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Tuesday, December 19, 2017

Vegetable semiya upma

As a child, upma was one of the dishes that I hated the most. It is only when I started cooking that I realized that the reason upma makes an appearance at most breakfast tables is that it is one of the easiest things to cook. Chances of messing it up are minimal, though not completely impossible. Adding a bunch of colorful vegetables makes it look appealing, in addition to making it a healthy way to start your day.
The problem with vermicelli upma is that as it cools, it tends to clump together, making it unappealing. To make it appealing to kids and adults alike, what I do is cook it in lots of boiling water, drain it and then run some cold water over it to stop it from cooking further and to make sure that the strands of vermicelli stay separate without clumping together.


What you need:
Vermicelli - 1 cup
Onion - 1 small, chopped fine
Green chilli - 2, minced
Ginger - a small piece, julienned
Curry leaves - a few
Oil - 1 tsp
Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
Urad dal - 1/2 tsp
Mixed vegetables, chopped very fine - 1/2 cup (I used capsicum, green beans, frozen peas, frozen corn and carrots. You can add or subtract to this list, as per your taste)
Salt - to taste

Heat 5 cups of water in a large saucepan. Add the vermicelli to it and bring to a boil. Boil for a few minutes until the vermicelli is cooked. Drain on to a colander and run cold water over the vermicelli. Drain out all excess water completely. Set aside.
Heat a spoon of oil in a pan. Add mustard seeds and urad. When the seeds pop, add chopped chillies, ginger and curry leaves. Saute for a few seconds and then add chopped onions and saute till translucent. Lower the flame, add in the remaining vegetables, just enough salt for the vegetables and cover and cook for a few minutes. The vegetables should still retain their crunch. Add in the cooked vermicelli, some more salt for the vermicelli and mix well. Garnish with chopped spring onion greens or chopped coriander.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing this BM
This also goes to  Valli's Kid’s Delight event, guest hosted by PJ themed on Quick / Innovative Breakfast


10 comments:

Srivalli said...

The semiya is really cooked perfect and I love the texture!

MySpicyKitchen said...

Same pinch, disliked upma to the core when growing up don't mind it now. Precooking vermicelli is a cool tip to retain the shape.

Priya Suresh said...

Precooking vermicelli is definitely a useful tip, love the texture of the upma.

Preeti said...

Looks perfect..

Harini R said...

I make vermicelli upma just as you did. We love the texture this way. I agree that the colorful veggies make it all the more appealing.

vaishali sabnani said...

What a lovely dish , now I feel like having some of this Upma for breakfast !

Sandhya Ramakrishnan said...

Perfect semiya upma. My boys love to take this for lunch box.

Chef Mireille said...

love this noodle version - looks so delicious

Priya Srinivasan - I Camp in My Kitchen said...

That is a nice tip! Sometimes I don’t get our Indian vermicelli here and have to Adjust with the pasta vermicelli, which I cook this way! Addition of veggies makes it more colorful And yummm

Pavani said...

This is one of my go-to dishes for any time of the day. Luckily even my kids like it :-) Your dish looks just perfect.