Podichundaakkiya Upma

The moment a child is born, the mother is also born. She never existed before. The woman existed, but the mother, never. A mother is something absolutely new.

-Osho

Excited to share my second post in the mother's day recipe series. In this series, I am posting four recipes that my friends/relatives shared with me. These recipes are their favorite from their mother's cooking. The first recipe was for a delicious side dish called Ulli Theeyal shared by a very dear friend Suchu.

My quest for the next "Favorite Mother's Recipes" led me to my sister-in-law, Deepti. I am handing over the blog space to Deepti who is going to share a very nostalgic family recipe. This has been prepared in my husband's family for generations now.

Drum rolls please...  Please welcome Deepti....

Taking into account my love for food, I am very lucky to have a mother who is an expert cook, to be part of a family where my mother-in-law is another expert in cooking and here she is... my sister-in-law who is not only an expert, but very innovative and expressive to bring out this super cool blog. Thanks to my dear sister-in-law for giving me this task..oops 😉 , this opportunity to do a guest post as part of celebrating Mother's day week/month.

I feel all mothers make such tasty food because they add that tinge of special love when cooking food for their children.

If you ask me about my favorite dish or rather dishes which my mother makes,  this particular one (Podichundaakkiya Upma) stands out as I have not so far come across any similar or variations of this recipe. I would say this is our family inherited recipe. My mother learnt it from her mother-in-law, my Achamma.

It can be had as a breakfast item or a snack. It is a flavorful upma made of rice batter sautéed in coconut oil. The added taste of shallots, jeera and red chilli makes this  quick & easy dish a delightful one.

I remember "Podichundaakkiya upma" as one of the first few recipes that I noted down in my recipe book.  The name of the dish is quite a mouthful to say, I know!

It is made with rice batter and the texture resembles "chunky scrambled eggs". Though I have made it quite a few times at home, I never knew the history behind this dish. Deepti piqued my curiosity and I wanted to know more about this .

So, I got back to Deepti, and this was the gist of our conversation:

What is the story behind the name?

I am not entirely sure of the reason behind the name. We have been calling it Podichundaakkiya upma from my Achamma's (paternal grandmother) time. "Podikkuka" means to powder. My best guess would be because you are kind of "powdering" or rather scrambling the ground rice batter with the spatula while making the upma.

What is your first recollection of this recipe?

I remember my Achamma (when I was in 2nd or 3rd grade) used to make this. I have heard Amma n Baby ammayi (aunt) discussing its taste when my Achamma used to make it.

Wow! Is this how it has been made for generations now?

Yes. This is how my Achamma prepared it and how my aunts and my mom prepare it too.  This was served as a breakfast dish during Achamma's time.

Did you like it when you were a kid? Your kiddos like it?

Yes and yes. When I was a kid I used to have it with sugar, mashed banana and mutta bulls eye (eggs with sunny side up). I know! it's an odd combo 🙂 . I serve this to my kiddos with sugar and banana.

Friends, there you have it, a recipe passed down from many generations and now on the blog. Podichundaakkiya upma is a gluten-free, vegan breakfast or snack recipe. I always serve it with banana because that is the best combination and keep in mind that this is not as soft as the regular South Indian upma (if your are familiar with it).

I go gaga over fresh curry leaves and though it is not used in the traditional method of preparation, whenever I have fresh curry leaves at hand, I use it in the preparation.

The aroma of the shallots and cumin getting roasted in the coconut oil is simply divine. So, if you have not planned anything for breakfast tomorrow, why not try ground rice upma for a change?

Podichundaakkiya Upma

A gluten free, vegan spin on the traditional South Indian recipe - Upma. Serve with banana and sugar (optional). Though Upma is typically served as breakfast, you can serve this as a meal anytime of the day.

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Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes

Total Time 20 minutes

Calories 146 kcal

Ingredients

  

• 1 cup raw rice.
• 3-4 small shallots
• 1 tsp jeera/cumin seeds
• 2 whole dry red chilli adjust according to your spice level
• 2 tablespoon coconut oil pluis as required
• 3-4 tablespoon grated coconut
• 4-5 curry leaves optional
• Salt to taste

Equipment

• Bowl to soak the rice
• Indian mixer-grinder/food processor/heavy duty blender
• Measuring cups/spoons
• Heavy bottomed skillet well-seasoned/non-stick or saute pan ((well-seasoned/non-stick)

To Serve

• Banana slices
• Sugar optional

Instructions

 

• Soak rice overnight.
• Grind the rice along with shallots, jeera, dry red chilli and salt with a little water (about ¼ - ½ cup). The consistency of the batter should be thick. (similar to pancake batter)
• Heat coconut oil in a skillet/saute pan.
• On high flame, pour the ground batter into the oil, give it a few seconds, start stirring, breaking the lumps. Initially, large and sticky lumps will be formed. But as the water evaporates the lumps will become smaller and smaller and non-sticky.
• When the water completely evaporates, reduce the flame, add the curry leaves and keep stirring until the pieces resemble scrambled eggs and does not taste raw.
• To make it extra crispy, add 1 teaspoon oil and cook the upma over low heat for few more minutes. Give it a stir once in a while to make sure it doesn't stick to the bottom of the pan.
• When done, add grated coconut, mix it and turn off the flame.

Notes

1. Cooking time is approximate and depends on the water content in the batter and how crispy you would like the pieces to be.[br]2. Initially big chunks will be formed and it would be a little hard to break the pieces, but as the water evaporates, you will find it easier to do this.[br]3. Use a well seasoned pan or a non-stick pan to cook the batter. [br]4. I always use fresh/frozen-thawed shredded coconut for garnish.[br]5. This upma is best served with banana because that is the best combination and this upma is not as soft as the regular South Indian upma (if your are familiar with it).