Recipe

Ingredients

 2 cups thick poha/parched rice/flattened rice

½ tsp turmeric powder/haldi

½ tsp sugar

salt as required

veggies:

1 medium potato

1 small to medium carrrot

⅓ cup green peas, fresh or frozen

tempering and other ingredients:

2 tbsp oil

1 tsp mustard seeds/rai

1 tsp chana dal/split husked bengal gram

1 tsp urad dal/split husked black gram

10 to 12 cashews or 1 tbsp peanuts

1 red chili

1 or 2 green chilies, chopped

½ inch ginger/adrak, finely chopped

8 to 10 curry leaves/kadi patta

a pinch of asafoetida/hing

1 medium onion, finely chopped or ⅓ cup finely chopped onion

2 tbsp grated coconut (optional)

2 to 3 tbsp chopped coriander leaves

1 small lime or lemon for serving

Method::

prepping veggies:

  

1. you will need to steam veggies if you plan to add them. i used 1 potato, 1 carrot and some peas. once steamed, peel and chop the potato and carrot and keep aside. you can also cook the veggies directly with the tempering in the pan. you can even skip the veggies.

 

prepping poha:

 

  1. rinse 1 cup thick poha in water in a colander or strainer for a couple of times. the poha just need to get softened. so rinse gently.

  2. add ½ tsp turmeric powder, sugar and salt to the poha.

  3. mix gently. keep aside.

 

tempering and preparing poha upma:

 

  1. in a pan, heat 2 tbsp oil and add 1 tsp mustard seeds.

  2. when the mustard seeds crackle, add 1 tsp chana dal (optional), 1 tsp urad dal (optional) and 10 to 12 cashews. you can also add peanuts instead of cashews.

  3. stir and saute till both the dals and cashews turn golden.

  4. now add ⅓ cup finely chopped onion, 1 tsp finely chopped ginger, 1 tsp chopped green chilies, 1 dry red chili, 8 to 10 curry leaves and a pinch of asafoetida (optional).

  5. stir and saute till the onions turn translucent.

  6. add the veggies and stir very well.

  7.then add the poha. stir and mix gently. check the taste and add more salt or sugar if required.

  8. ensure that everything gets mixed evenly and cook on a low flame for 3 to 4 minutes. after mixing you can also cover the pan and allow the poha upma to steam for 3 to 4 minutes on a low flame.

  9. lastly add 2 to 3 tbsp chopped coriander leaves and mix gently. you can also add 2 to 3 tbsp grated coconut at this step. you can also drizzle some lime or lemon juice and mix. or serve the poha upma with lime slices.

10. serve poha upma hot or warm with lemon or lime slices or a lemon pickle.