Made for each other – Lauki and Chana

This post was waiting to be written for the last few days and not the least because I am hosting MLAA-34. As a host, it would be rude of me not to cook a legume based dish. Yet, every time I sat down to write, some distraction would occupy me before I had to call it a night. Yesterday, it was this rant of Sandeepa over at Bong Mom's Cookbook. She took the words out of my mouth when she questioned why women swoon over a husband who does simple chores around the house and call the woman he is married to lucky.

As one of those “lucky woman” I can tell you, my better half does do a lot around the house, from making the weekly vegetable stock, to making the daily morning tea, unloading the dishwasher and cooking the  occasional risotto. But he does the chores around the house for the same reasons I do the rest of the drudge work and duties of a chauffeur, teacher and entertainer for our five year old. It is a marriage and a partnership where everyone pitches in to the best of their abilities.

As a gesture of appreciation for all that I do around the house, he tries to keep the work stations clean and dishes to a minimum when he cooks. I, on the other hand, cook his favorite vegetables, as and when it suits my fancy. Like lauki (bottle gourd) cooked with chana dal, which incidentally is also my favorite way of eating this bland vegetable. I like my chana to have a bite to it but since he likes his mushy, I make a concession for him and pressure cook the concoction to his liking. I do draw the line at his mom’s bhakri which is a thick tortilla made with stiff dough of whole wheat flour mixed with turmeric, red chili powder and plenty of oil. It takes a lot of muscle to roll out those delicious rounds of dough and after one try, I decided I did not care much for making them.

Lauki, dudhi, bottlegourd.

Capture by: Manisha of Indianfoodrocks

The lauki chana dal sabzi, on the other hand, is quick, almost fool proof and is a “made-for-each-other-combo”. At least that is what I wrote when Manisha put up her photo of lauki dal on Facebook and my comment got an instant ‘like’ for it. So Susan, here is, hopefully, the first of my at least two submissions to your brilliant event.

Lauki Chana Dal

Ingredients:
4 cups of lauki , peeled and cut into bite size chunks
1/4 cup chana dal, soaked in water for at least 2-3 hours
1 small tomato, cut into chunks
1/2 vegetable stock or water

For tadka or tempering:
1 tsp cumin seeds
1/2 tsp asafetida
4-5 cloves of garlic, minced fine
1 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp red chili powder
1 tsp dhana-jeera (cumin coriander) powder
1 tsp garam masala or sabzi masala
Pinch of sugar
Salt to taste

Method:
Heat 1/2 tbsp of oil in a 3 or 4ltr pressure cooker. Add the cumin seeds, asafetida and minced garlic. Turn down the heat so the garlic cooks and softens but does not burn. Add the turmeric; stir it till the raw smell turns fragrant.
Drain the water from the chana dal and toss it in the garlic, cumin, and turmeric infused oil. Add a dash of salt, stir, and let cook for two minutes. Add the red chili powder, dhana-jeera and garam masal. Stir and add the chopped tomatoes. Cover and cook on medium heat till the tomatoes get mushy.

Cross section of dudhi/ lauki/ bottlegourd.
Courtesy: Indianfoodrocks

Add the chopped lauki, salt to taste, mix everything gently. Add the vegetable stock and bring everything to a gentle boil. Put on the lid and pressure cook for one whistle.
Wait for the pressure to subside, transfer the dal lauki to a serving bowl, garnish with coriander and serve with rotis.

Note: The spice proportions are what work for me. However, lauki being a bland vegetable as well of varying sizes, feel free to add more of the red chili or garam masala if you like it spicier. The above proportions are for the big lauki I had, which yielded four cups chopped.

If, for some reason, you do not own a pressure cooker, cook the lauki and chana dal in a lidded pot. Cook till the chana dal is tender and the lauki is cooked through.

A reader of mine in India once wrote to me that she found my baingan bharta bland because she followed the exact spice proportion in the recipe. I will reiterate what I told her, “Taste buds in our family are somewhat dulled from living in the US. Always go with your normal proportion and gut when adding spices and/or heat to any recipe on this blog, unless stated otherwise.” So, go ahead, don’t hesitate before adding that extra pinch of garam masala.

One pot Masoor-toor dal (lentil soup)

If you are a dal/ sambhar purist click away from this post.
If you soak your lentils everyday and cook it in the big 5 ltr pressure cooker with rice in the bottom pan, click away.
If you chop your tomatoes, veggies and cook them in a separate pan before adding the cooked lentils to it, click away.

If you want to cook your lentils in 30 minutes and eat them too, stay and read on.

I grew up watching my mom soak the toor dal and rice every morning in the cooker inserts. The whistle of the five liter cooker meant it was eight in the morning. As a teenager, it was my job to set the cooker and then the whistle didn’t always go off at eight.

Flash forward a decade and some years: I was in a new country with a three liter cooker, no inserts and a husband who insisted I cook the food for the whole week over the weekend. That didn’t sit too well with me but as a compromise I would cook about 3 cups of lentils and keep it in the fridge for the week. I never got used to the gelatinous layer that forms on top of the cooked, refrigerated dal but I learnt to live with it.

Last year, I watched fascinated as a friend chopped some tomatoes, cooked them in her small cooker, added the soaked toor dal and turned on the lid. Lo and behold, the dal was ready in 30 minutes, steaming hot and ready to go from the cooker to the table.

It revolutionized my whole approach to making dal. Since that fateful day, I have made toor, masoor, moong (spilt and whole) and a combination of these in the cooker and the result has never disappointed me.

Ingredients:
1/4 cup masoor
1/4 cup toor dal
2 medium tomatoes, chopped

A pinch of sugar
Cilantro for garnishing

For Tadka:
1/2 tsp asafetida powder
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp turmeric powder
1/2 tsp red chili powder
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
3-4 curry leaves, optional
1 green chili, chopped
1 tsp sambhar/ garam masal powder


Method:
Wash the two dals together in plenty of water and soak them in some water.

Heat the small pressure cooker and add half a tablespoon of oil. On medium heat add the asafetida, turmeric and the mustard seeds. As the mustard begins to pop, add the cumin, green chili, curry leaves and red chili powder.

Let the spices cook for half a minute, taking care not to burn them.

Add the tomatoes, sugar and sambhar powder. Cover and let cook till the tomatoes are mushy.

Add the soaked dals with the water, adjust salt and water, cover and cook on medium heat for three whistles.

Once the cooker cools down, open the lid and whisk the dal to a smooth consistency. Add more water if needed. Transfer to a serving bowl and garnish with chopped cilantro.

Serve with rotis/ rice.

This of course goes off to MLLA 24 hosted by A little bit of Spain in Iowa.

Rustic three lentils vegetable soup

I am a creature of habit when it comes to ordering food at tried and tested restaurants. So when I stumbled into Corner Bakery the other day I surprised myself by ordering their three lentils vegetable soup instead of my regular roasted red tomato soup.
In retrospect, I am inclined to believe my decision was a result of half a day of fasting for my annual physical and having finished the last of my big pot of gingered tomato carrot soup the previous day.

I was surprised to find that the three lentil soup was a happy combination of lentils, carrots, spinach and corn. It warmed up a famished girl on a cool, breezy day while catching up with her gal pal, Erin.
I am usually happy to leave the making of a restaurant soup to a restaurant but there was something about this soup that tickled my taste buds and made me want another bowl the very next day. Since I had no plans to drive 10 miles to the bakery and pay $3 for a bowl of soup, I decided to make my own.

I decided to start with split and whole red lentils (masoor) since they cook quickly. I added some solitary green lentils sitting in my pantry to complete the trio. Some onion, kale, carrots, corn, mushrooms and tomatoes later, I had my big pot of three lentils soup with vegetables.
A friend’s visiting Dutch in-laws tasted the soup and said it was a “meal soup” because it was so hearty and filling. This is a free for all soup, so feel free to add any veggies or greens of your choice. I have added spinach instead of kale on occasions as well as cooked garbanzo beans and it still tastes great.

I have also made it using just two lentils (split and whole masoor) and it still tastes great. Here’s my version of Corner Bakery’s Three Lentil Soup.
Ingredients:
1/3 cup split red lentils (masoor)
1/3 cup whole red lentils (masoor)
1/3 cup whole green lentils (optional)
1 big onion, chopped roughly
2-3 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 big tomato, chopped
1-2 carrots, peeled and diced small
½ cup of mushrooms, chopped (any kind)
1/2 bunch of spinach or 2-3 big leaves of kale, chopped fine
1/4 cup of corn kernels
2-4 cups of vegetable/ chicken broth
Salt and pepper to taste

Method:
Combine and wash all the lentils and keep aside.
In a big pot, heat some olive oil and sauté the chopped onions, carrots and garlic till the onions turn translucent.
Add the mushrooms and some salt. Sauté the mushrooms till they get soft, a few minutes, before adding the tomatoes. Cover and let them get mushy. Add the lentils, spinach, corn and broth.
Adjust the salt and pepper and bring to a rapid boil.
        
Lower the heat and simmer till the carrots are tender and the lentils, spinach and corn are cooked through, about 30 minutes. I like my soup thick so I keep simmering it at medium heat till the split lentils are first mushy and then completely disintegrate.

Note: Add water in the absence of broth.
This hearty, filling soup goes to MLLA 18, hosted by Srivalli and the brainchild of Susan.

Moong dosa/ adai inspired by Holy Cow

I have to admit that till I started reading Vaishali’s blog, Holy Cow, my conception of vegan was vague. Not so any more. Eating a vegetarian Indian diet gets you as close to being a vegan as possible with the exception of daiy, fat and meat. Nevertheless, I try to check up Vaishali’s recipes as fast as she posts them. Trying them out at the same speed is another matter. In the past I have made her baghare baingan and loved them. This is saying a lot from someone not fond of baingan (eggplant).

Her moong dal dosa were another hit in my home. Soaking time two hours, no fermentation and a little grinding later the batter is ready. All you have to do is roll a ladleful on the skillet and your breakfast, lunch or snack is ready. These are not only easy to make and full of nutrition and protein but addictive as well. Ever since I read the recipe three weeks ago, I have been tweaking it and trying it out every few days. What I have not done is stop eating them.

So here’s my version of Vaishali’s moong dosa:

Ingredients:

1/2 cup moong dal (I used whole but split can be substituted)

1/2 cup ponni rice (Vaishali recommends any medium grain rice)
1/4 cup chana dal (optional)
2-4 green chilies
2-4 cloves of garlic
1 inch piece of ginger
1/2 bunch of coriander

Method:
Wash and soak both the dals and the rice together. Soak in about a cup and a half of water for two to three hours.

In a blender, grind the soaked ingredients with the chilies, garlic, ginger, coriander and cumin to a smooth consistency. Add salt to taste and keep aside in the refrigerator till ready to use. If the batter is too thick, add a little water to the batter.

When ready to use, heat a non-stick or a cast iron skillet on medium heat. With a smooth concentric motion of the hand, spread a ladleful of batter in a thin circle on the skillet. For a demo on how to spread dosa batter, check out this link.
Add a few drops of oil on the dosa. Unlike regular dosa, this one does need only a few drops. If you add too much, the dosa will get oily. A few drops of oil is another plus of this dosa.

When the dosa starts lifting from the edges, in a minute or two, flip it with a spatula and cook the other side. Fold it in half and serve with chutney of your choice.

Sra of When My Soup Came Alive is hosting this month's MLLA -- 17, originally started by Susan of The Well Seasoned Cook. The moong dal dosa is getting shipped to the two lovely ladies on account of it being loaded with legumes.

Green beans and moong dhal sabzi

Serves 4 as a main dish and 6 as a side dish
In our marriage, T prefers sabjzis and I am happy to have bowls of dhal to eat with rotis or rice. He is not a fussy eater but it has taken a lot of prodding on his part for me to start eating more than the few veggies (read potatoes,, spinach, fenugreek, cauliflower and peas) I have eaten since childhood. When he ate this green beans sabzi at a friend’s house he asked me to get the recipe. Of course I had to tweak it a little by adding some split moong dal* and the result made us both happy.

Ingredients:
1/4 cup split moong dal
1 lbs frozen French cut green beans or 2 cups of fresh green beans, cleaned and chopped
1 tsp black mustard seeds (rai)
1 tsp cumin seeds (jeera)
1 tsp turmeric powder (haldi)
1 tsp asafetida powder (hing)
1 tsp red chili powder
1 tsp Everest sabzi masala
Salt to taste

Method:
Wash the moon dal three times and soak it in double the amount of water for half an hour. The dal should plump up a little. Discard the water and keep aside.
Heat a tablespoon of oil in a karahi and add mustard seeds. As they start to pop lower the heat and add cumin seeds, turmeric, asafetida and red chili. Roast it for a few seconds before adding the moong dal. The dal will start to plump up in the oil. Add some salt and roast for about five minutes before adding the green beans. Add the sabzi masala and salt. Mix the dal and beans together, cover with a lid and cook for 15 minutes before turning off the heat. Serve with rotis and curry.
*Note: The amount of moong dal can be cut in half or a few tablespoons if you prefer the beans over the dal.
I am sending this off to Susan's brainchild MLLA – 15 being hosted by Sia of Monsoon Spice and to Vikki’s Side dish with chappati event.

Read Pomegranate Soup and slurp red lentil soup

It is hard to believe Pomegranate Soup is Marsha Mehran’s first novel. It is not so hard to believe her love affair with food. It comes across through the novel’s heroine Marjan who cooks everything in her restaurant with the utmost care and attention. The oldest of the three sisters, she is thrust into the role of a parent and caretaker to Bahar and Layla at an early age. The novel moves deftly between Khomani revolution era Iran and the present day Irish village of Ballinacroagh (Ba-li-na-crow).

The sisters escape the increasingly volatile Iran with their lives and a few treasured possessions and manage to find a life in England for a few years before they have to flee Bahar’s dark past once more. They try to make a new life for themselves in the little Irish village by opening The Babylon Café that serves Persian fare. With its rich aromas of spices and herbs it attracts an eclectic mix of villagers, from the local priest to the town hairdresser and the church social ladies to teenagers and children who come to eat the elephant ears Marjan cooks every day.
The sisters quickly discover that all is not well when the town bully Thomas McGuire finds out that the Italian café he had coveted for years has been converted into the Babylon Café. He starts a campaign to run the sisters run out of business by every means possible and they find themselves fighting a different enemy altogether. This time around their weapons are the cherished recipes Marjan took with her as they fled Iran and their shield the few patrons who find their lives changed when they eat her delicious food.
Mehran cooks a sweat and spicy tale of the three sisters and the bond they share. They are not unlike a pomegranate with its seeds sticking together under a hard shell. But once the shell is broken, the sisters give up their sweetness for the world to enjoy.
For the recipe inspired by the book I wanted to make the elephant ears that Marjan makes every day by rolling out the dough, deep frying in oil and sprinkling with sugar. But since I am on calorie count I decided to go with the red lentil soup. Red lentils or split masoor dal do not take long to cook on the stove top. However, you can cook these in the pressure cooker. This is my shortcut recipe adapted from the book’s original recipe.
Red Lentil Soup (Masoor dal)
I am sending this click off to Jugalbandi's CLICK - ALLIUM.
Ingredients:
1 cup dry red lentils
1 medium onion, chopped
2 tomatoes, chopped
4-6 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tsp ground turmeric
4 tsp ground cumin
3 cups water / chicken or vegetable broth
Salt to taste
2 tsp ground black pepper

For garnish:
1 small onion, chopped in half moons
2 tsps olive oil

Method:
Wash the lentils thrice in water and keep aside.
In a pot heat a tablespoon of oil and fry the chopped onions, garlic, turmeric and cumin until soft and fragrant. Add the chopped tomatoes and cook till soft. Add the lentils, broth and water to the pot. Add salt and black pepper and bring the soup to a boil. Lower heat, cover and simmer for 20 minutes or till the lentils are cooked through.
Fry the onion for the garnish in olive oil until crisp but not blackened. Add as a garnish over individual bowls of soup.

I am sending this off to Susan’s MLLA – 14 and to Sireesha's Soup and Juice event.

Watching weight and a craving

Dal Methi (Lentils with fenugreek leaves)

As relaxing as my vacation in Atlanta was the side effect of uninterrupted reading and gorging on delicious cooked food was bound to result in my gaining two pounds in five days. As some of you know from my earlier post I had put on a few pounds while in India and had managed to shed, well, exactly two pounds before gaining them back. Now, I am up four pounds since I lost two pounds and up six before I went to India. Confused? Let me break it down.

Before India trip: 114 lbs
After India trip: 118 lbs
Lost in two months: 2 lbs
Gained in two month: 2 lbs
Before Atlanta trip: 118 lbs
After Atlanta trip: 120 lbs
Need to lose: 120 lbs – 114 lbs = 6 lbs
Now, I know six pounds may not seem like a lot to blog about but when you are 5ft1” and approaching 36 in a matter of weeks, the scales move slowly and the clothes either hang too lose or too tight for comfort.
It doesn’t help that I have stubbed my little pinky on my foot not once but three times in the last four weeks. That means no closed shoes or sneakers and no gym. Tushar has come to the rescue again and suggested I take up spinning instead of running on the treadmill. I will attempt it tomorrow and let you know how it goes.
This week’s Time magazine cover story is about how it is eating the right foods that help you lose weight and not high intensity exercise. In the event of my not being able to handle the spinning class, I will have to resort to watching what I eat. So, here are some of the rules I am going to try and stick to:

1. No sugar except my two cups of tea in the day.
2. No ice cream or chocolate.
3. No chips or store bought snacks of any kind.
4. Eat three wholesome meals – breakfast, lunch and dinner.
5. No snacking between meals except on dry, roasted nuts like almonds, pecans and raisins.
6. Try to include all or at least one of these -- daal(lentil) or beans, leafy and root vegetables, fiber (in the form of cereal and salads) and dairy in each meal.
7. Eat at least one fruit for dessert.

To that end I made methi daal yesterday not only because it covered clause 5 but also because I was craving the bitter taste of methi that I have come to love over the years. Also, I had two cubes left over from two months ago in the freezer and needed to finish them off before making my monthly run to the Indian grocery store.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup toor dal
1/2 cup masoor dal (split red lentils)
2 medium sized tomatoes, chopped
2 cubes of frozen methi leaves or a bunch of fresh methi leaves

For tadka:
2 garlic cloves, chopped fine (optional)
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp red chili powder
1 tsp garam masala (optional)
1 tsp asafetida powder

Method:
Combine and wash the daal under cold water two to three times. Soak in some water and keep it aside. Thaw the methi leaves in the microwave or wash and chop the fresh methi leaves.
Heat 1/2tbsp oil in the cooker and add the mustard seeds. As they pop, add the cumin, turmeric, asafetida, red chili powder and garam masala. Roast for a minute before adding the garlic cloves. Turn the heat on med low at this point or the garlic will burn quickly.
Add the tomatoes and let them soften before adding the methi leaves. Cook for a few minutes before adding the dal. Add salt and water before putting the lid on. Cook for two to three whistles before turning the gas off.
Note: I ate two rotis and some cucumber slices with the dal. For dessert I had a nectarine.

This delicious Dal Methi goes to My Legume Love Affair hosted by Susan of The Well Seasoned Cook.

Do the Matki dance (Moth/ Matki Usal)

A couple of days ago when I was soaking the moth/matki beans my three year old asked me, “What’s that?” When I told him he asked me wide eyed, “Matki dance?” I burst out laughing because the name does sound like a dance name. The name wasn’t enough to get him to try and eat the usal but I have always loved usal because my mom would make it so much fun to eat it. She would keep bowls of chopped onions, boiled mashed potatoes, yogurt and sev for garnish. My siblings and I were allowed to choose our own toppings and we usually went with everything. It was my mom’s way of turning a nutritious sprouts dish into a fun eating adventure. Sadly, those tactics don’t work on my savvy but picky son.

Sprouting the beans:

It usually takes one to two days to sprout these beans. So plan in advance. Soak the beans in a lot of water for 6-8 hours. The beans soak up a lot of water and double in size. Drain the remaining water and wash them to remove any dirt or grit. Tie them in a damp cotton fabric and leave them covered in a dark, warm place. I usually leave them in a cabinet under my stove. The beans will start sprouting by next day. The ingredients for the usal are very few and I usually cook everything in my 3ltr pressure cooker. These beans are easy to cook and you can always follow the same method in a pot. Just cook the beans till they are tender.

Ingredients:

1 cup sprouted moth/matki beans
1 onion, chopped fine
1 tomato, chopped
1 tbsp coconut powder
1/8 cup of peanuts, soaked in water (optional)
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp garam masala
1 tsp chilli powder
Salt to taste

Method:

Heat 1 tbsp of oil and add cumin seeds, turmeric and garam masala. Once the cumin starts to crackle add the onions and peanuts.
Let the onions turn translucent before adding the tomatoes and red chili powder. Cover and let cook for a few minutes.
Add the sprouted beans, cover the lid and cook till the beans are tender and cooked through.
Garnish with cilantro, chopped onions and sev or farsan of your choice.
This recipe goes to Susan's My Legume Love Affair hosted this month by Apu of Annarasa . The matki dance also goes to Spill the beans Sunday snack event hosted this month by Priya of Akshaypaatram .

Everyday dal

In Indian households dal and sabzi are accompanied by rotis (wheat tortillas). But yesterday I wasn’t in the mood to make rotis. Besides, my 3-year old likes his dal with a dosa and my 34-year old hubby doesn’t like dal but likes his dosa with aloo (potato) sabzi. Luckily, I had some store bought dosa batter in my fridge and I had already made dal in the morning. I only had to make aloo sabzi and dinner was ready to be served. The toor dal I use in this recipe is also called tuver dal or split pigeon peas. Here is the recipe which I make in my trusty 3-litre Hawkins Pressure Cooker.

Toor Dal

Ingredients:

½ cup toor dal
1 tomato, chopped
1 slit and chopped green chili or 1 tsp red chili powder
½ tsp garam masala powder or any other masala powder at home
½ tsp mustard seeds
½ tsp cumin seeds
½ tsp turmeric powder
½ tsp asafetida
A pinch of sugar or a small lump of jiggery
Salt to taste

Soak the toor dal in 2 cups of water for 3-5 hours.
Heat oil in the pressure cooker and add mustard seeds. Turn the heat to low when they start to crackle and pop.
Add the green chilli, cumin seeds, turmeric powder, asafetida and the garam masala. Roast for one minute till the raw spice smell is replaced by the fragrance of the spices.
Add the chopped tomato and cover the cooker with a lid for five minutes. Bring up the gas flame to medium. The tomatoes will soften and release their liquid.
Add the soaked toor dal and add salt. Stir, add one cup of water and cover the cooker lid.
Turn off the heat after 3 whistles. Let the cooker cool down before opening it and transferring to another vessel. If the dal is too thick, add some water and boil. Garnish with coriander before serving.
Now, the only reason I transfer the dal to another vessel is so I can rinse it out and boil the potatoes for the sabzi. But if you are not going to make the sabzi, keep the dal in the cooker till you are ready to serve.

Aloo sabzi recipe coming up in the next post.

Khichdi in a pot (spiced rice and lentils)

I have yet to know of an Indian household where khichdi is not cooked. It is not only easy to cook but nutritious and yummy. Because it is easy to digest khichdi is one of the first solid foods given to kids as well as to people recovering from fever or surgery. It is a staple in my house when I am too tired to cook or want something simple and filling. My DH, Tushar, likes to eat it with an egg omelet. My son and I eat it with a dollop of ghee and some milk. Of course, a majority of Indian households eat it with pappad and pickle.
In Tushar’s home it is always made with washed yellow moong dhal and I have grown to like the way it tastes. However, I grew up with the green moong dhal khichdi. Both taste good but there is a middle ground. In the Kroger store you can get Kohinoor brand basmati rice and lentil blend. It takes the guess work out of measuring rice and lentils separately. It also contains both kinds of lentils so you don’t have to worry about which kind to chose.

Ingredients:

½ cup rice
½ cup + 2 tbsp moong dhal
½ tsp mustard seeds
½ tsp asafetida
1 tsp red chili powder
1 tsp garam masala
Pinch of sugar
Salt to taste
2 cups of water

Wash the rice and lentils 2-3 times and soak with water to cover.
Heat a 3-ltr pressure cooker or a heavy bottom pan with a tight fitting lid.
Add ½ tbsp oil and when it heats up add the mustard seeds.
Once the mustard seeds crackle add asafetida and the soaked rice-lentile mix.
Stir to coat and add red chilli, garam masala, salt and sugar. Stir and over for two min while the mixture comes to a boil.
Add the 2 cups of water and put the lid on the cooker. Wait for two whistles before turning off the heat.
If you are using a heavy bottom pan, it will take about 20 min on medium flame for the khichdi to cook (make sure the lid is on). Just check in between to make sure the rice and lentils are not sticking to the bottom of the pan.
Khichdi is done when the lentils and rice are tender.

Note: You can add additional 1/2 water to the 2 cups of water to make the khichdi softer and runny.