Street-Style Poha

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What is Poha?

Poha (known as flattened/parched/beaten rice) is India’s most popular breakfast dish (especially in North and Western India). It is simply parboiled rice that has been flattened into light and dry flakes. These flakes are stir-fried with tempered mustard seeds (rai), curry leaves and green chillies to make a delicious meal called poha! The word poha refers to flattened rice and the dish made with it too!

Poha is a vegan, gluten-free and nutritious filling meal. It is such a quick and easy recipe to make. You only need to steam flattened rice with some vegetables and spices. It almost requires no cooking at all. Traditional poha tastes great, but with the added street-style elements such as pomegranate, peanuts and desiccated coconut, alongside a squeeze of lemon, adds an extra twist to my poha recipe! I promise you that when you eat this poha, you will experience a burst of flavour with every bite! This poha is sweet, salty, sour, crunchy, crispy - all at the same time!

This traditional, delicious, nutritious and low-calorie dish is eaten all across India with so many variations. Some popular poha dishes include Maharashtrian kanda batata (uses onions and potatoes), Kanda poha (uses onions only), Dadhe poha (uses fresh coconut), Indori poha (uses fennel seeds), Gopalkala (uses curd), Huli avalakki/khara avalakki (uses more spices), Nagpuri tarri poha (served with a masala gravy called tarri), Karwar-Style phodni phov (red rice poha using cashew nuts) and Gojju avalakki poha (uses tamarind), amongst many others.

What is this called Street-Style Poha?

This poha is inspired by my visit to Indore (India) in 2019. Apart from potatoes, onions and peas (that you generally find in poha recipes), the street vendors also added peanuts, pomegranate and desiccated coconut which gave it an amazing flavour and crunchiness. This is why I call this the street-style poha.

Does Poha come in different types?

Yes they do! You can find poha in various thicknesses including thin, medium or thick. I generally prefer using thick poha for all my poha recipes because they are so much easier to cook with and don’t end up mushy when cooked.

When you use thin poha, they become really soft after washing them. When you try to cook them, they become even softer and start to break apart. They become so mushy at the end and look nowhere close to poha! Having said that, some recipes call for thin or medium poha, so definitely have a read through before buying a pack!

Poha also comes in different colours - white and red. White poha is more commonly found and consumed in comparison to red poha. Red poha is made from red rice and is slightly coarse in texture compared to white poha; however, you can use them interchangeably in any recipe!

Can I add other vegetables to my Poha?

Generally, red onions, potatoes and peas are the only vegetables added to poha. However, nowadays, you find a lot of people adding other vegetables such as carrots and corn to poha. Whatever vegetables you are using, make sure to chop them finely as you don’t want big chunks of veggies in your poha.

Do you need specific onions to make Poha?

You can use any type of onions to make poha, however red onions work best for making a scrumptious poha!

Why is my Poha mushy?

There could be 2 reasons for your poha being mushy:

Over soaking or over rinsing the poha can cause it to be mushy.
Using the wrong type of poha (thin) can also cause your dish to be mushy.

My Poha is too dry, how do I fix it?

If you feel your poha is too dry after being cooked, drizzle a teaspoon of oil or sprinkle some water. Do not overdo as your poha might become greasy or even mushy!

I can’t find curry leaves, can I skip them?

Don’t worry if you can’t find curry leaves, you can absolutely skip them! You can make delicious poha without it too.

Can you skip on the sugar?

Sugar helps to balance the flavours. In order for your poha to have the right balance of flavours, you need the sugar. Hence, I don’t recommend you to skip it.

I’m allergic to peanuts, can I skip it?

Yes, you can! If you’re allergic to peanuts, you can add roasted cashew nuts instead to add that crunch to your poha. Otherwise, just skip them completely.

What type of oil should I use to make Poha?

There isn’t a particular oil for this, however I do recommend using any flavourless oil such as sunflower or vegetable oil. I’m not fond of using olive oil for this recipe because it changes the taste and the colour of the poha!

Do you need to cook the vegetables beforehand?

No! You can boil the potatoes separately if you want, but I find it too much of a hassle. It doesn’t save much time, and instead results in more dishes to clean. For the peas, I’ve used frozen ones, hence there is no need for it to be cooked beforehand.

Is Poha meant to be eaten for breakfast?

Traditionally, poha is generally eaten for breakfast or as a snack, however you can eat it whenever you want! I love making this for dinner too since they’re so light, healthy and delicious.

How do I serve the Poha?

Poha does not need any accompaniment. You can either serve it warm or at room temperature topped with various ingredients. The toppings include sev, coriander, peanuts, pomegranate and desiccated coconut, together with a lemon wedge on the side.

What else can you make with Poha/flattened rice?

You can use poha (flattened rice) to make other popular Indian dishes including chivda, upma, dosa, idli and many others. However, poha remains one of most commonly eaten dishes made with flattened rice. You can also make a sweet version called Meetha poha. It tastes equally good.

Today, it's quite common to see fried rice being made with poha! Since poha is light and has low calorie, it is a great rice substitute and tastes incredible when you make it in fried rice style using a wok.

Can I make the Poha in advance and is it possible to store it?

Poha is best served fresh and warm! Hence, I would recommend you to make them whenever you want to eat them. If you prepare them in the morning, make sure you consume them by the end of the day. They might become stale if you keep them at room temperature until the next day. If you live in a humid country, they might not even last until dinner. Hence, it’s better to eat them when they are freshly made, or within a few hours of cooking them.

However, if you really need to make it in advance, you can store it in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days. It is worth noting that poha dries up as time passes by. So, when you are ready to eat it, sprinkle some water before reheating it to bring back the moisture.

Any substitute for the ingredients mentioned?

There are no substitutes for the ingredients required to make the poha, however there are a number of ingredients that you can skip if you don’t have them at hand. Some of these ingredients include peanuts, desiccated coconut, pomegranate, sev, green chilli, coriander and lemon wedge/lemon juice. Although skipping some of these elements makes the poha incomplete, you can still enjoy a delicious serving of poha without them!

Any cooking tips for this recipe?

Make sure to rinse the poha before you start. Rinse until the poha is clean and soft. This helps to remove all the dirt, helps to ensure the poha cooks really quickly and also makes them fluffy.
If your poha has dried out after rinsing it, sprinkle some water over it.
Use thick poha as thin poha will turn mushy very easily.
Chop your onions finely, as well as dice your potatoes into small cubes. You don’t want big chunks of vegetables in your poha.
Don’t compromise on the oil when cooking poha. It helps prevent the poha from drying up.
Don’t skip on the lemon juice. Poha is incomplete without a squeeze of fresh lemon juice.
Don’t skip on the peanuts and pomegranate as they give the poha an extra crunch and a burst of flavour.
Garnish your poha with as much of your favourite sev as you like. There is nothing as too much sev. For those who have never heard of or tried sev, it's another popular Indian snack - basically small crunchy noodles made from chickpea flour paste.