For many people, it’s a nutritious dish fed to sick people to help them convalesce quicker. But on Wednesday, Food Processing Minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal announced that khichdi, a dish prepared using rice, pulses, cereals and spices, will be promoted as “Brand India food” at an event in Delhi on November 4 called World Food India, the Hindu reported.
Over 800 kilograms of khichdi will be cooked by celebrity chef Sanjeev Kapoor at the event in an attempt to create a world record and promote the dish. sing a “giant ‘kadhai’ of the capacity of 1,000 litres and 7 feet in diameter”,
“Nutritious multi-grain high-protein khichdi has been selected as Brand India food which symbolises India’s great culture of unity in diversity at its best,” Kaur told reporters. “Khichdi is the wonder staple food of India and is considered the healthiest prepared food in India.”
The three-day event, which starts on November 3, is being organised by the food processing ministry in association with the Confederation of Indian Industries. It will feature a variety of events aimed at getting international entities to invest in India’s growing food sector. But the khichdi announcement is what captured the imagination of social media users, especially after some reports suggested that khichdi would be named India’s national dish.
Here’s what some of them said.