Recipe Wed May 02 2007

Breakfast from India: Savory, Fluffy and Wholesome Upma

By Chris Brunn

You'll find upma for breakfast inside homes in parts of India. It's just as satisfying in Chicago - a savory, fluffy wholesome dish made from coarsely ground wheat. I had some cooking - the way I learned from Satya's mom in Bombay - as my friend Arline rolled in with Medjool dates, lovely tender olives and two spinach pies from the Middle East Bakery. We loaded a bounty of the dates - more than we could eat. "The feeling of plenty is always nice," Arline elaborated. As I bit into the spinach, the olive oil inside tasted incredible. "They know what they're doing with olive oil," Arline said. "They're not skimping."

Upma comes loaded with veggies, but they were mostly on vacation in my version this time - no peas or cauliflower like Satya's mom showed me because I didn't have them handy. This upma did have carrots - orange instead of the red Delhi carrots she used in India. Aside from my deviations, it turned out just as fluffy and tasty. You can find the wheat, called rava (labeled Upma Rava), from Patel Brothers on Devon Avenue - but you can also buy it as the coarsely ground wheat semolina that is more commonly found here. I've bought fresh curry leaves for this dish a few doors down at Fresh Farms. Upma's great with a side of plain soy yogurt; and it's good leftover cold. We ate it with cups of Nescafé, the instant coffee that seems big in India.

Upma: Satya's Mom's way
2 cups rava (coarsely ground wheat semolina)
1 handful of split black gram
1 handful black mustard seeds
2 handfuls cashews, preferably raw
1 handful curry leaves, preferably fresh
1 two-inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped
2 small fresh green chilies, finely chopped
1 onion, chopped
2 handfuls peas
2 handfuls cauliflower, chopped
Salt
Groundnut (peanut) oil
4 cups water

First, lightly toast 2 cups of semolina (medium-ground wheat) for about four minutes in a large pan on medium heat, tossing it about in the pan to keep from burning, then put it aside in a bowl. Alternatively, sometimes instant semolina, couscous or vermicelli are used. Second, lightly toast a few pinches of black gram, mustard seeds and cashews in the pan for a few minutes, then add enough groundnut oil to make it all swim just a bit. Later, add curry leaves, then fresh ginger, green chilies, and onion, and cook until a bit tender. Next, add cauliflower, peas, carrots and enough salt to bring out all the flavors - but not so much it tastes salty. Stir it all around a bit, then add 4 cups water and cover until hot. Finally, stir in the toasted semolina, cover the pot again, and check and stir every minute. Cook until the semolina is fluffy and tender and serve straight away.

Upma in Bombay

Setup	Semolina toasted, then removed and put aside
Split black gram and black mustard seeds in groundnut (peanut) oil	Cashews added
Cashews browning	Fresh curry leaves added
Onions added	Cauliflower, peas, and red Delhi carrots added
Water	Stirred and covered
Toasted semolina added	Thickening
More thickening	Still thickening
Fluffy	Upma - served wth coconut chutney
Nescafé and soymilk - poured back and forth until frothy	Nescafé served

Chris' Upma in Chicago

Toasted coarsely ground wheat (rava) being put aside	Split black gram, black mustard seeds and cashews
Groundnut (peanut) oil added	Curry leaves added
Ginger and chili added	Nicely browning
Onions added	Carrots and salt added
Water added	Chris adding coarsely ground wheat (rava) (photo: Arline)
Upma thickening	Thickening more
Upma finished - with olives, spinach pies and Medjool dates	Fluffy and good
Arline with cups of Nescafé - the instant coffee that seems big in India	Spinach pie from the Middle East Bakery