Chicken Upma

  













Upma is unfortunately a less privileged dish with many...people frown at the mention of the name Upma....Probably the frown came because of all those who manipulated it to miserable clones, especially in the hostel menus....Upma being an easy dish for bulk cooking it often takes a place in the menus of several hostels and school(eg.,Kerala govt's Upma Program for the school children)...I love upma and feel sad at the ill reputation that it suffers because of a few mishandlers....You can make really heavenly upmas with Semolina(Rava) or with Vermicelli(Semiya)....Semiya upma is considered to be of a better class as considered to poor semolina...Those who are strongly prejudiced against Upma and if they prefer anything in the name of Non-veg this is a recipe worth trying...Well, I should say that this indeed is a travesty in the name of Upma...far from the Original....but definitely tasty...


Ingredients

Vermicelli-2 cups(broken)
Boiled water-1 1/2 cup
Ginger+Green chillies-50g
bay leaves-2
Aniseed-2(broken0
Garam masala-1 tsp
Chicken-250g
Onion-2 medium(chopped)
Tomato-2 medium(chopped)
Ghee-2 tbsp
Salt-as required
Parsley-1 small bunch
Cashew-optional
Method

Brine the chicken pieces for 10minutes till they are cooked.Remove the flesh from the bone and shred it.Heat ghee in a wok,roast Vermicelli to golden brown colour.Heat ghee in another wok.Saute bay leaves, aniseed,garam masala,ginger,chillies,onion and tomatos in the same order.Once the tomatos have become soft add shredded chicken. Mix well with the remaining ingredients.Now add the roasted Vermicelli.Mix well.Add 1 1/2 cup boiled water. Mix well. Close the lid and allow it to cook.See to it that it doesnt stick to the vessel. Stir well and finally garnish with roasted cashews and chopped parsley.Serve it with grilled chicken and tomato sauce.


Here is the recipe for the real Upma:

Semolina/Rava-1 cups
Salted,Boiled water-2 cups
Green chillies-4
Ginger-25 g(Pounded)
Dry Red chillies-2
Curry leaves-1 sprig
Black gram dal-1/2 tsp
Mustard -1/2 tsp
Cashew-25g(optional)
coriander leaves-2 sprigs
Ghee-2tbsp

Method:

Roast the semolina in ghee till it changes colour slightly.Leave it to cool.Now heat oil/ghee in a deep bottomed wok. Add mustard, dry red chilli,black gram dal, cashew, curry leaves, green chilli and ginger.Saute it for a couple of minutes till you get a fine aroma.Now add boiling water to this seasoning. Mix well. Allow it to boil for a minute. Now add the roasted semolina slowly and keep mixing it with the other hand. See to it that there are no lumps...Mix well.Close the lid and cook till the rava is done. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve it hot with chutney or pazham puzhungiyathu or plantain(Kerala style).