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Could sabudana khichdi be the next crossover favourite?
The dish has been making waves internationally ever since the American chef and writer Samin Nosrat — of Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat — tried it out at home and posted a recipe online.
If you didn’t approve of America turning our doodh-haldi into a turmeric latte, you’re not going to like what’s coming. In August, Samin Nosrat (whose bestseller Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat was also turned into a Netflix show in 2018) wrote an unusual column in The New York Times, gushing about having discovered sabudana khichdi.
Hrishikesh Hirway, her co-host on the made-in-quarantine podcast Home Cooking, had sent across his mother’s recipe. Nosrat, after a disastrous first attempt, watched several demo videos and eventually figured out how to soak and cook it just right. The result, she writes, “smelled so good I couldn’t wait to start eating, so I stood at the kitchen counter, spooning it into my mouth”. Her column offered a microwave-adapted recipe too.
Sabudana khichdi is helpfully described as a Maharashtrian Tapioca Pilaf. On the NYT’s cooking page, the dish is a runaway success. Among the 120 comments are helpful tips from Indian and Indian-origin readers about soaking times, ingredient substitutions and allergy warnings.
But there are also warm comments from those new to the preparation. User Simone says, “I’m Brazilian and I had no idea our sagu (what English speakers call tapioca pearls) had been incorporated into SE Asian dishes in such a different way.” Vicki, who couldn’t find sabudana at nearby Korean and Indian markets, simply used rice. “Otherwise, I followed the instructions. It tasted great! Thanks”. KS found the texture similar to Israeli couscous, “Also, a spoonful of coconut butter on top, while in no way authentic, really takes this dish to the next level. Highly recommend!!”
Brace yourself, it’s starting already.
