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Upma Made In Many Ways

First I am going to say is Eid Al Fitr Mubarak everyone. This is a celebration to give thanks to Allah for getting us through Ramadan.

This post is so basic and many ways to make this upma. There are choices here too and the choices are many for the main ingredient but the masala that is used for seasoning and how to prepair is the same.

So for me it is ludicrous to make endless posts on different variations of the same dish when I can write about other dishes to make. 😁

Upma actually is from India and it is very simple and straight forward recipe. It actually comes from Hyderabad.

If you tell someone like Mr. Riaz who is from Peshawar, Pakistan, they would say this is spicy halwa. 😂😂😂

So the main parts of this dish is made as follows, add 1 oz of your choice of cooking oil such as olive, peanut, coconut, corn, canola, sunflower or safflower to a cast iron skillet or wok.

The main seasoning are 1 pinch each of hing, chana ki dal, masoor ki dal, moong ki dal, toor dal, urad ki dal either white or black, mustard seeds, cumin seeds and 3 curry leaves. I waited til the dals (lentils) browned a little and waited for the seeds to pop.

The white urad ki dal is also called mash ki dal. Add also 1 pinch of red chili powder either with or without 1 green chili deseeded or 1 drop of chili sauce.

I would only add 1 pinch of turmeric if I want it another color. This is optional.

1 would add either add 1 pinch of pink salt or bullion cube with 3 dashes of maggi or knorr aroma.

Another option is if you want to add it is fine by adding 1 chopped onion or shallot or 3 green onions. Caramelize them and 2 cloves of garlic and 1 small slice of ginger ground in a mortar and pestle.

Cook until the rawness disapears.

Adding nuts is also an optional ingredient. 6 peanuts, walnuts, almonds, cashews, pistachios crushed in a mortar and pestle before adding.

1 pinch of either frozen coconut or desiccated coconut is also very optional.

Also adding leftover keema. This Is for carnivores and omnivores only and purely optional. If you do not have leftover keema on hand then you can use 1 lb or 1 kg of either beef, chicken, veal, turkey lamb or goat. Also for vegans and vegetarians you can use 1/4 cup of veggie burger crumbles. Morningstar Farm and Beyond Meat is extremely tasty and so is Auguson Farm’s veggie crumbles. They have chicken and beef flavor and you can buy them from Walmart and Amazon.

I am an omnivore. 3 tbs is another optional ingredient for those that want it of course.

Vegans and vegetarians I know how you feel. There are lots of vegetables of choice for everyone.

I prefer frozen vegetables beause of the shortage of cooking time such as chopped spinach, mixed vegetables of any type, corn, carrots, broccoli, lima beans, okra, Brussels sprouts or zucchini etc.

Add 1 cup of your choice of vegetables and stir to give it a nice mix with the masala on low heat and cover for 5 minutes.

While you do that, fill up a tea kettle with water and bring to a boil then shut off as it starts to whistle.

Here is the main part of this upma recipe which again has many choices.

Add 1 cup of either grits oatmeal, wheateena, samo, couscous, buckwheat, millet, bulgar wheat, cracked wheat, corn or rice poha, sabadana, quinoa, maltomeal, cream of rice, sooji, barley, 6 slices of wheat bread boken up in to tiny pieces or 1 bag of semiya broken in to tiny pieces. Also 1 packet of ramen type noodles such as Indomie, Shan, Knorr, Maggi, chings, etc. can be used too. Just use the flavor packet that comes with it and add the rest of the items that will turn it in to upma except for the chili part if it comes with a very spicy packet in the inside.

Samo, subadana and sooji with the spices and curry leaves I use in my recipes can be found in any Indian and Pakistani grocery store. The rest of the items can be found in other stores and they are everywhere.

Add only one from any one of these items on this list such as if you have a taste for subadana for an example.

Add the boiling water about 3 cups and this lovely mixture is looking nice and lovely and smelling good too.

Cook on high until the water is absorbed and it is looking somewhat like halwa.

So no wonder why Mr. Riaz calls it spicy halwa.

The last optional ingredient in this recipe is either 1 pinch of cilentro or mint as a garnish and we are done.

Please enjoy?

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