Jowar Upma | Jonna Rava Upma | Sorghum Upma | Jolada Uppittu

Jowar Upma or Jonna Rava Upma is a savoury pudding or Upma with Sorghum or Jowar / Millet grits. Gluten Free, served as a filling breakfast or snack in South Indian Cuisine.

Upma is usually a hit or miss in (South) Indian households, although many North Indian friends I know of enjoy upma. At home, although mom and me love it anytime, with the husband and kids they will eat this if I don't present any other alternative (and I don't present any other alternative too).

Upma for most folks I know is mockingly called concrete. I remember my grandmom saying that if you can make upma delish and welcome, most foods are a winner at home, and I cannot absolutely fault her words when tasty upma triumphs a lot of dishes at home (personally for me :-)) Operative word being tasty 🙂

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Varieties of Upma you could make at home

We make variants of upma based on the grain / form of the grain - like usual Rava / Semolina Upma, add seasonal veggies like avarekallu (hyacinth bean) during the brief winters. Or make millet based like today's Jowar Upma , Varagu (Barnyard millet) Upma or the semiya / Vermicelli Upma or with Rice Rava (broken Rice grits) .

Sometimes, I add a tomato puree to this and make Godhuma Rava Tomato Upma (durum wheat tomato upma) or add whole spices and make a veggie loaded Kharabhath with a flavourful spice powder (a mainstay of Karnataka cuisine). The husband man for all his not-a -fan-of-upma club stance loves the Bread Upma and Kharabhath made at home regularly.

Coming to this dish, it was very well receieved. I have been experimenting with Sorghum Rava / Broken Sorghum / Jolada Rave with Jowar Idli, so I was very confident that this Upma would turn out delish too. And it did.

If you are a fan of Upma and / or looking for more healthy breakfasts with millets , click on the following links:

Let's get to making this quick breakfast with millet. The process is almost the same as making Rava Upma, but with a few twists and tips as listed below.

Prep time - 10 mins, Cook time - 15. mins, Serves - 2

Cuisine - South Indian ; Course - Breakfast / Snack / Light Dinner / evening Tiffins

Tips to make tasty and delish Jowar upma:

1. wipe the store bough grits / rava once with a clean and soft white cloth before using. Sometimes, it can contain dust / small stones which can come with milling
2. Add the boiling water to the pan and than add the jowar rava. Else the upma could turn lumpy
3. Unlike Sooji / Semolina upma, this rava needn't be roasted before using.
4. Any combo of veggies can be used. I haven't used tomato here, but you can saute that with other veggies if you prefer.
5. Store Jowar rava in an airtight container in a cool place. Use the pack quickly as it turns rancid quickly.

What you need for Jowar Upma

• 1 cup Jowar Rava (you can get this online / major supermarkets / local groceries depending on your location)
• 2 tablespoon Oil
• 1 teaspoon bengal gram (Channa dal)
• 1 teaspoon split black gram (Urad dal)
• 1 teaspoon Ghee (sub with 1 teaspoon oil for vegan version)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ½ cup mixed vegetables (I used carrots ,peas, french beans)
• 1 Onion (medium, minced, optional)
• 1 tablespoon cashews (halved, optional)
• 1 teaspoon chillies (minced)
• 1 teaspoon ginger (minced)
• 1 sprig curryleaves
• ½ teaspoon turmeric
• 1 teaspoon Coriander leaves (minced)
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice

How to make Jowar Upma

1. Heat ½ teaspoon oil in a pan, and fry the halved cashews till they are golden brown.
2. In the same pan, add the rest of the oil.
3. Splutter mustard seeds, urad dal and channa dal
4. Once dals are golden brown, add the curry leaves, onions and minced ginger
5. Let the onions turn translucent
6. Then add the veggies and salt. saute for 3-4 mins
7. Add ¼ cup of water and let the veggies cook through
8. You can skip above step if veggies are already steamed.
9. Now add 3 cups boiling water to the veggies.
10. Slowly pour in the jowar rava / sorgum semolina and whisk well till no lumps are formed.
11. Cover and cook on medium heat for 8-9 mins till done
12. FInish with sauteed cashews, minced coriander leaves and lemon juice
13. If using ghee, add at the end to give it a wonderful finish. Else skip.
14. Serve hot for breakfast or a snack
15. The upma is spicy and flavourful on its own. If can however be enjoyed with some lemon or mango pickle too.

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