Tickling Palates: Rava Upma

This is a breakfast that could be completed in 15 minutes provided you have roasted rava in hand readily. Roasting the rava before storing it in a container is a practice that I got from my mother. She made it a point to roast it as it not only prevented small worms and bugs forming in it while stored because of its raw smell but also saved ample time during morning as she was also working. I too followed it when I started cooking on my own.

After cutting open the packet put the rava in a kadai and dry roast it till the raw smell disappears in a slow flame. This will prevent the rava from changing color and also from burning it by sticking to the kadai. Keep stirring it often. After it cools down completely you can store it in an air tight container. This way the rava could be stored for a long time.

What u need:

Rava / Sooji, roasted – 1 cup

Onion, big – 1

Green chillies – 2

Curry leaves – 1 sprig

Mustard seeds – ½ tsp

Bengal gram dal – ½ tsp

Oil – 3 tbsp

Salt to taste

Water – 2 ¼ cup

What to do:

Finely chop the onions and green chillies. In a kadai heat the oil and temper it with mustrd seeds and Bengal gram dal.

When the seed splutters put the onion, green chillies and curry leaves and sauté till the onion becomes pink. Now add the roasted rava and fry till the rava is well coated with the oil and fully mixed with onions. Add the salt and mix well.

Now pour the water and after mixing it well cover the kadai with a lid and cook in a slow flame for 5 minutes or till the all the water gets absorbed and the rava is soft and cooked.

If you do the upma in the above said way there wouldn’t be any problem of lumps forming while the upma is getting cooked. Earlier I used to pour the water first after sautéing the onions and then add the rava to the water.

I always had the problem of lumps forming when I did it that way till my MIL suggested I make upma this way. This goes to Express breakfasts hosted by Raaga.