Vegetable Poha – Aval Upma

Vegetable poha | Poha upma with vegetables | Aval Upma with vegetables

My love for poha is only slightly less than my love for my kid. No kidding! I can have poha for breakfast, lunch or and dinner. While my top favourite poha is the Maharashtrian style Kanda poha, which I have memories of eating for Rs.5 at Nariman Point, in the mornings, on my way to work. And it used to cost ALL OF 5 RUPEES! Then, there is my great-grandmother’s special Puli Aval, that is so close to my heart.

Aval upma is another very simple dish prepared for tiffin in Tamil homes. A generous pinch of asafoetida in the tempering along with mustard seeds and udad dal, plus the usual suspects- dried red chillies, curry leaves in which the soaked aval (poha) is added, tossed and garnished with coconut. There are no vegetables added to this, so it gets ready in around 5 minutes.

Come summer and I crave for cucumber, watermelon, yogurt, mint and all other summery foods, no matter what I am eating. Adding some fresh cucumber to this vegetable poha gave it a complete fresh twist and I urge you to try it out this summer. I promise you will be making this more often that I will be.

In fact, try making a salad using soaked and drained poha with finely chopped tomatoes, onions, cucumber, pomegranate and sprouts – garnished with coconut, coriander and lemon juice. This tastes SO good, you have to taste it to believe it. A no-cook breakfast recipe right here for you!

So coming to the vegetable poha recipe, saute your favourite vegetables in some oil, toss in the poha, add a healthy dose of raw veggies and you get your summer special poha recipe.

NUTRITION BYTES:

Calories per serving of Vegetable Poha / Aval Upma

With 10 grams of Dietary fiber and 9.5gram of protein, it is a fairly good meal to start your day. To cut down on the calories per serving, omit the coconut and reduce oil to 1 tsp.

Vegetable Poha - Summer Special

A summer special, vegetable aval (poha) upma, has your favourite vegetables sautéed along with poha and a healthy dose of raw veggies to top it. A filling breakfast that doesn't weigh you down!

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Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 10 minutes mins

Total Time 50 minutes mins

Servings: 2 servings

Course: Breakfast

Cuisine: Indian

Ingredients Method

Ingredients

  

• 1 cup poha jada
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 lemon
• 3 - 4 tbsps coriander leaves finely chopped
• 1/4 cup coconut grated
• pinch asafoetida of
• 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
• 2 green chillies
• 1 tbsp chana dal
• 1 onion medium
• 1 potato medium
• 1/4 bell pepper yellow
• 1/4 red bell pepper
• 1/2 cup carrot grated
• 1 cucumber European

Method

 

1. Wash the poha in water 2-3 times. Drain water and keep aside covered for 15-20 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, finely chop the onion. Peel and finely dice the potato. Finely dice the bell peppers. Dice the cucumber (no need to peel).
3. Mix 1/2 tsp salt, lemon juice, grated coconut and half the grated carrot to the poha. Toss gently and keep aside.
4. In a heavy bottomed pan, heat the oil. Add the asafoetida, mustard seeds. Once the seeds pop, add the green chillies broken into two. Stir for a few seconds.
5. Add all the finely chopped vegetables, half the grated carrot, 1/2 tsp salt and stir well to combine. Cover and cook for 7-8 minutes, until the potatoes are cooked.
6. Add the poha mixture to this. Toss well until everything is combined. Switch off the flame.
7. Add the remaining grated carrot, diced cucumber, toss gently and serve immediately with wedges of lemon.