Upma Recipe | Rava Upma

The upma recipe I share here is adapted from my mom’s recipe and continues to be a favorite in my home. The ingredients used to flavor the rava give it a deliciously satisfying taste that will make this dish one of your new favorite go-to breakfasts.

Table of Contents

1. What is Rava Upma
2. How to make Upma (Stepwise Photos)
3. Expert tips
4. FAQs
5. Recipe Card

Watch Upma Recipe Video

Upma for Breakfast

What is Rava Upma

Upma is a flavorful South Indian breakfast dish made from rava or cream of wheat.

This traditional dish involves cooking roasted rava in water that has been flavored by ghee (or oil), cashews, urad dal (lentils), chana dal (husked chickpeas), onion, ginger and additional herbs and spices. Sugar can be added for a mildly sweet and savory dish.

This steaming hot breakfast dish can be made vegan by using oil instead of ghee. Full of warmth, flavor and deliciousness, this upma tastes so good. So why not take a break from that boring oatmeal and try something new? You can’t lose!

The main ingredient in any upma recipe is rava. Also called ‘suji‘ in Hindi and ‘cream of wheat’ or ‘semolina’ in English, it is simply granulated wheat.

What really makes an upma breakfast dish special are all the fried ingredients that are used for tempering. These ingredients can vary depending on the recipe, but usually include some sweet, savory and nutty flavors.

Upma is a traditional breakfast served in restaurants throughout South India, including Maharashtra. It is also a common breakfast prepared in South Indian homes. In fact, upma was a regular breakfast or evening snack in my house while growing up.

Prep Tip to Make Upma Quicker

This warm, homemade breakfast can be made relatively quickly, especially with this one easy tip. In the step-by-step photo guide below, you will see the first few steps of roasting the rava (cream of wheat).Having your rava already roasted means this hot breakfast can be prepared in only 15 to 20 minutes. Roasted rava can also be used in a variety of other recipes, including Rava Cheela and Rava Pongal.

Step-by-Step Guide

How to make Upma

Preparation and roasting rava

1.  Prep the ingredients first. Take 1 cup rava (fine variety), ⅓ cup finely chopped onions, 1 teaspoon chopped green chillies, 1 teaspoon finely chopped ginger and 2 tablespoons coriander leaves (cilantro). Also take 8 to 10 curry leaves, 10 to 12 cashews, 1 teaspoon chana dal and 1 teaspoon urad dal.

2. Heat a pan or kadai first. Add 1 cup rava or cream of wheat (fine variety).

3. Begin to roast the rava. Stir often while roasting the rava.

4. The rava or sooji grains should become fragrant and start to look dry, separate and crisp. Don’t brown the rava.