Sunday, November 26, 2006

Samba Ravai Upma - Broken Wheat Upma

Thanksgiving day rained out but the days(holidays) following Thanksgiving were absolutely gorgeous. Perfect Fall days for picnic and games in the National Mall. We love visiting the mall, there are people/tourists/locals visiting, jogging, playing soccer, volley ball,or just leisurely strolling. The Indian in me craves places were there are people and activity around. Living in the suburbs and hardly seeing anyone whenever we get a chance we escape to the city to take in the crowds, enjoy the walk and a game of soccer. Usually pack a picnic lunch to eat. Coming home in the evening too tired to cook up something Samba Ravai upma it will be. I like the Samba ravai better than the White semolina ravai because this is lighter and tastier. Samba Ravai is whole wheat kernels ground coarsely. I usually bring this from India but now you can get them at the Indian grocery stores.

National Mall

Capitol Hill in the distance, Washington Monument at the World War II memorial



Perfect Picnic and soccer spot



World War II memorial


Samba Ravai Upma



Ingredients
1. 1 cup Samba Ravai (2 cups of water)
2. 1/2 onion chopped
3. 2 small green chillies, chopped, 2 red chillies split in half seeds removed
4. 1/2 inch piece ginger grated
5. seasonings: cumin, split urad dal, curry leaves,mustard
6. 2 tsp oil
7. 2 tsp lemon juice
8. salt

Method
1. Heat oil in a pan (kadai) add the seasonings, mustard last and when the mustard starts to pop add the chillies and then onions and saute till soft.
2. Add the 2 cups of water and salt.
3. When the water starts to boil, reduce the heat to low and add the samba ravai, keep stirring to avoid lumps.
4. Cover the lid and cook for 5-8 minutes till the ravai is cooked, it should look bloated.
5. Squeeze the lemon juice and mix and turn of the heat, keep the lid on till ready to serve.

Serve with brown sugar, lemon pickle and curd (yogurt).

8 comments:

  1. This brings back memories. I used to travel to D.C. about five times a year for business and I loved visiting there.

    ReplyDelete
  2. hey, you had a nice long weekend indo. Is samba ravai saomething like "dalia" ?

    ReplyDelete
  3. Great pictures ISG, looks like you had a nice time.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Nice pictures of DC there! I've visited DC twice and I still have a few more museums in my list that I've not yet set foot in! Beautiful place!
    I've not seen the samba ravai in Indian stores here. More likely I haven't noticed them. Will look for it specifically the next time. Thanks for sharing, IndoSunGod(Surya?!)

    ReplyDelete
  5. DC mall looks so idyllic! Is samba rava the same as bulghur wheat or dahlia?

    ReplyDelete
  6. Kalyn, DC is my favorite city. Are you planning any trips in the near future?

    Sandeepa , Shaheen I don't know if it is called dalia, but it is cracked whole wheat.

    Vani, the museums are wonderful, I know each one takes atleast a day and unless you spend 10 days in a shot you won't be able to see all of them. yup Suriya....

    KA, how was your Thanksgiving? Did you have a relaxing time?

    ReplyDelete
  7. Looks delicious !
    If Samba Ravai=dalia
    then
    I love it :-)

    ReplyDelete
  8. Beautiful pictures, particularly the first one. I love DC. We often used to visit on VIjay's work related trips.

    Nice to know a fellow fan of whole wheat kernel upma ravva (samba ravai). I am able to get it here in Seattle and the taste of upma is out of this world, just like the one I am used to in India.

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for stopping by. Appreciate you taking the time.
Comments embedded with links, spam and in poor taste will not be published.