Rava Upma

There are so many ways to make this popular, one-pot south Indian breakfast dish, and here's mine. It's easy, delicious and takes minutes to make. A vegan, soy-free recipe, can be nut-free.

Front shot of two steel plates of upma with curry leaves, tomatoes, onions and cilantro on a black background. Next to the upma is a steel bowl of green coconut chutney with a silver spoon.

Rava Upma is something we ate often for breakfast or a snack in my parents' home, and it features with some regularity now in my kitchen when I'm looking to make a quick and nutritious dish that cooks up in under 30 minutes and pleases everyone.

This is one of those recipes that, albeit south Indian in origin, has perhaps infiltrated every Indian household, no matter where in India it is, because it's just that good. If you live outside India, you've likely encountered it on the menu of a south Indian restaurant.

An upma is also perhaps the first dish I actually learned to cook, because it's that simple. All you need to do is roast the rava or sooji or semolina in a wok until it's fragrant and very lightly browned, then add in some herbs, spices and, if you want, veggies. In fact, an upma is almost foolproof and so long as you follow some basic instructions you can make sure yours turns out fluffy and delicious.

An overhead shot of two steel plates of upma with curry leaves, tomatoes, onions and cilantro on a black background. Next to the upma is a steel bowl of green coconut chutney with a silver spoon.

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What we love about this dish

It's super easy
It's quick. All you need is between 20 to 30 minutes and there's no major prep work or do-ahead stuff.
It's a one-pot dish. A wok is all you need, although a large skillet will do.
It's everyone-approved: kids, adults, picky eaters will all love it, especially when you drizzle on some coconut chutney.
It's healthy. It's just wheat mixed up with herbs, spices and veggies and a minimum of oil. A dry, fluffy, savory pudding, if you will.
It's organically vegan. Sure, there may be some who likely start out their upma with ghee, but no one I knew did, because it isn't needed. This is one of those Indian dishes that just happens to be vegan, and that's just wonderful.

Front closeup of a steel plate with sooji upma with wedges of lemon, tomatoes, cilantro and curry leaves with a spoon next to it on a black background.

Tips for making the best upma

You'll start out by roasting your sooji or rava in a dry skillet or wok. While some cooks skip this step, I really like it because it makes the sooji nice and toasty and it just tastes better. You want to keep a close eye on the skillet and roast the sooji over medium heat. Stir frequently. At first it may look like nothing's happening for a bit, but once the sooji reaches a certain temperature it will start to brown quite fast, and you don't want it to brown too much. Just a couple of shades darker is good. When it reaches that point, remove the sooji to a dish and set aside.
In the same wok, you'll add vegetable oil, just about a teaspoon, and add to it some mustard seeds. Once the seeds start to sputter, stir in the onions, green chili peppers, curry leaves, turmeric and grated ginger. At this point you can also add a handful of chopped cashew nuts, if you like. Saute the onions until they're translucent, you don't need them to brown. At this point you can also add quick-cooking veggies, like grated carrots, finely chopped bell peppers, zucchini or green peas. Saute them for a couple of minutes.
Add water to the wok. When you make upma, you will always need sooji and water in a 1:2 ratio. So if you have a cup of upma, you need to add two cups of water. Add enough salt to make sure that the water is saltier than you'd like your upma to be.
I like adding tomatoes to my upma, but I add them only after I add the water because I don't like the tomatoes to get all mushy and pureed.
Once the water comes to a rolling boil, lower the heat to the lowest point. Now this is the only place where you really need to be careful to make sure your upma turns out fluffy and not lumpy, so pay attention.
As soon as the water boils, add in the roasted sooji and then, without a second's delay, use a ladle or a whisk to begin stirring the sooji into the water. The sooji is thirsty and it will glug up the water rapidly, so if you don't work fast you'll end up getting lumps of dry sooji in the upma and it won't be loose and fluffy. And once again, make sure you do this with the heat turned down to the lowest point.
As soon as this is done, turn off the heat. Garnish your upma with cilantro, spritz on lemon juice, and serve it hot.

Rava upma, rava or sooji roasting in a wok with a wooden ladle

Onions, curry leaves, cilantro and green chili peppers in a wok

What to serve with upma

A coconut chutney is all you need.
You can also serve upma with sambar, a South Indian style dal.

Sooji upma or rava upma in steel plates with silver spoons and garnished with cilantro with coconut chutney on the side.

Upma Recipe

A foolproof recipe for upma, a popular, one-pot south Indian breakfast dish made with sooji or semolina, herbs, spices and veggies. Ready in under 30 minutes. A vegan, soy-free recipe, can be nut-free.

Course Breakfast, Snack/Tiffin

Cuisine 30-minute recipe, Indian, Indian veg recipes, nut-free, Soy-free

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes

Total Time 25 minutes

Servings

Calories 178kcal

Author Vaishali · Holy Cow! Vegan Recipes

Ingredients

2 cups sooji (rava, semolina)
1 tsp vegetable oil
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 large onion (finely chopped)
2 green chili peppers (like serrano or jalapeno. Deseed and use more or less per your taste)
2 sprigs curry leaves
2 tsp ginger (grated)
1/2 tsp turmeric
4 cups water
2 medium tomatoes (diced)
2-4 tbsp cilantro (chopped)
2 tbsp grated coconut (optional)
Salt to taste
Juice of 1 lemon and more wedges of lemon to serve

Instructions

On a dry skillet, roast the sooji, stirring constantly, until it turns just a couple of shades darker and smells fragrant. Always roast on medium to medium-low heat because you don't want to burn it, and don't leave the stove unattended. The sooji should turn just a couple of shades darker and smell fragrant. Once it's roasted, remove to a plate and set aside.
Heat the oil in the same skillet. Add the mustard and wait for the mustard seeds to sputter.
Immediately add the curry leaves, green chillies and onions. Saute until the onions are soft but not brown. Add the ginger and stir in.
Add any additional veggies at this point, if using. Add the turmeric and saute another minute.
Add 4 cups water and salt it until it's saltier than you want the upma to be.
Turn the heat to low and have a ladle or whisk ready.
Pour the roasted rava into the skillet and immediately start stirring it into the water. You need to work fast at this stage, and again, make sure the heat is at the lowest point possible. You want every grain of the sooji to absorb water so the upma is nice and fluffy and not lumpy. If some lumps do form, press on them with the ladle and stir them into the rest of the upma. You can sprinkle on some water if needed.
Turn off the heat immediately and mix in the cilantro, lemon juice, and coconut, if using. Serve in bowls with more wedges of lemon that you can spritz over the upma.