Good upma is light and separate, and bad upma is a paste. The difference is two measures: toast the rava until it smells of biscuits, and use three parts water to one part rava, added boiling.
Upma rava is milled coarser than fine semolina for exactly this reason. Fine sooji absorbs too fast and sets into a lump before you have finished stirring.
Ingredients
- 150g (1 cup) Shankar Upma Rava 1kg
- 20 Fudco Cashew Nuts 100g
- 100g Ardo Garden Peas Medium 1kg, from frozen
- 2 tbsp Gold Winner Gingelly Oil 500ml
- 1 tbsp KTC Pure Butter Ghee 500g
- 450ml water
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- A thumb of ginger, finely chopped
- 2 green chillies, slit
- 1 tsp mustard seeds and 1 tsp split urad dal, if you keep them
- 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp sugar and the juice of half a lemon
- A sprig of curry leaves and a handful of coriander
Method
- Toast the rava in a dry pan over a medium flame for 4 to 5 minutes, stirring the whole time, until it turns a shade darker and smells toasted. Tip it onto a plate.
- Put the water on to boil in a kettle or small pan. It needs to go in boiling, so start it now.
- Heat the gingelly oil in the same pan. Fry the cashews until golden and lift them out. Add the mustard seeds and urad dal if using and wait for the seeds to pop, then the curry leaves, ginger and green chilli.
- Add the onion with a pinch of salt and fry for 5 minutes, until soft and translucent. Stir in the frozen peas and cook for 2 minutes.
- Pour in the boiling water with the salt and sugar. Let it come back to a rolling boil.
- Lower the heat and add the rava in a thin steady stream with one hand while stirring with the other. Keep stirring for a minute until it thickens and pulls away from the sides.
- Cover and cook on the lowest heat for 3 minutes. Lift the lid, dot the ghee over the top and fold it through gently with a fork, lifting instead of mashing.
- Finish with lemon juice, coriander and the fried cashews. Serve hot, with coconut chutney or a spoon of pickle.
Cook's notes
Upma sets firm within minutes of leaving the pan, so serve it straight away. For a looser upma to eat with a spoon, take the water up to 500ml. Leftovers can be pressed into a greased bowl, turned out when cold and sliced, then fried in a little ghee until crisp at the edges.
Questions
Why is my upma lumpy?
The rava went into water that was not boiling, or went in too fast. Bring the water back to a rolling boil, lower the heat, then pour the rava in a thin stream with one hand while stirring with the other. Keep stirring for a full minute.
What is the ratio of water to rava for upma?
Three parts water to one part rava: 450ml of water to 150g of rava. Add the water boiling. For a softer, looser upma to eat with a spoon, take the water up to 500ml. Fine semolina absorbs too quickly, so use coarse upma rava.
Do I have to roast rava for upma?
Yes, it is the step that keeps the grains separate. Toast the rava in a dry pan over a medium flame for 4 to 5 minutes, stirring the whole time, until it turns a shade darker and smells like biscuits. Tip it onto a plate so it stops cooking.
Can I make upma ahead?
Upma is best eaten hot, as it sets firm within minutes. Leftovers do have a good second use: press them into a greased bowl, turn out when cold, slice, and fry the slices in a little ghee until crisp at the edges.
