India Trip - Part I, Breakfast
A blog about the popular breakfast items from the North Central regions of India
When we think of breakfast, what comes to mind are cereals, overnight oats, oats porridge or a smoothie or a peanut butter sandwich. Quite the usual fare these days! I recently visited family in India and actually none of these made to the breakfast table there. Surprising and yet intriguing, what Indians eat in breakfast? This question prompted me to actually write the post about the variety of breakfasts that I grew up eating in India.
I am from the North Central region of India and growing up I remember eating Poha, Upma, Namkeen Javein (savoury vermicelli), Sabudana Khichdi (tapioca pearls stir fry), Namkeen Dalia (savoury bulgur wheat) and during weekends sometimes it would be more indulgent and I would have samosa, jalebis, kachori or bedmi puri. It still hasn’t changed much! These are just a handful of items that I have mentioned. There is a whole lot of amazing things that you will get to experience in breakfast food all across the country. Crazy diverse but always bursting with flavours!
Let’s talk about all these things that I mentioned above.
Poha, is flattened parboiled rice flakes. These dried rice flakes are sold all across the country but enjoyed as a favourite breakfast item in the Central region and also in some parts of Maharashtra. The preparation is simple, toss some onions, potatoes, peanuts in oil with few fresh curry leaves, mustard and cumin seeds and add this to the pre-soaked, soft rice flakes. Garnish with generous coriander, green chillies and a drizzle of lemon juice. People prepare it often at home and you will also find it at the local street food shops. Sweet and crisp jalebis pair up very well with the tangy and spicy poha. Jalebis are a popular item at a sweets shop in the North Central part of the country, fermented batter is poured in concentric circles in hot oil, fried and then drenched in sugar syrup. Crisp, soft, sweet and yum!
Namkeen Javein, savoury vermicelli. Another very popular breakfast item I grew up eating! Toasted vermicelli are cooked with spices like carom or mustard seeds, a little bit of chilli powder, tomatoes, potatoes, sometimes onions as well and finished off with a garnish of fresh coriander leaves.
Namkeen Dalia, cooked bulgur wheat is tossed in some spices and veggies like mustard or cumin seeds, a little bit of chili and coriander powder, tomatoes, peppers and carrots and finished off with a garnish of fresh coriander leaves. I recreated this recipe using Quinoa, you can find it here.
Upma is like a thick savoury porridge made of semolina or rice flour. It is seasoned with spices, herbs and veggies. Originated in the southern part of India, these days its widely available all across the country.
Sabudana khichdi is another popular one where tapioca pearls are cooked with some spices like cumin or mustard seeds, fresh curry leaves, black pepper or red chilli powder, potatoes, peanuts and finished off with a garnish of fresh coriander.
Other items like samosas (deep fried pastry filled with spicy potatoes), jalebi, kachoris (deep fried pastries filled with a spicy lentil mix) and Bedmi puri (a deep fried flatbread made of wheat and lentil flour served with a spicy potato subzi and fresh herb and sweet and sour chutneys) are mostly enjoyed as a takeaway during weekends for a more indulgent breakfast.
Further reading:
Poha - The quintessential Indian breakfast
Do you have any breakfast memories from India? Comment below.