Pat is taking a box of Cream of Wheat (or farina) to the next level by cooking it Indian style! With a few spices, cream of wheat is transformed into a common flavorful Indian breakfast dish called upma. You can make a pot of upma for brunch, along with Indian eggs on toast, fresh fruit, rosemary potatoes, and a stack of pancakes! Pat hopes you enjoy this special dish next time you make breakfast or brunch!
2 tablespoons oil (olive oil, vegetable or canola)
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon black mustard seeds
1 tablespoon white urad dal (dried white lentils) (optional)
1 tablespoon yellow channa dal (dried yellow chickpeas) (optional)
1 sprig of curry leaves (it’s ok if you don’t have it)
2 dried red chili peppers (optional)
2 cups water
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup cream of wheat
1 lime
1/4 cup salted cashews
Directions
The first step happens fast, so have your ingredients ready so the cumin seeds don't burn. If using curry leaves, hold the top of the stem in one hand, and use your other hand to run your fingers down the stem to break off the leaves directly into the saucepan. The urad dal, channa dal, curry leaves and red chili pepper are optional. They give more flavor and crunch, but you can still enjoy this dish simply with cumin seeds and black mustard seeds
Pour the oil into a medium saucepan and place over medium heat. When the oil is heated, quickly add the cumin seeds, mustard seeds, urad dal, channa dal, curry leaves and red chili peppers. Stir to combine and let the cumin seeds brown, about 30 seconds. Do not let the cumin seeds burn and turn black
Immediately add the water and salt. Stir to combine. Increase the heat to high and bring the water to a rolling boil
Slowly pour the cream of wheat into the boiling water while stirring with your other hand. This is important to avoid giant clumps. Keep stirring for 1 minute after all the cream of wheat is added. It will thicken as you stir
Turn off the heat and let rest for 2 minutes on the hot stove to further thicken (do not stir as it rests.)
