Khichda - A bowl of comfort offered after the battle, famine and the storm.
Khichda (کھچڑا: Urdu) - is a variation of the dish Haleem, popular among Muslims of the Indian subcontinent. It is made up of meat, lentils and spices cooked together to a porridge like consistency. It is known to be a meat variant of Khichdi and near relative of Haleem. While I am writing this, my brain is racing and pounding with facts, history, remembrance and reminiscence. How do I connect the dots? Khichda, literal meaning would be ‘ atotal mess’ . Beautiful mess to be more precise. Native Urdu speakers might agree almost instantly while Non- Urdu speakers might scratch their head. Anything that’s messed up, we called it ‘Khichda’. Imagine someone’s cooking Biryani for the very first time and it turns out all sloppy. The response is - Iska toh Khichda bana diya. :D While Biryani is something that is easily available and known to people, khichda on the other hand is a treasure trove. Typically, it is cooked on the 10th day of Muharram(Ashura). The origin is traced back ...
