South Indian Bread Upma
Bread upma: A quick, easy, tasty South Indian breakfast that can be prepared within 20 minutes.
Servings3 people
INGREDIENTS ( 1 CUP = 240 ML )
- 2 tablespoon oil sunflower oil or any unflavored cooking oil
- ½ teaspoon black mustard seeds
- 1 sprig of curry leaves
- 1 large onion finely chopped
- 1 green chilli slit
- 1 teaspoon minced ginger
- ⅙ teaspoon asafoetida/hing
- 2 medium tomatoes finely chopped
- ¼ teaspoon table salt or to taste
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
- ½ teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder non-spicy
- ¼ cup water
- 4 pav (dinner roll) or 6-8 bread slices cut into bite-size pieces
- 2 tablespoon fresh coriander leaves finely chopped
- 2-3 tablespoon roasted peanuts
INSTRUCTIONS
- Heat oil in a pan. Once the oil heats up, add all the seasoning ingredients: mustard seeds, hing, and green chilli. Let the mustard seeds splutter. Add in curry leaves, finely chopped onion, and minced ginger.
- Saute until the onions become translucent.
- Then add in turmeric and red chilli powder. Saute to mix.
- Add in finely chopped tomatoes followed by salt. Saute the tomatoes until they turn soft and mushy.
- Add around ¼ cup of water, not too much, and mix. Cook for a few seconds.
- Add in bread pieces in the tomato mixture and just toss them up quickly. Make sure all the bread pieces are nicely coated with the masala.
- Finally, add coriander leaves and peanuts.
- Mix and serve bread upma hot. Add a dash of lemon juice if desired.
Notes
Ingredient Notes
Bread: this recipe works with both fresh and few days old bread. Any kind of soft bread will do. White bread or pav (dinner roll) give excellent results. Brown bread, whole wheat bread, and multigrain bread also work fine.
I have taken four pavs and cut them into small bite size pieces. You can take around 6-8 bread slices depending on the size. If you like a slight bite to the bread, you can always toast it before adding.
Oil: any unflavored cooking oil will do. I have used sunflower oil. You could also use butter for a richer taste.
For tempering: here I am using black mustard seeds, asafoetida (also called hing), green chilli, and curry leaves. Black mustard seeds and fresh curry leaves give that unique flavor to the dish. Asafoetida is commonly used in Indian cuisine. It adds flavor and also helps in digestion. Skip, if you can't find it. I have added one green chilli. You could deseed the green chilli or add more if you like to increase the heat. In addition chana dal (split bengal gram) and urad dal could be added for a nice crunch;
Onion and ginger: the combination of onion and ginger uplift the taste of bread upma;
Ground spices: turmeric powder and red chilli powder are used both for flavor and color. I am using Kashmiri chilli powder, which brings flavor and color but is non-spicy.
Tomatoes: adds texture and a lovely tang;
Salt: regular table salt;
Coriander or cilantro: preferably fresh;
Peanuts: roasted peanuts. Cashew nuts could be used as well;
