Indori Poha is a popular street food from Indore made with flattened rice, spices, herbs and unique toppings. This khatta meetha (sweet and tangy) dish is finished with sev, fresh onions, masala boondi, pomegranate arils and jeeravan masala for its signature flavor.

Recipe Snapshot

  • Prep time: 10 minutes
  • Cook time: 5 minutes
  • Total time: 15 minutes
  • Yield: 3
  • Category: Breakfast, Snacks
  • Cuisine: Indian Street Food, Indore

Ingredients

  • 2 cups poha (– thick or medium-thick variety)
  • ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
  • 2 to 3 teaspoons sugar (or add as per taste)
  • salt (as required)
  • 2 tablespoons oil
  • 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
  • 1 teaspoon fennel seeds
  • 1 green chili (– chopped)
  • ¼ to ⅓ cup onions (– chopped)
  • ¼ cup Indori sev (or add as required)
  • ¼ cup coriander leaves (– chopped)
  • jeeravan masala (– as required)
  • ¼ cup pomegranate arils (– optional)
  • ¼ cup masala boondi ((nukti))

Method

Preparation

  1. First get all the ingredients ready.
  2. Take the poha in a colander or strainer.
  3. Begin to rinse the flattened rice flakes in clean running water twice or thrice.
  4. Gently mix and swirl with your hands while rinsing. Make sure that you do not rinse it too much or else it breaks and gets mushy. While rinsing, the rice flakes absorbs enough water and it becomes soft.
  5. Drain the water. The poha must become soft but remain intact, whole and separate.If the flakes do not become soft, sprinkle a few drops of water on them. Let them rest for a few minutes until softened.
  6. Take the poha in a mixing bowl.
  7. Sprinkle turmeric powder, sugar and salt as required. You can add less or more sugar as per your taste preferences.
  8. Just lightly mix with a spoon or with clean hands.

Making Indori Poha

  1. Heat in a heavy kadai or pan. Keep flame to low or medium-low and add the mustard seeds and let them crackle.
  2. Then add fennel seeds. Let the fennel seeds splutter.
  3. Add chopped green chilies. stir and sauté for a few seconds.
  4. Keep heat to low and add the poha.
  5. Gently mix poha with the tempered ingredients till the color changes to light yellow.
  6. Cover kadai or pan with lid and on a low flame steam poha for about 1 to 2 minutes.
  7. After 1 to 2 minutes remove the lid and stir again. Switch off the flame.
  8. Now take the hot poha in a plate.
  9. Top with some chopped onions and coriander leaves.
  10. Sprinkle jeeravan masala on top. You can add 1 to 2 pinches of jeeravan masala or more. Jeeravan masala is spicy so add accordingly depending upon how much spicy food you like.
  11. Add pomegranate arils.
  12. Top with masala boondi and Indori sev.
  13. Squeeze some drops of lemon juice from top.
  14. Assemble Indori poha in a similar way in plates and then serve.
  15. Serve straight away.

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.