Upma is the South Indian breakfast recipe typically made with Wheat Semolina or Sooji or Cream of Wheat. But when the family is trying out the gluten free diet for health reasons, you get innovative and develop new version of recipes for all the dishes you typically make at home. So here is the gluten free Upma, substituted with Idly Rava, which is toasted course Rice flour, used to make another popular breakfast dish- Idly.
INGREDIENTS
- 1.5 cup Idly Rava / Toasted Rice course flour
- 2 tbsp oil
- 2 twigs curry leaves/Karyapak
- 1 tsp mustard seeds
- 2 dried red chillies
- 1 tsp chana dal/split chickpea
- 1 tblsp urad dal/split black lentils
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 2 green chillies, finely chopped
- 2 tblsp cilantro, chopped
- 1/2 inch ginger, finely chopped
- 1 tblsp cashews
- 5 cups or more warm water
- 1 tsp salt or to taste
- 1 tsp ghee / clarified butter (optional)
- ½ tsp lemon juice (optional)
METHOD
-Set a kettle with water to warm.
-Separately, in a large flat pan warm the oil. When oil is hot, add mustard seeds, red chillies, curry leaves and both the yellow and white lentils .
-After the tadka/ seasoning/ bagar sizzles and mustard seeds splutter, add the chopped onion, green chillies, cilantro, ginger, and cashews.
-Now add in the Idly Rava/ Toasted, Coarse Rice flour and salt and sauté in oil along with the onions and seasonings till it’s roasted and soft.
-Slowly pour warm water from the kettle into the pan while stirring. The rice Idly rava is more course than the typical wheat semolina so make sure you add enough water to let it cook well.
-Keep the pan on a low flame setting and keep stirring continuously to avoid any lumps getting formed. Add any more water if required. Slow cook till water is absorbed and the upma is cooked.
-Drizzle a spoon of ghee and lemon juice before serving. But it’s optional if you want to skip fat or dairy!
-Serve Upma with Indian ginger pickle and coconut chutney. You can also pair it with some protein of boiled eggs to balance the carbs.
