Poha is a popular Indian breakfast dish made with flattened rice. Tempered with onions, peanuts, mustard seeds, this is a quick 25-minutes recipe that is also vegan.

Recipe Snapshot

  • Prep time: 10 minutes
  • Cook time: 15 minutes
  • Total time: 25 minutes
  • Yield: 2
  • Category: Breakfast
  • Cuisine: Indian

Ingredients

  • 1 & ½ cups poha ([adjustable] 114 grams [/adjustable], I use thick poha)
  • ¼ teaspoon turmeric
  • ½ + ⅛ teaspoon salt (divided, adjust to taste)
  • ½ teaspoon sugar (optional)
  • 1 tablespoon oil (I used avocado oil)
  • ½ teaspoon mustard seeds
  • 1 & ½ tablespoons peanuts (use raw peanuts)
  • 1 small red onion (chopped)
  • 1 green chili (chopped)
  • 10-12 curry leaves
  • ½ cup chopped potatoes (½ inch cubes)
  • ⅓ cup green peas (I used frozen, soaked in warm water for 10 minutes)
  • 1 tablespoon chopped cilantro (+ more to garnish)
  • ½ lemon (juice of)
  • sev (to garnish)

Method

  1. To a strainer, add 1 & ½ cups of poha (flattened rice). Rinse it under running water until it turns soft. To check if it's done, press a flake between your thumb and index finger, it should break easily. Then to the poha, add ¼ teaspoon turmeric, ½ teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon sugar (optional). Toss to combine everything and then set it aside while you make the tadka in the pan.
  2. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a kadai on medium heat. Once the oil is hot, add ½ teaspoon mustard seeds and let them pop.
  3. Then add 1 & ½ tablespoons raw peanuts and sauté for a minute or two until they start turning brown.
  4. Add 1 small red onion (chopped), 1 green chili (chopped) and 10 to 12 curry leaves. Stir and cook for 2 minutes until the onions soften.
  5. Now, add ⅓ cup green peas (which were soaked in warm water for 10 minutes prior) and ½ cup chopped potatoes (½-inch cubes) and mix. Cover the kadai with a lid and let the potatoes cook for 4 to 5 minutes or until soft.
  6. Then add in the rinsed poha and toss to combine. Taste test some poha and if it feels dry, sprinkle little water all over (I usually do that). Cook for 1 minute. Also tastes test and add more salt as needed at this point (I added around ⅛ teaspoon extra salt here). Cover the kadai with a lid and set the heat to lowest setting and let the poha steam on low for 2 minutes and then remove the kadai from heat.
  7. Add 1 tablespoon chopped cilantro, juice of ½ lemon (medium size lemon) and stir. Garnish with sev and serve hot.

Kiyaan Singh’s Kitchen Note

Keep this recipe as a working base: cook once as written, then adjust spice, texture, and serving style for your own table.