return to old habits too quickly, potentially reversing the effects of the cleanse.

Lose weight while you eat Kapha Rreducing Kitchari. This dish can be an effective way to reduce weight and cleanse the body. Not only will these delicious spices improve the flavor of your food, they are also digestive herbs that support healthy digestion, assimilation and elimination.

Drink hot water with ginger, cumin, cinnamon, coriander, and cardamom. Drink any tea of your choice or triphala tea for further cleansing. Practice meditation and yoga. Massage your body with warm sesame oil.

Caution: A kitchari mono-diet can lead to constipation if taken exclusively for several days, as it is low in fiber.

In general, you can eat enough kitchari to feel satiated but not to the point of exploding (my grandfather always used to say, eat until you can still fit in half a burger into your stomach, you get the point!).

How long can you do a kitchari cleanse? ›

To do the kitchari cleanse, enjoy a warm bowl of kitchari for two to three meals a day for three to 21 days. If it's your first time, I recommend just starting with two meals a day (lunch and dinner) for a weekend and having warm tea and fruit or oatmeal for breakfast.

This variation of the kitchari recipe is ideal for a pitta imbalance or constitution. Pitta needs cooling and soothing. The spices and ingredients in this recipe help with acid reflux and heartburn, excessive heat, inflammation, eczema and is a cleanse for the liver and colon.

Kedgeree evolved from a well-known Indian dish called kitchari or khichdi, a mixture of rice and lentils flavored with toasted spices. During colonial rule the British adapted kitchari using some of their own familiar ingredients, including smoked fish, eggs, and cream.

During cleansing, a time of already compromised digestion, the husk can irritate the intestinal wall and cause digestive gas or abdominal pain. Remember, kitchari is still used today in India as baby food—a food that is super easy to digest.

In 2017, Indian media unofficially designated it as the "national dish", as it is being globally promoted by the government of India as "queen of all foods". The report that the government may designate khichri as India's "national dish" brought significant ridicule from the opposition politicians.

Consuming kitchari two times a day is recommended during a cleanse. Ayurveda suggests eating your largest meal around noon, when the sun is highest in the sky and your digestive fire (agni) is strongest.

Lose weight while you eat Kapha Rreducing Kitchari. This dish can be an effective way to reduce weight and cleanse the body. Not only will these delicious spices improve the flavor of your food, they are also digestive herbs that support healthy digestion, assimilation and elimination.

Eating a mono-diet of kitchari one day each week will provide a much-needed break for the often overtaxed digestive fire, flushing out toxins, and removing congestion and blockages from the vital channels of your body.