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When it comes to breakfast, nothing comes close to the deliciously steamed, fragrant poha that is a breakfast staple in almost all of India . Poha in North India, Chuda in Orissa, Atkulu in Telugu, Aval in Tamil Nadu, Avalakki in Kannada et al, this beaten rice goes by different names in different parts of our country.

To make the poha dish, beaten rice is first lightly washed in water allowing it to sit for a few minutes before it is cooked, tempered, mashed according to what pleases your palette. In different regions of our country poha is cooked differently, drawing influences from that region’s locally available ingredients, commonly used spices, taste preferences, cooking techniques etc. 

Now depending on what region you come from, you must have a certain way in which you cook and like your poha, but a little change every once in a while will do no harm, and you never know what might end up being your new favorite poha recipe. Today we are sharing Indori style poha .

The town of Indore in the Malwa region in Madhya Pradesh is renowned for its street food and snacks and is a favourite destination of foodies.

Indori Poha is a style of making Poha or flattened rice like how it’s made in Indore, khatta meetha. There is a special masala added in it called Jeeravan Masala which gives it a very unique taste. 

Indori Poha as the name suggests is a special poha dish that’s made in Indore, it’s traditionally served with jalebis and crunchy namkeen.

The best part about this recipe is the different tastes and textures that come together beautifully.

Coming to the taste, it differs from the regular poha because of the use of a special jeeravan masala. You can use the store bought Jeeravan masala or can make at home sharing the recipe below.

Jeeravan Masala

Ingredients (yields about 1 cup):

• 6 dry red chillies
• 3 tablespoons amchoor aka dried mango powder
• 1-1/2 tablespoons dhania aka coriander seeds
• 3/4 tablespoon turmeric powder
• 3/4 tablespoon kala namak aka black salt
• 1 tablespoon jeera aka cumin seeds
• 1 tablespoon saunf aka fennel seeds
• 1 whole jayphal aka nutmeg, coarsely pounded with mortar and pestle
• 1/4 tablespoon hing aka asafoetida
• 1/2 tablespoon dried ginger powder
• 1-inch cinnamon stick
• 4-5 laung aka cloves
• 1 medium-sized tejpatta aka bayleaf
• 2-4 elaichi aka cardamom
• 2 blades of javitri aka mace
• 1/2 tablespoon shahijeera aka caraway seeds

Method:

1. Dry roast the spices and then place all the above ingredients in a medium-sized mixer jar. Grind to a fine powder.
2. When the powder has completely cooled down, transfer to a clean, dry, air-tight jar. Use as and when needed.

How to soak poha so that it doesn’t becomes mushy.

• Poha comes in variety of thickness. To make Indori Poha, it is preferable to take medium thickness poha.
• But this thickness will also vary from brand to brand.
• So when making the poha for the first time, monitor the time of soaking and then moving on, try to buy the same brand and stick with it. 
• My poha usually takes 2 minutes of soaking.
• You should soak the poha only until it is just about softened. Then immediately drain it. 
• It will still keep absorbing the extra water and soften more.
• I then drain it in a colander and it still keeps getting softer from the remaining water.

Toppings:

• Namkeen: Indoris love their namkeen like sev (spicy gram flour noodles), such as Indori sev, Ratlami sev ( which we have used in our Indori Poha recipe) , masala sev, laung sev , masala boondi or khara boondi (nukti), and charkhi nukti. (Charkhi nukti is savoury boondi—tiny, crispy, deep-fried balls of chickpea batter seasoned with salt and red chili powder.) All of these namkeens can be used as toppings in an Indori poha recipe.
• Onion: Indori poha is very different from, say, Maharashtrian onion poha. In Indori poha onions are added raw as a topping.
• Pomegranate arils, and chopped fresh coriander leaves.

Cooking with lots of love and straight from the heart.

Bhawna Maharshi

Pans n ovens