Upma | Uppit | Rava Upma is a popular Indian breakfast dish made using semolina, onions, and spices. It’s filling, nutritious, and comes together in minutes. My recipe makes a fluffy + flavorful Rava Upma that’s sure to become a quick favorite.
Umpa is one of my husband’s favorite breakfast foods and something I learned to make for him when we first got married. He calls it Uppit as that’s how people refer to it in the state of Karnataka. Quite a few generations ago my husbands family migrated from Rajasthan to Karnataka. As a result many of my husbands comfort foods include dishes like Uppit, Sushila, Gundponglu. Food in may ways is a road map of our family history, a link to where we’ve come from and where we’ve been.
Upma | Uppit | Rava Upma Ingredients
The main ingredient in upma is rava. Rava is simply granulated wheat called ‘suji’ or ‘sooji‘ in Hindi and ‘semolina’ in English. The name of this dish can differ slightly depending on where you’re from, but Suji ka Upma, Rava Upma, Uppit, they’re all pretty much the same.
There are different varieties of rava you can use, finely ground, coarse, roasted, etc. The choice depends on what texture you prefer your final outcome to be. If you like a softer, porridge like consistency, a fine non roasted variety would be the one to use. My husband prefers a more ‘khula khula’ version, where the grains are sandy, and not sticking together, which is why I go for the coarse, roasted variety.
To roast your rava, add it to a clean pan on medium heat and dry roast for 3-4 minutes, mixing every minute or so to ensure even roasting.
Upma Variations
This is a great base version of Upma. To this you could easily add your favorite vegetables, carrots and peas are quite popular. Nuts such as cashews and peanuts can also be added to boost the protein. You can serve it alongside achars and chutneys. It makes the perfect accompaniment to chai or coffee.
- 1 cup roasted rava (sooji/semolina)
- 2 tablespoon oil or ghee
- ½ teaspoon rai / mustard seeds
- ½ teaspoon jeera / cumin seeds
- 10 kadi patta / curry leaves
- 1 teaspoon chana dalia or split chana dal
- ½ cup chopped onions
- 1-2 chopped green chilies
- 2½ cup hot water
- ½ teaspoon salt; adjust to taste
- 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
- ⅓ cup fresh cilantro; chopped
- Heat a pan over medium-high heat and add your oil.
- Once warm add mustard seeds, cumin seeds, kadi patta, chana dalia, and green chilies. Sauté until they begin to sputter and pop.
- Add the onions and sauté for 2-3 minutes until they turn pinkish in color. Stir frequently.
- Next add in the rava along with the salt and sauté this for 1-2 minutes.
- Add in hot water and half the cilantro, cover with a lid. Reduce heat to medium and let cook for 5-6 minutes.
- Turn off heat and keep the lid on for another two minutes before removing lid and garnishing with lemon juice and remaining cilantro.
- Fluff and serve hot.
