A quick and easy complete meal, perfect for breakfast or a lunchbox for kids and adults.
Poha is an ingredient as well as a name of a dish. Poha is flattened rice which can be made into a dish that is quick and simple to make. It is very popular in India and sold as a street food. It can have a few variations with the addition of thin sev, peanuts, shredded coconut, potatoes, cilantro and onion. Batata (potato) Poha and Kanda (onion) Poha are common variations. It is frequently served as a breakfast food. Because its popular with kids, it is frequently the main meal for school lunchboxes.
Rice is parboiled, flattened and dried and sold as poha. Because it is already parboiled, it quick to cook with. Flattened rice is used in many dishes, poha is probably the most common. A popular ingredient throughout India, poha is a perfect quick complete one pot meal! Poha is readily available in Indian stores worldwide and with the addition of commonly used ingredients in your fridge and pantry, you can whip up a quick meal.
Thank you to my dear friend Tamanna for introducing to me to this lifesaver quick dish which has now become a staple lunch option. This is my go to lunch when I don’t know what to cook or don’t have time. Here is my variation that is light, fluffy with a hint of freshness from cilantro and brightness from lemon.
Makes 4 servings
Time: 15 mins
Ingredients:
- 3 cups poha (thick)
- 1 cup small diced onion (optional)
- 1 cup small diced potatoes (cut small so they cook fast, same size as poha pieces)
- 2 chopped fresh garlic cloves
- 1/2 tsp black mustard seeds (rai)
- 1/2 tsp whole cumin seeds (jeera)
- 1 sprig curry leaves 6-8
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp turmeric (haldi)
- 1/4 tsp Chili Powder, chili flakes or 1 diced fresh green chili
- 1/2 tsp cumin coriander powder (dhana jeera)
- 2 tbsps oil
- 2 tbsps whole roasted peanuts
- 3 tbsps lemon or lime juice
- 1 cup water (to cook potatoes)
- 1/8 cup chopped cilantro
- Thin sev or shredded coconut to garnish (optional)
Method:
- In a colander, add the Poha. Run water through it (1 minute) in the sink ensuring all the grains are fully wet and rehydrated. Drain and set aside.
- In a frying pan on medium high, heat up oil, add curry leaves, mustard seeds, cumin seeds, peanuts and chili’s. Stir fry for just a min till it splutters and you can smell the spices.
- Add onion and garlic, saute for 5 mins till lightly brown.
- Add potato, salt, turmeric, chili powder, cumin coriander powder, and water. Cook covered on medium heat until potatoes are fully cooked and water is absorbed (approximately 8 mins).
- Add Poha, cilantro and lemon juice and stir well to incorporate everything for about a min.
- Poha is ready to enjoy! Serve hot or room temperature.
Tips:
- Add thin Sev on top as garnish for a crunchy texture
- The most common mistake is mushy Poha which happens when too much water is used. In this recipe, the water is used initially to cook the potatoes. The Poha is simple rinsed in water to rehydrate them. No additional water is needed to cook the Poha. This will enable the light fluffy texture of each rice grain to stay separate.
- Add 1/2 cup of frozen peas in step 4 with the potatoes. This addition makes this an even more heartier complete meal.
- Stays good in the fridge for up to 2-4 days.
- Be sure to buy thick Poha, it helps to retain shape. Thin Poha will become mushy very quickly.
- When in a hurry, another time saver is use bilista (fried onions) and frozen hash brown potatoes. This will eliminate some of the chopping.