Upma, uppumavu, or uppittu is a dish originating from the

Indian subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a list of the physiographic regions of the world, physiographical region in United Nations geoscheme for Asia#Southern Asia, Southern Asia. It is situated on the Indian Plate, projecting southwards into the Indian O ...

, most common in

Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...

Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (, abbr. AP) is a state in the south-eastern coastal region of India. It is the seventh-largest state by area covering an area of and tenth-most populous state with 49,386,799 inhabitants. It is bordered by Telangana to the ...

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a state in southern India. It is the tenth largest Indian state by area and the sixth largest by population. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu is the home of the Tamil people, whose Tamil language ...

Telangana Telangana (; , ) is a state in India situated on the south-central stretch of the Indian peninsula on the high Deccan Plateau. It is the eleventh-largest state and the twelfth-most populated state in India with a geographical area of and 3 ...

Karnataka Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...

, Maharashtrian, and Sri Lankan Tamil breakfast, cooked as a thick porridge from dry-roasted

semolina Semolina is coarsely milled durum wheat mainly used in making couscous, and sweet puddings. The term semolina is also used to designate coarse millings of other varieties of wheat, and sometimes other grains (such as rice or corn) as well. Ety ...

or coarse rice flour. Various seasonings and/ vegetables are often added during the cooking, depending on individual preferences.

Etymology

The different names for the dish derive from the combinations of word ''uppu'', meaning salt in

Dravidian languages The Dravidian languages (or sometimes Dravidic) are a family of languages spoken by 250 million people, mainly in southern India, north-east Sri Lanka, and south-west Pakistan. Since the colonial era, there have been small but significant ...

, And ''mavu'' means ground grain meal in Tamil. In

North India North India is a loosely defined region consisting of the northern part of India. The dominant geographical features of North India are the Indo-Gangetic Plain and the Himalayas, which demarcate the region from the Tibetan Plateau and Central ...

, the dish is called ''upma''. In Maharashtra the dish traditionally had the name ''saanja'' in Marathi.

Ingredients and preparation

Upma is typically made by first lightly dry roasting

(called '' rava'' or ''sooji'' in India). The semolina is then taken off the fire and kept aside while spices, lentils, onion, ginger, etc are sautéed in oil or ghee. The semolina is then added back to the pan and mixed thoroughly. Boiling water is added, and the mixture is stirred until the semolina absorbs the liquid and becomes fluffy in texture. There are several ways in which upma is made, and the variations are obtained by either adding or removing spices and vegetables. The texture can vary significantly as well, depending on how much water is added to it, and how long the mixture is allowed to remain on the flame thereafter.

Major variations

Semolina upma

The most popular version with wide variations of upma are made with whole or refined ground

made out of

durum wheat Durum wheat (), also called pasta wheat or macaroni wheat (''Triticum durum'' or ''Triticum turgidum'' subsp. ''durum''), is a tetraploid species of wheat. It is the second most cultivated species of wheat after common wheat, although it represe ...

. Sometimes a wide range of vegetables may be added, and may be garnished with a variety of beans (raw or sprouted), cashew and peanuts. For a variation called ''masala upma'' (known as ''kharabath'' in Karnataka), sambar masala or

garam masala Garam masala Hindustani_language.html"_;"title="rom_Hindustani_language">Hindustani_/_(''garm_masala'',_"hot_spices")is_a_Spice_mix.html" ;"title="Hindustani language">Hindustani / (''garm masala'', "hot spices")">Hindustani_language.html" ;"tit ...

is added along with red

chilli powder Chili powder (also spelled chile, chilli, or, alternatively, powdered chili) is the dried, pulverized fruit of one or more varieties of chili pepper, sometimes with the addition of other spices (in which case it is also sometimes known as chili p ...

, instead of green chillies. This variety is more popular in Karnataka, Maharastra, Tamil Nadu and parts of Andhra Pradesh and is usually served in South Indian restaurants. Uppumavu paired with hand mashed banana is a common breakfast item in

homes.

Whole wheat upma

Whole wheat or wheat dalia (cracked wheat) is a common variation of upma in Tamil Nadu, where it is eaten for breakfast or dinner. Sometimes it is cooked with vegetables like peas, carrots, and beans.

Upma Pesarattu

Upma Pesarattu is the most popular version in

Yanam Yanam (Telugu: ''యానాం'') is a town located in the Yanam district in Puducherry. It has a population of 35,000 and is entirely surrounded by Andhra Pradesh. It was formerly a French colony for nearly 200 years, and, though united ...

and

. The dish contains Upma and Pesarattu combined. The upma is eaten by wrapping it in the Pesarattu.

Rice upma

Rice upma, which is mainly popular in Tamil Nadu and southern parts of Karnataka, is referred to as ''akki tari uppittu'' (rice coarse flour uppittu). Another variant of upma is prepared with grated coconut instead of onions, especially on holy days, when onion is avoided. This type of upma is generally smeared with ghee at the end of preparation. Dishes similar to upma can be made by substituting small crumbs of leftover bread or

idli Idli or idly () is a type of savoury rice cake, originating from the South India,popular as breakfast foods in Southern India and in Sri Lanka. The cakes are made by steaming a batter consisting of fermented black lentils (de-husked) and ric ...

instead of flour. Upma made from coarser rava known as ''sajjige'' is a dish of

Udupi cuisine Udupi cuisine is a cuisine of South India. It forms an important part of Tuluva cuisine and takes its name from Udupi, a city on the southwest coast of India in the Tulunadu region. Udupi cuisine is strictly vegetarian and has its origin in th ...

. It is sometimes served along with snacks such as sautéed and spiced poha or chevdo.

Corn upma

Another variation, particularly as a breakfast dish, is corn upma, eaten with milk and nuts.

Kesari bhath

, upma is also served with another common sweet dish of Karnataka,

kesari bhath Kesari bat or kesari baat ( kn, ಕೇಸರಿ ಬಾತ್) is a sweet Indian food that is common throughout the country. The classic ingredients used for its preparation are semolina, sugar, ghee (usually), water, and milk. The sweet is more com ...

(ಕೇಸರಿ ಬಾತ್), with a scoop of each on one plate, in a presentation commonly called "chow chow bath".

Aval upma/Atukula upma

, upma made with

flattened rice Flattened rice is a type of rice dish made from raw, toasted, or parboiled rice grains pounded into flat flakes. They are eaten as is, toasted, fried, or used as ingredients or toppings for other dishes. Depending on their use, they can be crispy, ...

in substitution to semolina this dish is popularly called as Aval upmavu in

Malayalam Malayalam (; , ) is a Dravidian languages, Dravidian language spoken in the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry (union territory), Puducherry (Mahé district) by the Malayali people. It is one of 2 ...

(അവൽ ഉപ്പുമാവ്) & Atukulu upma (అటుకులు ఉప్మా) in Telugu. This variant is also known as aval upma in the Chennai region when made with rice flakes similar to poha.

Vermicelli upma

A popular light evening snack is upma made with

vermicelli Vermicelli (; , , also , ) is a traditional type of pasta round in section similar to spaghetti. In English-speaking regions it is usually thinner than spaghetti, while in Italy it is typically thicker. The term ''vermicelli'' is also used to ...

and tomato, peas and carrot.

Upma served with ghugni

In most parts of

Odisha Odisha (English: , ), formerly Orissa ( the official name until 2011), is an Indian state located in Eastern India. It is the 8th largest state by area, and the 11th largest by population. The state has the third largest population of ...

, a popular breakfast consists of sooji upma served with

ghugni Ghugni ( bn, ঘুগ্নি, or, ଘୁଗ୍ନି) or ghuguni ( as, ঘুগুনি, or, ଘୁଗୁନି) is a curry made of peas or chickpeas. Different variations of the dish use different types of peas or chickpaes, such as blac ...

References

{{Wheat South Indian cuisine Karnataka cuisine Telangana cuisine Tamil cuisine Andhra cuisine Porridges Kerala cuisine Sri Lankan porridges