Welcome to BSME2E
Then add 1 teaspoon sugar. Sugar is optional and you can skip it. We prefer a slight sweet taste in the upma and hence we add it.
Stir again. On a medium to high flame, heat the water and let it come to a rolling boiling.20When the water comes to a rolling boil, lower the flame to its lowest. Then add the rava in 4 to 5 batches with a spoon.
Once you add the first batch of rava, stir and mix immediately so that the roasted rava gets mixed evenly with the water.
Then add the next batch of rava. Mix and stir again very well ensuring that the batch of rava is mixed evenly in water.
Continue to add and stir the rava up to the last batch.
Quickly stir and mix very well. The rava grains will absorb water, swell and get cooked.Cover and allow the rava upma to steam for 2 to 3 minutes on a low heat.
Then switch off the heat. In the below photo, the rava is cooked well and the suji ka upma is ready.Lastly add about 2 tablespoons chopped coriander leaves (cilantro). You can add more coriander leaves if you like.upma garnished with cilantro and a lemon wedge served in a dark green blue rimmed plate on a dark blue wooden board Table of Contents What is Upma How to make Upma Recipe (Stepwise Photos) Expert Tips FAQs Recipe Card What is Upma Upma is a flavorful South Indian breakfast dish made from rava or cream of wheat. This traditional dish involves cooking roasted rava in water that has been flavored by ghee (or oil), cashews, urad dal (lentils), chana dal (husked chickpeas), onion, ginger and additional herbs and spices. Sugar can be added for a mildly sweet and savory dish. This steaming hot breakfast dish can be made vegan by using oil instead of ghee. Full of warmth, flavor and deliciousness, this upma tastes so good. So why not take a break from that boring oatmeal and try something new? You can’t lose! The main ingredient in any upma recipe is rava. Also called ‘suji’ or ‘sooji‘ in Hindi and ‘cream of wheat’ or ‘semolina’ in English, it is simply granulated wheat. Thus this breakfast food is known as Suji ka Upma in North India. What really makes an upma recipe special are all the fried ingredients that are used for tempering. These ingredients can vary depending on the recipe, but usually include some sweet, savory and nutty flavors. Upma is a traditional breakfast served in restaurants throughout South India, including Maharashtra. It is also a common breakfast prepared in South Indian homes. In fact, upma was a regular breakfast or evening snack in my house while growing up. upma garnished with cilantro and a lemon wedge served in a dark green blue rimmed plate on a dark blue wooden board Prep Tip to Make Upma Recipe Quicker This warm, homemade breakfast can be made relatively quickly, especially with this one easy tip. In the step-by-step photo guide below, you will see the first few steps of roasting the rava (cream of wheat). This can easily be done ahead of time and I actually recommend roasting your rava and keeping it in an air-tight container right after purchase. This will help it stay good longer and prevent it from becoming moldy or spoiled. Having your rava already roasted means this hot breakfast of upma recipe can be prepared in only 15 to 20 minutes. Roasted rava can also be used in a variety of other recipes, including Rava Cheela and Rava Pongal. Step-by-Step Guide How to make Upma Recipe Prep and Roast Rava 1. Prep the ingredients first to make upma recipe. Take 1 cup rava (fine variety) and set it aside. Next gather the aromatics, lentils, nuts, spices and herbs ready. You will need: ⅓ cup finely chopped onions 1 teaspoon chopped green chillies 1 teaspoon finely chopped ginger 2 tablespoons coriander leaves (cilantro) 8 to 10 curry leaves 10 to 12 cashews 1 teaspoon chana dal (hulled and split bengal gram) 1 teaspoon urad dal (hulled and split black gram) ingredients prepped for upma recipe 2. Heat a pan or kadai first. Add 1 cup rava or cream of wheat (fine variety). rava added to a frying pan 3. Begin to roast the rava. Stir often while roasting the rava. roasting rava for upma recipe 4. The rava or sooji grains should become fragrant and start to look dry, separate and crisp. Don’t brown the rava. rava roasted well 5. Once the rava becomes fragrant and starts to look dry and crisp, switch off the flame and put the roasted rava on a plate and set aside. roasted rava set aside in a plate to make upma recipe Fry and Sauté 6. In a pan, heat 2 tablespoons ghee (clarified butter) or oil. You could use sunflower oil or peanut oil or safflower oil or any neutral tasting oil. heating ghee in a frying pan 7. Lower the heat. Add 1 teaspoon mustard seeds. When you hear the crackling sound of mustard seeds, it means they are getting fried. mustard seeds added 8. Now add the ½ teaspoon cumin seeds along with 1 teaspoon chana dal (husked and split bengal gram) and 1 teaspoon urad dal (husked and split black gram). cumin seeds and lentils added 9. Stirring often fry until the chana dal and urad dal begin to brown a bit. frying lentils to make upma recipe 10. Immediately add 10 to 12 cashews and begin to fry on a low to medium-low heat. cashews added 11. By the time the cashews get golden the dals should also be golden. cashews fried till golden for making upma recipe 12. Now add the finely chopped onions. finely chopped onions added 13. Sauté the onions until they soften and become translucent on a low to medium-low heat. onions have softened 14. Then add the chopped green chillies, ginger and curry leaves. You can also add 1 dried red chilli at this step. ginger, green chillies and curry leaves added 15. Mix well & sauté for a few seconds. mixing and sautéing for a few seconds Boil Water 16. Then add 2.5 cups water to this mixture. water added 17. Add salt as required. Mix well and check the taste of water. It should be a bit salty but not too much. In case if the salt becomes less in the dish, you can always sprinkle some salt from the top when eating. salt being added 18. Then add 1 teaspoon sugar. Sugar is optional and you can skip it. We prefer a slight sweet taste in the upma and hence we add it. sugar being added 19. Stir again. On a medium to high flame, heat the water and let it come to a rolling boiling. water has come to a rolling boil Make Rava Upma 20. When the water comes to a rolling boil, lower the flame to its lowest. Then add the rava in 4 to 5 batches with a spoon. adding rava with a spoon to make upma recipe 21. Once you add the first batch of rava, stir and mix immediately so that the roasted rava gets mixed evenly with the water. mixing rava with a spatula 22. Then add the next batch of rava. Mix and stir again very well ensuring that the batch of rava is mixed evenly in water. second batch of rava added 23. Continue to add and stir the rava up to the last batch. last batch being of rava being added 24. Quickly stir and mix very well. The rava grains will absorb water, swell and get cooked. mixing everything very well 25. Cover and allow the rava upma to steam for 2 to 3 minutes on a low heat. pan covered with glass lid for steaming the upma 26. Then switch off the heat. In the below photo, the rava is cooked well and the suji ka upma is ready. upma done and cooked well 27. Lastly add about 2 tablespoons chopped coriander leaves (cilantro). You can add more coriander leaves if you like. coriander leaves added on rava upma 28. Mix again. coriander leaves mixed with upma 30. Serve upma hot or warm with slices of lemon or a side of lemon pickle or coconut chutney. You can opt to drizzle half to one teaspoon of ghee while serving. If you like you can garnish with some coriander leaves.
