Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Flaxseed/linseed aval upma

This is the third recipe using flaxseeds that I'm posting here in as many weeks... I haven't gone totally flaxseed crazy, honest. I do have other posts to write, and I have made other things (NOT using flaxseeds!) that need to be posted on my blog. But I'm still feeling an inexplicable antipathy to editing the darn photos, especially if there are lots of photos to choose from, and lots of photos to use with each recipe. Part of the problem is having to use a new photo editing tool (Picnik, free and online, which Nupur mentioned in a comment and which I latched on to quicker than quick) which seems slower than what I was using. Not that Picnik is difficult to use, it's just different... and yes, I'm just cribbing because I can... simbly only.

So yeah, before my solitary (but persistent) troll, who has cribbed before about the number and the quality of pics I use for each recipe, suggests that I use NO pix at all and thus resolve my anti-editing issues, I hasten to say that YES, that would be one solution. The other solution would be to perhaps cut down on the number of pics for each recipe... but I'm averse to doing that too. What I need is for someone to take over and kindly edit my photos. Actually what I need is someone who will take AND edit the photos, thereby hopefully making my blog a thing of beauty... but sadly that is not going to happen any time soon. *deep sigh* So until then I'm going to be posting recipes which have only a few instructions, and therefore only a few photos!

So, about today's recipe - the upma is really quite nice. But I'd probably powder the roasted flaxseeds next time, so as to release their aroma and flavour. (This is an older recipe than the previous one, and I hadn't discovered that powdered roasted flaxseeds are far superior in taste and aroma!)


PS. If you're wondering why there are no trolly comments to be seen on any of my posts, it's because I delete them. Not because they're critical of my efforts, but because the troll chooses to stay anonymous. I'll be damned if I let a coward take up any space on my blog.

Recipe for:
Flaxseed aval/poha upma

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Ingredients:

1 cup aval/poha/beaten rice
2 tbsp golden flaxseeds/linseeds
1 tsp chana dal
1 tsp urad dal (I used whole)
1 medium onion, chopped finely
3-4 green chillies (or to taste), sliced finely
3 tsp oil

2 tbsp chopped coriander leaves

Handful of red peanuts with skin
salt to taste
lemon juice to taste

Method:

1. Soak the chana dal and urad dal in hot water for 15 minutes.

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2. Rinse the aval/poha in water once or twice, sprinkle with 3-4 tbsp water and set aside covered so that the aval can absorb the water and rehydrate. The soaked aval/poha should be soft but not gooey or sticky.

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3. Heat 2 tsp oil in a pan and add the asafoetida powder, mustard seeds and green chillies. Cover the pan and let the mustard seeds pop. Add the chana and urad dals (drained), and fry them for 3-4 minutes. Then add the chopped onions and stir-fry till they are soft and cooked.

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4. Add the soaked softened aval/poha to the pan and stir it in.

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5. Add the dry-roasted linseeds/flaxseeds and mix that in as well, along with salt to taste.

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and the chopped coriander. Sprinkle lemon/lime juice to taste and mix it in.

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6. Fry the peanuts separately in the remaining tsp oil till they emit a nice aroma and the skin turns a shiny dark red. Scatter them over the poha and serve the finished upma for a snack or a light meal.

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5 comments:

Unknown said...

wow.. looks delicious..nice clicks..

Anonymous said...

Is there a name for linseed or flaxseed in tamil? :)

-San

Maaya said...

looks amazing, i love Poha
yummy!

Unknown said...

Am defintely making this. Have a packet of flax seed lying around for long!

Irene said...

Hi- recipe looks great! Pictures are great too (ignore the Troll). I just started cooking with flax seed and am looking for more ways to use it. If I use with stir fry, do you recommend adding it in at the very end to prevent 'cooking' it?