Bread Upma

Bread Upma

Author: Rumki Paul
Course: Breakfast or Snacks
Cuisine: South Indian
Preparation Time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 20 minutes
Total time: 25 minutes
Servings: 2-3 Persons

Bread Upma is a very famous South Indian dish. You can have it either for breakfast or even for evening snacks as well. Upma is a spicy South Indian dish made with Semolina. Bread upma is an adaption of this original dish. But, it is equally as popular as Rawa Upma.

Bread Upma is not only very easy to prepare, but at the same time, it is yummy too. In most of the houses, people have bread slices quite regularly. So, Bread upma can be a great option to your regular breakfast or snacks. It can even be prepared by using up the leftover bread slices as well and this forms the best part of the dish.

First time that I had this dish was when I was in Pune. I newly got married then and my husband served me this delicious dish as a breakfast for the very first time. I was really amazed but its taste. I only had bread as Toast, Sandwich or Pakoda before this. I could never think of bread being used to prepare Upma in the wildest of my dreams.

Normally, white bread is used to prepare Bread Upma in tiffin centres and shops. I have also used white bread to prepare this dish. But you can use any bread according to your own preference. It can opt from any other breads like Brown bread, Wholemeal bread or Multigrain bread .

To prepare a good Bread Upma, it is very important to toast the bread slices before mixing it with masala or else the Upma may become soggy. Toasting is one of the best option to remove the raw smell of bread slices too.

Bread Upma is small toasted pieces of bread tossed in Onions, Tomatoes, green Chillies and spices. I have added green and red Bell Peppers to make the dish more colourful. The tempered Mustard seeds and Curry leaves, with Onions and Ginger paste creates an irresistible aroma. To add little sweetness, I have used sweet corn but it is totally optional. But according to me, it complements the taste of the dish quite well. The tanginess of Tomatoes, hotness of Chillies and the sweetness of Corn, all together creates a magical taste inside your mouth.

Ingredients:

• 6 pieces of Bread, cut into cubes
• 1 large Onion, small diced
• 1 Tomato, deseeded and chopped
• ½ green Bell Pepper, small diced
• ½ red Bell Pepper, small diced
• 1 green Chilli, chopped
• 2 tablespoons Sweetcorn
• 1 teaspoon Ginger, grated or pasted
• 3 tablespoons Cilantro, finely chopped
• ½ teaspoon Mustard seeds
• 3-4 Curry leaves
• ¼ teaspoon Turmeric powder
• ½ teaspoon Cumin powder (Jeera)
• Salt to taste
• Oil for cooking

1. Toast both sides of the Breads in a pan until it becomes light brown and crispy. You can also use Toaster instead of pan.
   

2. Transfer the Breads on a plate and allow them to cool down.
3. Cut the sides of the Breads and keep them aside.
   

4. Cut the Bread into small cubes.
   

5. Add 1 tablespoon of Oil into the pan in high flame.
6. Once the Oil is hot, add Mustard seeds and Curry leaves and let them crackle.
   

7. Add the diced Onions and cook it for 2 minutes in medium high flame until it becomes translucent.
   

8. Add Ginger paste into the pan and cook it for another minute till the raw smell goes away.
   

9. Add Sweet corn and sauté for another minute.
   

10. Add red and green Bell Peppers and mix it well.
    

11. Add Tomatoes and cook it for 2 minutes in low medium flame.
12. Add Turmeric powder and salt and mix it well.
    

13. Cover the pan and cook it for couple of minutes in low flame.
14. Add Cumin powder (Jeera) and mix it properly.
    

15. Cook it for another minute.
16. Add Bread cubes (Step 4) and Cilantro.
    

17. Mix it thoroughly until the Bread cubes get coded with masala.