Upma

Upma is an ideal food for yoga practitioners when consumed in moderate quantity. Favorable for all constitutions and is tridhātu sāmya, balancing all doshas. Upma can also be served as a light food on half fasting days. Serve fresh and hot, as it will become heavier to digest after cooling. If using more than once a week, omit the nuts, which may cause sleep disturbance.

Preparation: 30 minutes

Serves: 3

Spoon measurements are always heaped unless otherwise stated.

Ingredients

1 cup/170g medium-ground wheat semolina (ravā)

2½ cup/625ml hot water

Voggarane

⅓ cup/80ml peanut or coconut oil

½ tsp mustard seeds

1 Tbsp split channa dāl

1 tsp split urad dāl 

⅛ tsp asafoetida powder

10 cashew or peanuts, cut in half

1 medium-mild red chili, chopped

1 tsp cumin seeds

10 fresh curry leaves

⅛ tsp turmeric powder

1 large/140g carrot, finely grated

1 tsp ginger, finely chopped

1 tsp fine rock salt

1 tsp jaggery

1 tsp lemon juice

¼ cup/20g shredded dried coconut

¼ cup coriander leaves, chopped

Semolina

1.  Dry-fry the semolina over medium heat, stirring continuously for 6 -7 minutes until the semolina turns golden-brown and has a toasted smell – set aside.

(You can dry-fry semolina and store it for up to 2 weeks.)

2. Pour into a bowl and set aside.

Carrot

3.  Finely grate the carrot using the finer side of a box grater – measuring 1 cup. Measure out the remaining ingredients – set aside.

Voggarane

4.  Heat oil in a skillet over medium-high heat, add mustard seeds, channa and urad dāl, asafoetida powder, cashews and chili, when mustard seeds turn grey and both dāl are golden-brown, add cumin, curry leaves and turmeric – fry for 10 seconds.

5. Add grated carrot, boiling water, ginger, salt, sugar, lemon juice and coconut – bring to a boil and simmer for 1 minute.

6.  Lower heat, add semolina.

7.  Stir continuously – until the water evaporates and semolina doesn’t stick to the spoon – approximately 2 minutes.

8.  Turn off heat and add coriander.

9.  Serve fresh and hot, drizzle with 1 – 2 teaspoons of ghee for taste and aid digestion.

Serve

Two-three times a week with carrot halva or kaseri bāth, and pickle.

Variation

Upma can be made using a combination of green beans, carrot and capsicum – 1 cup in total.