Sabudana khichidi

YYYYummmmm....... Sabudana Khichidi ( sago khichidi). Just the name is enough to make me feel hungry. When i was a kid i used to love the days when my friend used to keep upvas (fasting)... no no I am not heartless... but i used to love those days for one thing that her tiffin box used to have.... and that is this mamzing khichidi.



In maharashtra, Maharashtrian eat this special khichidi , milk and fruits alone on their fasting days...

Some facts about sago from wikipedia..:

Sago is a powdery starch made from the processed pith found inside the trunks of the Sago Palm Metroxylon sagu. The genus name Metroxylon is derived from Greek and means heartwood, while the species name sagu is from a local name for the food. Sago forms a major staple food for the lowland peoples of New Guinea and the Moluccas where it is often cooked and eaten as a form of pancake with fish.
Sago looks like tapioca and both are pearly grains of starch, but tapioca is made from the root of the cassava plant. They are similar but are not identical when used in recipes.

In India pearl sago (a form of sago) is called Sabudana, and is used in a variety of dishes including khichdi(not to be confused with the rice and lentils variety), wafers and puddings. The source of this sago is most likely Metroxylon rather than the cycad version.

Intersting isnt it??....so here we go with the tasty recipe...:)

We would need:

Sabudana/ Indian pearl sago - 1 1/2 cup soaked over night in warm water
Potatoes - 2 boiled and cubed
Green chillies - 2 slit lengthwise
Roasted peanuts - 1 cup ground coarsely
Jeera (cumin seeds) - 2 tsp
Ghee / oil - 1 tbsp
Sugar - 1/2 tsp
Salt to Taste



Method:
Soak the Sabudana overnight. The sabudana should be soaked in such a way that just a layer of water remains on top of it. Dont put EXCESS WATER. After around 2-3 hours all the water should get soaked in and the dana should be moist yet dry to touch. You want the dana to soak in all the water that you put in.... so just keep adding or sprinkling water into it in between, to make it more soft.

Now once the sabudana in ready.... put in the roasted peanuts into the dana and mix it well. Keep aside

Now in a big pan, take some ghee/ oil. Add in the cumin seeds/ jeera, green chillies and toast it well in the oil. Now add in the chopped potatoes and fry them... it it becomes light brown in colour. Next come the sabudana.... add it to the kadai and mixx well. Add the salt and sugar and cook it covered for 10 minutes. You can see the sabudana turns a bit transparent from it natural white colour. Now that the sign which say that the sabudana is cooked well... mix in well in medium flame.. till it becomes a khichidi of nice and transparent balls.





Garnish with fresh corander leaves.





Serve hot with sweetened yoghurt. Enjoy!!