Poha/pohe/powa/pawa is flattened rice that resembles a cross between oats and soap flakes and is the name for a spiced Indian breakfast dish consisting of, unsurprisingly, poha. This morning, I made my first poha, which my partner politely ate, despite it being dry and a far larger portion than your average experimental serving. Full credit to him for not pointing out it wasn’t as good as the poha we both tried for the first time at a hotel breakfast in Muscat … though silence can sometimes be more powerful than words.
There are many recipes online and in my Indian cookery books, but all different. The photo, probably unsurprisingly, isn’t my breakfast attempt but an exemplary poha from Machan restaurant at the Taj Mahal Hotel in New Delhi.
It is fairly quick and simple to make (though recipes that say 20-30 minutes make it sound more complex and laborious than it is) and the ingredients are fairly easy to find in the UK, though I expect poha and fresh curry leaves can only be sourced from well-stocked Indian food stores or online, though once found can be kept for ages (poha) or frozen (curry leaves – dried curry leaves are a very poor substitute for fresh, a twig of which freezes really well). Everything else is possibly already in your kitchen or easy to buy.
Anyway, the general consensus seems to be a need for poha, onion, turmeric, mustard seeds, curry leaves, green chili, coriander leaves, peanuts and optional potato, coconut, tomato and pomegranate. The recipe I followed only used the non-optional ingredients and pomegranate was eliminated on the grounds of aesthetic and taste enhancement weighing far too heavily against the faff side of the balance.
The Machan poha in the photo also has tomato in it, which would probably have helped with the dryness issue, I just wasn’t feeling the tomato love when I made it. I could, of course, have just added some water but I was doing that evangelical “must follow the recipe exactly” thing so dismissed all niggles and doubts as to the consistency. However, it did taste good (I added a fried egg to the top of mine because I love fried eggs and I think it works well with the rice) and my first attempt hasn’t stopped me wanting to make and eat it again as well as write this to share the culinary joy that is poha. Apologies for not photographing my attempt but I didn’t want to put anyone off trying it, it really is a lovely dish, despite the fact I am not generally a rice lover.
I have not written out a recipe but if I ever find the right one for what I am trying to recreate, I will add it to this post. For now, here are some links to online recipes that look the part: Veg Recipes of India; TNN in Times of India; Veggie Belly.
Ingredients
2 cups thick (mota) poha
2 tablespoons oil
1/2 teaspoon black mustard seeds
3 tablespoons peanuts
1/2 cup minced onion (about 1 medium onion)
6 curry leaves
1 green chili, minced
1/2 cup boiled, peeled, cubed potato or frozen green peas. Both are optional.
1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
1 teaspoon lime juice
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro for garnish
Method
1. Place the poha in a colander and wash it under cold water. Set aside to drain. Do this just before cooking – the poha shouldn’t sit for more than 10 minutes (or it will get mushy).
2. Heat the oil in a wok and add black mustard seeds. When they pop, add the peanuts and cook on medium heat till the peanuts turn lightly golden.
3. Then add the onion, curry leaf and green chili. Sauté on medium heat till the onion is translucent.
4. Then add the cubed potatoes or green peas, if using. Stir well.
5. Sprinkle turmeric and salt. Stir and cook for a few seconds.
6. Add the drained poha and lime juice. Cook on low heat for about 3 minutes.
7. Garnish with chopped cilantro.