Fluffy Vegetable Rava Upma (Sooji Upma)

Vegetable Rava Upma (Sooji Upma, Savory Semolina Porridge) is a popular Indian breakfast dish made using fine semolina, onions, mild spices, and a few more ingredients. It is filling and nutritious and comes together in under 20 minutes. My recipe makes the best fluffy and non-sticky upma in a jiffy (vegetarian).

Jump to:

• About Rava Upma
• Ingredients
• How To Make Rava Upma
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Variations
• Serving Suggestions
• Storage Suggestions
• You Might Also Like
• Recipe Card

About Rava Upma

Vegetable Rava Upma (Sooji Upma) is a thick and fluffy savory porridge made using rava (semolina, sooji), veggies, fresh ginger, curry leaves, and a few more simple ingredients.

This South Indian breakfast recipe is easy to make, delicious, and comes together in just 20 minutes.

Traditionally known as Uppumavu, Uppuma, Uppindi, or Uppittu, it is served for everyday breakfast with kesari bath(sweet semolina pudding) or with a side of coconut chutney or podi and filter coffee.

Not only South Indian homes but restaurants, darshinies (roadside South Indian eateries), and tiffin centers also have it on their menu.

Traditionally rava upma is made using wheat semolina (rava) but you can make many versions using bread, vermicelli, flattened rice (poha), oats, etc.

This Indian semolina porridge is loaded with vegetables, which make it nutritious, filling, and wholesome. You can totally skip the veggies and make a simple version.

A well-made upma is non-sticky and is bursting with flavors from spices. This dish is very simple to make OR BREAK. If made properly by following the recipe and measurements correctly, you can make fabulous sooji upma at home but if the measurements are off, it will turn into a goopy mess.

But worry not, my step-by-step recipe will break down each and every step for you in detail. Just follow it to the T and make the best rava upma ever.

This recipe can be easily doubled or tripled. Just adjust the ingredients; the time of cooking will remain almost the same.

Here are some more breakfast recipes that you must try

• Paniyaram
• Aloo Poha
• Rava Appe
• Sooji Balls
• Egg Idli
• Rava Idli
• Besan Chilla
• Masala Paratha
• Ven Pongal

Ingredients

You will get all the ingredients in your nearby Indian grocery store.

Rava – Rava is also called semolina, cream of wheat, or sooji. It comes in multiple thicknesses but to make rava upma, always choose fine semolina or barik rava. It is also called upma rava or Bombay rava.

Try to buy roasted rava as it has a better shelf life and it also cut down the roasting time in the recipe.

Ghee – You will need some fat to roast the semolina. I highly recommend using ghee (clarified butter) as it lends a very nice flavor to the final dish. However, if you want to make a vegan version, use any plant-based oil instead.

For Tempering – A tempering of brown mustard seeds, curry leaves, nuts, and lentils gives it a nice flavor and crunch.

Split and skinned black lentils (white urad dal), Bengal gram (chana dal), and nuts like cashew nuts or peanuts add a lovely crunch to the otherwise soft upma and I highly recommend adding these to your recipe.

Other Ingredients – I have also added red onions, green chillies, fresh ginger, and a few veggies to my recipe. But you can feel free to skip these and make a plain and simple upma. 

I generally add carrot, green beans, and peas which are traditionally added to it but feel free to add broccoli, mushroom, cauliflower, zucchini, etc.

Hot water – The proportion of water to semolina is very important for the right texture of rava upma. I always use 2.5 cups of boiling hot water per cup of semolina and it gives me perfectly fluffy and non-sticky upma every single time.

Cilantro and Lime – Do add chopped cilantro (fresh coriander leaves) at the end to make it even more flavorful. Adding a little freshly squeezed lime juice balances the flavors very well.

How To Make Rava Upma

Preparations

Break cashew nuts into halves.

Chop a small red onion, and 1 small green chili, and grate a small piece of ginger using the small hole of a grater.

Peel a carrot and cut it into ⅛-inch cubes. Cut green beans into ⅛ inch pieces and rinse ¼ cup frozen green peas with water.

Keep 3 cups of water for boiling on the other stove. We will need 2.5 cups of boiling hot water.

Gather the remaining ingredients.

Roast The Semolina

Heat 1 teaspoon ghee in a pan over medium-low heat.

Note – You can use vegetable oil for a vegan version, however, best upma is made in ghee.

Add 1 cup fine semolina to the pan and mix it well with the ghee by stirring and mashing the clumps with the back of a ladle.

Note – You can also roast the semolina without ghee but this step of adding a little ghee makes sure the upma is not gooey and is perfectly fluffy.

Roast the semolina until it turns very light brown in color (3-4 minutes). Keep stirring continuously so that it roasts evenly without getting burned at the bottom of the pan.

Note – Do not over roast the semolina otherwise the upma will turn dark in color. Do not leave roasted semolina in the pan otherwise, it will keep browning from the heat of the pan.

Transfer the roasted rava to a plate and keep it aside. 

Tip – You can roast the semolina in bulk, cool it, and store it in an airtight container for up to a month. Use it whenever you want. It will save you some time.

Make The Upma

Wipe the same pan with a paper towel to get rid of any semolina sticking to it and add the remaining ghee to it. Heat it over medium-high heat.

Tip – Do not reduce the amount of ghee otherwise the upma will not turn out fluffy.

Once the ghee is hot, add

• 1 teaspoon brown mustard seeds,
• 15-20 curry leaves
• 1 teaspoon split, and skinned black lentils (white urad dal)
• 1 teaspoon Bengal gram (chana dal)
• 8-10 halved cashew nuts

and saute until they turn slightly brown (1-2 minutes).

Add ½ cup chopped red onions, 2 teaspoon chopped green chilies, and 1 teaspoon grated ginger, and fry until the onions turn pinkish in color (2-3 minutes). Keep stirring frequently.

Add ¼ cup cubed carrots, ¼ cup chopped green beans, and ¼ cup green peas, and cook for 3-4 minutes. Keep stirring frequently.

Note – I like my veggies crunchy, so I cook them for very little time. If you like them soft, then cover the pan and cook for 6-8 minutes until they are tender.

Now add 2.5 cups of boiling hot water, ½ teaspoon sugar, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1-½ teaspoon freshly squeezed lime juice to the pan and bring the mixture to a boil.

Tip – To check if the salt is enough for your taste, taste the water. If you like the saltiness, it is fine, otherwise, add more salt as per your liking.

Reduce the heat to low.

Slowly add the roasted semolina and keep mixing while adding to avoid the formation of lumps. Make sure to mix it well and take care that there are no lumps. Preferably mix in one direction.

Cover the pan with a lid. Covering the pan is important as it will let the semolina soak up the water and become soft.

Cook for 5-8 minutes on low heat until semolina absorbs the water and is cooked completely. 

Remove the pan from heat and let it rest for 4-5 minutes with the lid on. 

Remove the lid, fluff the upma with a fork, garnish with 1 tablespoon chopped cilantro (coriander), and serve hot.

Frequently Asked Questions

Variations

You can make many variations of rava upma by replacing semolina with other ingredients such as dalia upma (broken wheat), sabudana upma (tapioca pearls), ragi upma, leftover idli upma, oats upma, vermicelli upma, puffed rice upma, or even bread upma. The cooking time is different for each grain though.

You can add more vegetables to make it healthier and more filling. 

Add tomatoes and spices such as turmeric powder and red chili powder to make a spicy masala upma. 

Grind cilantro, mint leaves, and green chili peppers and add the paste to the upma to make a coriander mint upma. It also gives it a beautiful green color. 

You can add pureed tomatoes and make a flavorful tomato upma.

Serving Suggestions

Suji ka upma is best served with Coconut Chutney and a hot cup of Filter Coffee or Adrak Wali Chai. Do try the Red Coconut Chutney or Green Coconut Chutney with the upma for a change.

The North Indian in me likes to top mine with some sev and also likes to eat it with tomato ketchup. Green Chutney will also go well with it.

You can also serve it with spicy Bombay Chutney. Some households even serve it with pickle, the most popular being lemon pickle. 

You can also sprinkle some South Indian podi like Idli Podi, Karivepaku Podi, or Andhra Style Peanut Chutney Powder. Do not forget to drizzle some extra ghee on top.

Storage Suggestions

Rava upma tastes best when served fresh, but in case you have leftovers you can store them in an airtight container for about 2-3 days.

It tends to get dry after refrigerating, so before reheating add in a little water and mix well.

You can either reheat it in a pan on a stovetop or in a microwave until nice and warm.

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