Arisi Upma

Arisi Upma is one of the very easy-peasy recipes that  can be made quickly and effortlessly for dinner or breakfast. The recipe is very simple and is really flavorful. Mom prepares a different version of this which is popular in Andhra called as Pindi or Uppindi. This Arisi Upma is a tamil version of something similar and can be made with staple ingredients in every kitchen. Raw Rice, Toor Dal, Black Pepper, Cumin Seeds are the main ingredients. Addition of coconut & coconut oil makes this upma delicious. Serve it as it is or with a side of chutney!

Recipe:

Ingredients:

For making the upma rava mix -

• Raw Rice - 1 cup
• Toor Dal - 2 tbsp
• Cumin Seeds - 1 tsp
• Black Peppercorns - 1 tsp

For seasoning and cooking -

• Coconut Oil - 2 tsp
• Mustard Seeds- ½ tsp
• Urad Dal - 2 tsp
• Dried Red Chili - 1 or 2
• Grated Coconut - 2 tbsp
• Asafoetida - ¼ tsp
• Curry leaves - as req.
• Water - 3 cups
• Salt - as req.

Procedure:

1. Wash the rice, drain off excess water. Spread the washed rice on a kitchen towel and dry for 10-15 mins until there is no water.
2. Meanwhile dry blend toor dal, cumin seeds, black peppercorns by pulsing in the mixer 2 or three times. Make sure to blend it into a coarse powder.
3. Coarsely pulse the dried rice in the mixer 2 or 3 times. No need to sieve this mixture. The mixture can be stored for upto a month.
4. In a thick bottomed pan, heat coconut oil. Add torn dried red chilies, mustard seeds, ural dal and fry until they are golden. Add asafoetida. Finally add curry leaves.
5. Add water, grated coconut and salt as needed. Let it come to a slow boil.
6. Now add the coarsely blended dal mix and stir without any lumps.
7. As the water boils, slowly add the rice mix while stirring it quickly without any lumps.
8. When the mixture comes together, keep it covered and cook on low flame for 15-20 mins. Let it sit for 10 mins before fluffing it up.
9. Arisi Upma is ready to be served with any kid of chutney.