Noi upma

Noi is nothing but rice that is broken( while removing the husk and processing )and not whole. They segregate this while processing and sell it separately and call it as noi in tamil. My mom and grand-moms make upma with it which has a unique flavour and does not taste or smell anything like arisi upma. I have it by itself without any side-dish and it would taste out of the world, but it can be had with maagaali kezhangu oorugai (best and recommended) or vethakozhambhu. But the latter would kill the originality of upma is what I felt. This upma is a very quick upma that can be made on tiring days when we feel hungry and exhausted to make something on our own. This needs zero preparation and hence no prep time. It is so easy on the tummy, that it can be had on days when we do not feel upto the mark. Now, to the ingredients...

Ingredients:


Noi/ Broken rice                                                        1.5 cups
Coconut oil                                                                1 tsp
Ghee                                                                          1 tsp
Salt                                                                           To taste
Water                                                                         5 cups


To Temper

Coconut oil                                                              1.5 tsps
Mustard seeds                                                          1/2 tsp
Vendhayam/methi seeds                                             1/2 tsp
Red chillies                                                              2 nos broken into 2 pieces each
Asafoetida                                                                1 pinch
Curry leaves                                                             1 sprig


Method

1. Take a large stir fry pan and heat it on the stove.  Add 1.5 tsp of coconut oil and add mustard seeds to splutter.
2.  Add vendhayam/methi seeds and mix until it becomes golden brown. Add red chillies, curry leaves  and asafoetida and mix for another 30 seconds. Bring the heat to low.
3. Now add 5 cups of water to it  and bring the heat to medium. Let this mixture come to a rolling boil. Add required amount of salt and let it boil vigorously for a minute.
4. Now add noi/broken rice to it and stir well. Close a lid on top and let it cook for 15 mins or so or until noi/broken rice is fully cooked. At this time. it will be soft but not mushy and will retain its shape. 
5. Now add a tsp of coconut oil and ghee to top it off,  mix well, close the lid and switch off the stove. Leave it like that for 15 mins for the flavours to incorporate. I bet this will be the toughest 15 minutes of one's life as the kitchen will smell divine and we will still have to wait for the dish to complete. This 15 minutes is crucial for the taste and flavour to settle and is not optional

Serve this finished noi upma with maagaali kezhangu oorugai or vethakozhambu or best, have it by itself!

Cheat code - I live outside India and I do not get noi here, so I take raw rice and spin it in the mixie for just 5 seconds to make it as noi (broken rice)  ;)

Mor upma

This upma is my mother-in-law's original recipe. She makes it with arisi maavu/ Rice flour. I tried it with wheat flour/ godhumai maavu/ atta and it tasted great too.

Ingredients:

Rice flour/ Arisi maavu                                                 1 cup
Curd/ Natural plain yogurt                                              Just enough to make it to a stiff dough
Green chillies                                                               3 nos
Salt                                                                              As needed

To temper

Oil                                                                              5 tblspns
Mustard seeds                                                              1/2 tsp
Urad dal/ Uluthamparuppu                                             1 tsp


Method

1. In a mixing bowl, add rice flour/arisi maavu, salt, green chillies cut to very thin rings.
2. Add curd/ natural plain yoghurt little by little and make it to a stiff dough.
3. Heat a stir fry pan and add oil, mustard seeds to splutter, add uluthamparuppu/urad dhal and fry until golden brown. 
4. Add the dough and start cutting it to small pieces with the mixing spatula. Soon after adding the dough turn the flame to low and proceed. Roughly cut to 4-6 pieces at first and mix so that the oil has coated the surface. 
5. After coating the cut pieces with oil, increase the heat to medium so let it cook for 2 mins like that. Now start cutting it to small pieces. People who are familiar with tamil cooking will know about paruppu usili. The upma just becomes like a crumble and will resemble like a paruppu usili if the process is continued. 
6. Let it get roasted to golden brown. Switch off the stove and serve it hot. 

Usually this upma can be had as such without any side dish as yogurt provides enough sourness and green chillies enough heat. 

Now the same upma with the wheat flour/ Godhumai maavu/ Atta version

This version of upma just takes half the amount of oil and half the amount of time to cook, as wheat cooks in very fast and in very less oil for the same resultant output. 

Ingredients:

Wheat flour/ Godhumai maavu                                      1 cup
Curd/ Natural plain yogurt                                              Just enough to make it to a stiff dough
Green chillies                                                               3 nos
Salt                                                                              As needed

To temper

Oil                                                                              2.5 tblspns
Mustard seeds                                                              1/2 tsp
Urad dal/ Uluthamparuppu                                             1 tsp


Method

1. In a mixing bowl, add wheat flour/godhumai maavu, salt, green chillies cut to very thin rings.
2. Add curd/ natural plain yoghurt little by little and make it to a stiff dough.
3. Heat a stir fry pan and add oil, mustard seeds to splutter, add uluthamparuppu/urad dhal and fry until golden brown. 
4. Add the dough and start cutting it to small pieces with the mixing spatula. Soon after adding the dough turn the flame to low and proceed. Roughly cut to 4-6 pieces at first and mix so that the oil has coated the surface. 
5. After coating the cut pieces with oil, increase the heat to medium so let it cook for 2 mins like that. Now start cutting it to small pieces. People who are familiar with tamil cooking will know about paruppu usili. The upma just becomes like a crumble and will resemble like a paruppu usili if the process is continued. 
6. Let it get roasted to golden brown. Switch off the stove and serve it hot. 

Usually this upma can be had as such without any side dish as yogurt provides enough sourness and green chillies enough heat. 

The wheat version of upma is a little bit moist and gets roasted very fine too. So if one tries the rice flour version and finds it too dry for their palette, the wheat version is the greatest alternative. It is roast and crumbly while being moist, and to me has a great flavor than the rice flour version.

Usili upma

Usili upma is an unimaginably easy and a super delicious upma that can be made on tiresome days when one doesn't want to slog in the kitchen. Both my paatis used to make it and I inherited this recipe from my mom.

Ingredients

Rice ( white/brown sona masoori or raw rice)          - 1-1/4 cup

Payathamparuppu/ Mung dhal                                 -1-1/4 cup

Onion                                                                   -1 large or 2 medium sized

Salt                                                                       as needed

Oil                                                                       - 1 tblspn

Mustard seeds                                                       - 1/2 tsp

Red chillies                                                           - 3 nos

Asafoetida                                                            - 1 pinch

Method

1. Dice onions as small as one can. 
2.  In a pressure cooker, add a tblspn of oil, heat it, add mustard seeds to splutter , break red chillies to two and add. Add a pinch of asafoetida and add the diced onions.
3. Saute until onions are translucent. Now add rice, payathamparuppu/Mung dhal and enough water one would add for pongal (if one likes a little mashy consistency)  and salt to taste. 
4. Close the lid and cook it as one would for pongal (for mashy consistency ) or like rice if not. 
5.  Open the pressure cooker and  mix well as the onions would have come to the top and keep on mixing if to achieve a slightly mashy consistency and have it with anything from lemon oorugai, mangai thokku, molaga chutney to vethakozhambu etc., etc.,