Recipes for the Impatient
Well, well, well! Surprises never cease. I would have thought I would be the last person to share recipes with anyone, since I have as much interest in cooking as an ant presumably has in life on Mars. However, some instincts are to be simply respected, and gotten over with.
So, here are two recipes. The main USP is that they are extremely simple and very quick to make -- ideal for bachelors/bachelorettes. One makes a perfect crunchy evening snack to go with a hot cup of chai, and the other makes for a very filling breakfast. Both are poha-based (poha=avalakki=pressed rice?).
Crunchy Evening Snack
Ingredients
2 cups“soft” thin poha
½ cup peanuts
1 tsp mustard
1 tsp urad dal
4 red chillies
1 pinch asafoetida
1 pinch turmeric
5 tsp oil
Salt to taste
Please bear in mind that the measures given are purely incidental. I’m not really sure if what I use is a teaspoon or not, and I just pour in the groundnut and poha till I feel it’s enough!
Anyway, heat the oil in a pan, add the asafoetida and mustard, and when the latter pops, add the groundnuts, chillies and urad dal. Fry till the stuff is kind of reddish – if it’s turned black, you’ve gone too far – abort the operation and begin again. You could toss in other nuts too, I guess, unless they decline to be fried.
Dump in the poha, sprinkle turmeric and salt, and keep stirring, preferably on low heat, till the corners of the poha grains kind of wilt, and the poha turns crisp. Let the mixture cool before you start munching, unless you prefer burning your mouth. I like it best when it’s still hot, and love to shoot spoonfuls down without pause.
Breakfast Bowl
Ingredients
2 ½ cups“hard” thick poha
2 medium sized onions
1 tsp mustard
1 tsp urad dal
1 ½ tsp dhania powder
1 ½ tsp jeera powder
½ tsp pepper powder
1 ½ tsp chilli powder
1 pinch asafoetida
1 pinch turmeric
5 tsp oil
Salt to taste
Wash and soak the poha in cold water. Chop the two onions into small pieces. Heat the oil in a pan, add asafoetida and mustard, and urad dal after the latter pops. Dump the onions and fry them till pale pink. I guess you could use green chillies too, but I don’t since our house is still PG-rated. Meanwhile -- notice the parallel processing -- drain the poha, add the dhania, jeera, pepper, chilli and turmeric powders, and the salt, and mix well. Add this mix to the pan, and stir well for about 6-8 mins. A generous dollop of ghee added towards the end and stirred in, together with chopped coriander, makes for a yummy, filling breakfast dish, in under 15 mins.
Enjoy maadi!
So, here are two recipes. The main USP is that they are extremely simple and very quick to make -- ideal for bachelors/bachelorettes. One makes a perfect crunchy evening snack to go with a hot cup of chai, and the other makes for a very filling breakfast. Both are poha-based (poha=avalakki=pressed rice?).
Crunchy Evening Snack
Ingredients
2 cups
½ cup peanuts
1 tsp mustard
1 tsp urad dal
4 red chillies
1 pinch asafoetida
1 pinch turmeric
5 tsp oil
Salt to taste
Please bear in mind that the measures given are purely incidental. I’m not really sure if what I use is a teaspoon or not, and I just pour in the groundnut and poha till I feel it’s enough!
Anyway, heat the oil in a pan, add the asafoetida and mustard, and when the latter pops, add the groundnuts, chillies and urad dal. Fry till the stuff is kind of reddish – if it’s turned black, you’ve gone too far – abort the operation and begin again. You could toss in other nuts too, I guess, unless they decline to be fried.
Dump in the poha, sprinkle turmeric and salt, and keep stirring, preferably on low heat, till the corners of the poha grains kind of wilt, and the poha turns crisp. Let the mixture cool before you start munching, unless you prefer burning your mouth. I like it best when it’s still hot, and love to shoot spoonfuls down without pause.
Breakfast Bowl
Ingredients
2 ½ cups
2 medium sized onions
1 tsp mustard
1 tsp urad dal
1 ½ tsp dhania powder
1 ½ tsp jeera powder
½ tsp pepper powder
1 ½ tsp chilli powder
1 pinch asafoetida
1 pinch turmeric
5 tsp oil
Salt to taste
Wash and soak the poha in cold water. Chop the two onions into small pieces. Heat the oil in a pan, add asafoetida and mustard, and urad dal after the latter pops. Dump the onions and fry them till pale pink. I guess you could use green chillies too, but I don’t since our house is still PG-rated. Meanwhile -- notice the parallel processing -- drain the poha, add the dhania, jeera, pepper, chilli and turmeric powders, and the salt, and mix well. Add this mix to the pan, and stir well for about 6-8 mins. A generous dollop of ghee added towards the end and stirred in, together with chopped coriander, makes for a yummy, filling breakfast dish, in under 15 mins.
Enjoy maadi!
posted by thoughtraker at 10:58 AM
7 Comments:
sounds simple n scrumptious wher do i get the poha here?
what the diff between soft poha and hard poha?? Ive heard of thick poha and thin... never seen soft/hard? confused...
bingo, IW!! thats what I think it is too (in our neck of woods, we call it aloo-poha, though admittedly it has both aloo and kanda).. I love it when they put fried onions and fried dry coconut in the chivda item, tho I am told it reduces the shelf life and is out of fashion now..
Btw, ano, 1.5 tsp of chilli powder plus 1.5 tsp of pepper in 2.5 cups of poha?? Are you planning a holocaust for unsuspecting DSS bachelors?
yosso, u should be able to get the poha at any indian store.
void/IW, ibl's right.
soft poha = thin poha
hard poha = thick poha
and the recipes are not interchanged. this is exactly how i make them.
lol@void - yes, it should be 0.5 tsp of pepper - sorry!
ananth - that sweet dish is so yummy, isn't it?? my MIL makes it and it is soooooo good!
oops - that last comment should have been...
"adithi - that sweet dish is so yummy, isn't it?? my MIL makes it and it is soooooo good!"
:(((((
This makes me Sooooo hungry right now!!
Lol @ void's comment about the holocaust by spices!! Thank the Good Lord for not making me an over-enthusiastic one when it comes to cooking etc..
ooh la la!! poha! my fav food :-D
My personal fav recipe is a slight alteration of the second one.
Add fresh [cut into small pieces]crunchy cucumber and tomato on top while serving!! [and no ghee pls]. And that well made is truly heaven for me :-P
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