Upma

Upma is an Indian dish made with fine semolina. It’s commonly eaten in a number of Indian states, but everyone has their own spin on it. The South Indian version has ginger, Maharashtrians add turmeric to it, and Oriya upma has a bunch of veggies. I didn’t like upma when I was younger, except when my grandmother cooked it.

My grandmother’s upma was famous in our entire family. Nobody could come close to how soft, but rich and crisp around the edges her upma was. One day, she told me what her secret. It was so easy, I never could have guessed it on my own. It was just boiling hot water and a generous amount of fat. Since then, my upma has turned out perfect every single time. This particular recipe is our favorite, and it is not authentic to any single cuisine in India. It’s just my own take on the upma I remember from my childhood.

Servings: 2, Prep time: 5 minutes, Cooling time: 15 minutes

Ingredients

• Fine semolina flour (suji/rava) 1 cup
• Boiling hot water 1.5 cups
• Whole green chili 1 medium
• Ginger .5 inch piece
• Salt as required
• Curry leaves (kadhi patta) 6-7 leaves
• Whole cashews 8 (optional)
• Yellow moong dal 2 tsp (optional)
• Clarified butter (Ghee) 4 tbsp
• Mustard seeds 1 tsp

Instructions

1. Finely chop the green chili. Peel and grate the ginger root.
2. Add 1 tsp ghee to a pan and allow to heat on medium heat
3. Add the cashews and moong dal to the hot ghee and sauté till light golden. Remove to a plate
4. Add the remaining ghee to the same pan and add mustard seeds once the ghee is hot
5. Once the seeds have spluttered, add the curry leaves, grated ginger and chili pieces. Sauté for 2-3 minutes
6. Add the semolina and sauté on low heat till lightly golden and fragrant. Make sure to stir continuously, or the semolina can burn
7. Add salt and mix properly. It is important to add salt at this point since it is difficult to mix it in after adding water
8. Slowly add the boiling water to the roasted semolina while stirring vigorously.
9. Cook till all the water has been absorbed. Cover, switch off the heat and let rest for 4-5 minutes.
10. Mix in the cashews and moong dal and serve hot!

Tips

• If you like yogurt, add it right before adding the water. It will give a nice tang to the upma
• Cashews and moong dal are optional, but provide a good crunch. In the picture added to this post, is did not add any and it tasted just as good!
• Any kind of fat can be used, preferably one with a high smoking point. I prefer using ghee since it gives a good nutty taste and I always have it on hand
• I finely chop the chili since we like a bit of spice, but large pieces can be added and removed before eating for a less spicy version
• This recipe needs to be made with constant attention. The semolina burns really quickly towards the end of roasting if we don’t pay attention. Additionally, constant stirring makes sure the water is easily and uniformly absorbed
• You can also add any veggies you want to the recipe, like carrots and peas. These should be added right before adding the semolina with a small pinch of salt. Cook them completely before adding the semolina.

This is a nice and easy breakfast recipe to have in your repertoire. It’s also very quick to make. We eat it at least once every two weeks! I hope you give this a try and let me know how it goes! 🙂