Poha is very easy to make instant gluten free breakfast recipes like poha upma, poha pongal , sweet poha and some other recipes. I followed my mom’s white poha upma recipe ( one of my favorite lunch box recipe during my schooldays) for this and replaced it with red poha. Here is the recipe.

Ingredients:

1. Red Poha/ Sigappu Aval – 1 cup
2. Onion – 1
3. Green chilli – 2
4. Ginger – 1 inch
5. Grated coconut – 4 tsp
6. Lemon juice – 1 tsp
7. Roasted Groundnut or Cashew – 10 nos (optional)
8. Curry leaves – 1 string
9. Coriander leaves – to garnish
10. oil – 3 tsp
11. salt -to taste

To temper:

1. Mustard seeds – 1/2 tsp
2. Split urad dal – 1/2 tsp
3. Chana dal/Kadala Paruppu – 1/2 tsp
4. Cumin/Jeera – 1/4 tsp
5. Asafoetida/ Hing- 1/4 tsp

Pre-Preparation:

1. Wash the poha well (two times) to remove the husk and other dirts. check the poha after washing.
2. If it is soft no need to soak it. you can cook it directly
3. If it is hard, soak it in water. Poha should absorb the water. It will take 10 minutes. I used thick poha/getti aval so i soaked it in water.

Method:

1. Heat oil in a kadai and add items to temper
2. Add sliced onions and saute well, then add chopped ginger and green chilli to it. Saute till onions become transparent. Add roasted groundnut or cashews at this stage
3. Add soaked poha and salt to it. Mix gently else poha will become mushy
4. close the lid and cook it for 10-12 minutes in medium flame
5. In between , check the consistency of poha . If it is not cooked well , sprinkle water. Do it consistently till poha get cooked
6. Once poha is cooked well, add the lemon juice and grated coconut. Mix well. switch off the flame
7. Garnish it with coriander leaves. serve hot with chutney/ sambar/sugar.

Tips:

1. Dont skip adding lemon juice in the recipe. It helps to absorb the iron content
2. you can add carrot, peas, boiled potatoes or any veggies of your choice
3. you can make it without onion too

Health Benefits:

1. Red poha is made from red rice, so it is nutritious than white poha. Rich in fibre, calcium , iron,zinc and magnesium.
2. Good for diabetic patients and skin problems