Indian Recipe: Upma With Rice Noodles

I’m such a sucker for Indian food. Even though I live far away, its just not possible to go without those flavorful, spicy preparations for too long. Upma and Poha are among my favorite breakfast recipes. Although here in the US I’ve come up with some shortcuts 😉

Both recipes can be made really simple with no vegetables (excluding onions of course – those go in almost every Indian preparation and there’s an Ayurvedic principle behind that, but more about that later) or with a variety of vegetables. I prefer vegetables as they add their own sweetness and flavor to the dish.

One of the best things I discovered since moving here was a packet of frozen and chopped mixed vegetables: corn, green beans, peas and carrots. This one packet is a life-saver. I can’t imagine sitting all morning chopping these vegetables in perfect little cubes or shelling those peas. The packet’s contents can be universally used in a variety of Indian preparations: from rice biryani to mixed vegetable subzis to savory and filling breakfasts. These are commonplace and I’ve found different brands at Whole Foods as well as the local produce stores in the Frozen Foods sections.

So today’s recipe is a variation of a south Indian preparation called Upma, traditionally made with cream of wheat. I find it takes longer to make Upma with cream of wheat. It is also acid-forming (for me at least) causing acid reflux or heartburn. So when I found some brown rice glass noodles at Whole Foods, I knew exactly what I was going to do with them. Hmm. Chinese ingredients for Indian food. Our ancestors must cringe.

Ok without further ado, here’s the list of ingredients:

2 cups rice noodles

1 cup frozen vegetable mix

One small onion/scallion (depends on your taste)

5-6 curry leaves

1/4 tsp Cumin seeds

Mustard seeds

Turmeric

1 tbsp Cooking oil: I prefer Coconut or Sesame

Preparation:

Boil water and add noodles for about 5-7 minutes till soft.

Thaw the frozen vegetables. Just run them under warm running water for half a minute or so.

In a skillet, heat oil and add cumin and mustard seeds. When they start prancing around, add curry leaves, onions and turmeric. Fry the onions till they look transparent (scallions) or turn golden (red onions). Add the vegetables and sauté them for a minute or so. Add the cooked noodles and salt. Mix everything and ta-da!

That’s it you’re done. This delicious preparation takes 15 minutes from start to finish and is a great alternative to breakfasts but can also be filling enough to be a lunch or dinner meal.

What do you think?

Quick and Delicious: Upma With Rice Noodles

Breakfast With Fruits And Amaranth

I simply love rajgira ladoos so when a friend recently gave me some natural amaranth (aka rajgira in Maharashtra) I found myself just lapping it up directly from the packet! This morning, as I was enjoying my bowl of fresh fruits, decided to add some amaranth to it. This probably doesn’t qualify as a “recipe” but its a must-try, whatever it is 🙂

Fresh fruits chopped – pomegranate, papaya, apple, bananas

Dry fruits – pistachios, almonds, cashews

Raisins and dates

Amaranth grains

Mix all the ingredients and enjoy a wholesome nutritious breakfast that is guaranteed to perk you up!

Fresh fruits with amaranth and dry fruits. Yummy