Poha - Rice flakes upma

Poha - Rice flakes upma

by Hb ~ Monday, July 20, 2009

Good or bad, hostel food will always remain memorable. Staying out of home for the first time and that too really far away in Rajasthan(I still can't believe I lived there for four years!) was a great great experience. We were served hot jilebis or kesari bhath at breakfast. My mom couldn't really understand the concept of breakfast at my hostel when she came to drop me. She kept asking me 'Why do these people eat sweets early in the morning?'.I still remember the weekly breakfast menu. After a jolly sunday ends, monday would greet us with poha(which I used to quite not like then because of the monday mood associated with it). Now when I make, I think about how difficult it would have been to please 700-800 girls coming from different parts of India. For me this isn't just a breakfast dish, it is a reminiscence of my college days.
There are numerous variations of Poha from what i have seen on Television and read on Web. The poha I made is soft rice flakes tossed with mild spices and combination of vegetables.

Preparation time - 10-12 minutes
Serves - 2

Ingredients:
Rice flakes - 1 Cup(adjust)
Potato - 1 big(boiled)
Tomato - 2(chopped)
Onion - 2(chopped)
Green chillies - 2
Turmeric powder - 1 pinch
Oil - 1 tb spoon
Salt - 1 tea spoon(adjust)
Coriander - for garnishing
Chilli powder - 1/2 tea spoon(optional)
Roasted peanuts - 2tb spoons

Procedure:
1. Soak rice flakes in water for 3-4 minutes after washing. Squeeze out the excess water and set aside.(They should have turned soft by now)
2. In the meanwhile, heat oil in a wok. Fry the onions and green chillies for 3 minutes.
3. Add the chopped tomatoes,diced potatoes and turmeric powder. Saute till tomatoes lose the rawness but retain their shape.
4. Now add salt and rice flakes and combine. Sprinkle some water and let it cook for 3-4 minutes. Add coriander,roasted peanuts and serve.

Note:
1.I heard some people add sugar to poha. I haven't tried that version.
2. I used brown rice flakes as you can see from the texture.
3. Since I made the hostel version there is no tadka/popu/tempering.
This dish is super easy to prepare and needs basic ingredients. We love to eat it as it is.