Upma is a traditional South Indian breakfast dish made from Sooji / Rava / Semolina. We make it vegan by adding various vegetables.
Rava is also known as Sooji in Hindi and cream of wheat in English.
Also popularly called as Semolina or Rava, Sooji is made from dried durum wheat. The colour of the Rava depends on the quality of wheat. Semolina is usually yellow in colour when made from Durum wheat and white in colour when made from softer wheat types. It is available all-year round.
Semolina is used in various forms in various cuisines. In northern and western India, Sooji / Rava is used to make Kheer, Halwa, Upma, Dhokla and is also added to Bhatura and Poori dough. Whereas in south India, Rava is used to make various breakfast recipes like Upma, Sooji Idli, Rava Dosa, Rava Uttapam, Rava Kesari, Khichadi and Pongal.
Upma is a regular breakfast item or an evening snacks item in any South Indian household. I being a South Indian grew up having it as one of the breakfast item since childhood. Mostly we prepare plain upma and once a month, we prepare vegetables upma. Making any kind of upma does not take much time and can be prepared in just 15-20 minutes.
We just loved the steaming hot upma served with some hot cup of Tea. Our favourite breakfast any day.
INGREDIENTS :
(1) 250 gms of Sooji / Rava / Semolina
(2) 2 small sized Onions, finely chopped
(3) 1 medium sized Tomato, finely chopped
(4) 1 small Capsicum, finely chopped
(5) Half cup of Carrot, finely chopped
(6) Half cup of Peas (Fresh or Frozen)
(7) 1 inch sized Ginger, finely chopped
(8) 2-4 green Chillies, minced
(9) 1 sprig of Curry Leaves, finely chopped
(10) 1 teaspoon of Mustard seeds / Rai
(11) 1 teaspoon of Chana dal (Skinless and Split Bengal Gram)
(12) Half teaspoon of Urad dal (Skinless and Split Black Gram)
(13) Half teaspoon of Cumin seeds / Jeera
(14) Half teaspoon of Turmeric powder / Haldi
(15) Salt as per taste required
(16) 3 teaspoons of Sugar (Optional)
(17) Clarified butter / Ghee for cooking. If ghee is not available, use cooking oil.
(18) Grated Coconut for garnish
(19) Cashews for garnish
(20) 2-3 teaspoons of Lemon juice
(21) Water for cooking
Course : Breakfast
Cuisine : Indian
Serves : 3 persons
Time : 30 minutes (includes preparation and cooking time)
PREPARATION :
(1) In a utensil heat about 1 litre of water. We will need hot water while preparing upma.
(2) Chop the veggies like Onions, Tomato, Capsicum, Carrot, green chillies, Ginger and Curry leaves and keep aside.
METHOD :
(1) Heat a pan or kadhai first on a low flame. Add 1 tablespoon of ghee into it and allow it to melt.
(2) Add 250 gms of Sooji to the melted ghee and mix well. Now begin to roast the Sooji in ghee and stir often while roasting the Sooji. Once, the Sooji is dry, crisp and fragrant, turn off the gas flame. Transfer the roasted Sooji in a bowl and keep it aside.
(3) Take 1 tablespoon of ghee in the same kadhai and allow it to melt. Now immediately add some cashews and roast it by stirring until they turn golden yellow in colour.
Once done, transfer them to a small bowl.
(4) Again heat the same kadhai on a low flame and in it take 2 tablespoon of ghee. Allow it to melt.
(5) Add 1 teaspoon of Mustard seeds / Rai to the warm ghee and allow them to crackle.
(6) Now add 1 teaspoon of Chana Dal (Skinless and Split Bengal Gram) and Half teaspoon of Cumin Seeds / Jeera and Half teaspoon of Urad Dal (Skinless and Split Black Gram). Fry till the Chana Dal and Urad Dal begins to change colour to light brown.
(7) Add finely chopped Curry leaves.
(8) Add finely chopped Onions and sauté till they turn golden brown in colour.
After mixing…
(9) Add minced green Chillies. Mix well.
(10) Add finely chopped Ginger. Stir and saute for a minute.
(11) Now, it is time to add rest of the vegetables one by one. Add chopped Capsicum, chopped Tomatoes, chopped Carrot and Peas. Mix well and saute for 3 minutes.
(12) Add required amount of Salt and 3 teaspoons of Sugar. Mix well.
(13) Add half teaspoon of Turmeric powder / Haldi. Mix well.
(14) Add roasted Sooji now and also add roasted Cashews. Mix well.
(15) Add 750 ml of hot water. For 1 cup of Sooji, we add 3 cups of water. The ratio is 1:3.
(16) Mix well and cover it for 2 minutes.
(17) Open the lid and mix well again.
After mixing,
Turn off the gas flame once the upma is dry and cooked. The Sooji upma is ready.
(18) Add 2-3 teaspoons of lemon juice and mix well.
(19) Sprinkle little grated Coconut and mix well again.
After mixing ….
You may garnish with chopped Coriander leaves if you like. As I did not have it, I garnished with grated coconut. It’s a traditional South Indian style to garnish with grated coconut.
(20) Transfer the Vegetables Upma in a serving bowl.
(21) Sprinkle some grated Coconut to garnish the Upma.
(22) Serve the Vegetables Upma in a serving plate.
(23) Serve the Vegetables Upma with a hot cup of tea.
