Feb 20, 2011

Lemon Poha / Aval

The humble aval / avalakki / poha at its tangy best. An anytime meal / snack, kids and adults alike love the tang, the crunch of peanuts and it’s inviting colour. What I love best about this dish is the nutritive punch it delivers.
lemon poha
You need rinsed poha
  1. Medium thick poha – 2 cups, heaped
  2. Lemons – 2
  3. Turmeric powder – 1 tsp
  4. Hing powder – a good pinch
  5. Salt – 1 tsp or more
  6. Sugar – 2 tsp or more (optional)
For seasoning ingredients for seasoning
  1. Vegetable oil – 2 tbsp
  2. Mustard seeds – 1 tsp
  3. Urad dal – 1 tbsp
  4. Chana dal – 1 tbsp
  5. Peanuts – 2-3 tbsp
  6. Curry leaves – 7-10, torn up
  7. Green chillies – 3-4, slit lengthwise
  8. Coriander leaves – chopped, 3/4 cup
To assemble
  • Wash the poha under running water in a colander, allow the water to drain, set aside. 
rinsed poha in colander
  • Heat oil in a deep sauce pan, add ingredients for seasoning in order, save coriander leaves for later.
mustard crackling in oil  add urad dal,chana dal,peanutsadd curry leaves,chillies,hing and turmeric
  • Add the rinsed poha now, tip in sugar, salt, coriander leaves in this order and gently fold the mixture to avoid squishing the poha.
fold in poha gently
  • Now is when you can squeeze in juice of two lemons (you can increase or decrease quantity of juice as suits your taste). Fold in the mixture with a gentle hand until poha, lemon juice and seasonings are well incorporated.
Your tangy poha is ready to be gobbled down.
Tasty, tangy poha
Variations
  • This is my basic version of lemon poha. You can add any or all of these vegetables to the seasoning mixture to add variety to the dish – chopped green or any coloured capsicum (peppers), grated carrot, boiled green peas.
Nutri notes
When compared to raw rice -
  • Rice flakes /poha have twice the calcium  and three times the fibre content. 
  • Poha also has thrice the thiamin (Vitamin B1) and twice the niacin (Vitamin B ) content.
  • The absolute stunner comes from the whopping 20 times more iron than in raw rice!! Add to this the availability of copper too, poha is a nutrient storehouse.It is a valuable food for those who are – anaemic, sportspeople, teenagers, pregnant or lactating women.
  • With the presence of Copper at  0.37mg /100gm in poha, and with the addition of lemon juice (Vitamin C) in this recipe, the dish is an excellent iron source especially for vegetarians. Reason – Copper and and Vitamin C are necessary for iron absorption in the body.
  • Addition of dals and peanuts also add to the protein content of the meal, apart from adding texture.
  • The dish can be made more wholesome by adding boiled green peas (protein), boiled corn, capsicum or shredded carrots(vegetables).
I hope I have conveyed the importance of using poha in our weekly diet well enough. Do let me know what you think about the nutrition information I have given here.

23 comments:

divya said...

Awesome...Looks so tempting.,..Thanks for sharing

kitchen queen said...

mmmmmmmmmm! the poha upma looks very delicious and droolworthy and thanks for sharing the nutritive value of poha.

Rajani said...

Hi guys,Thanks for prompt response.Glad you liked the notes.

Priya Suresh said...

Never say no to this delicious lemon poha..inviting!

aipi said...

Wow… looks so inviting and I have my spoon ready to dig in…:)


US Masala

jayasree said...

Poha looks delicious...Reading those nutri info on poha, I'm sure will find ways to use it more.

Aruna Manikandan said...

looks delicious and very tempting :)

Rajani said...

Priya,aipi,Jayashree,Aruna,Thanks all of you.

Jayanthy Kumaran said...

wow...very appetizing poha..
Tasty appetite

Umm Mymoonah said...

This looks so yummy, I love the lemon flavours in the poha, makes my mouth water.

Panchpakwan said...

Looks delicious poha..

Manjula said...

I never knew u can make Poha so Yummy. It's one of my favorite dishes. I love the addition of peanuts for protein.

veena said...

Poha look so yummy. love the colour too

Rajani said...

Hi Jay,Ayeesha,panchpakwan,Manjula,Veena,your opinions inspire me to try harder and do better with each post,thanks for encouragment.Your suggestions for improvement are welcome too!

Prema said...

Yummy delicious Poha,i too make almost the same method...

Lifewithspices said...

very inviting dish..

Reshmi Mahesh said...

This looks yummy...

Kurinji said...

Healthy n inviting dish...
kurinjikathambam

Unknown said...

That is one FINE looking bowl of poha if ever I saw one!- love the pictorials :) And as for your question about subbing mustard greens, Rajani, you could go with Palak - That would be spinach which is used a LOT in Italian cooking - but you could make it Indian style as you would for paluck paneer...

Cheers and have a gr6 wknd :)

Rajani said...

Premlatha,Kalpana,Reshmi,Kurinji,Priya,Thank you all for visiting..Priya,of course,I could use palak...I did not think of it before.gee, thanks. Will let you know how it comes out.

Sharmi said...

Hi Rajani, You have a nice space.
Reg the Kalonji. Not using one ingredient will not hurt:)

Lakshmi ...Rasoi ki Malkin..northern and southern spices said...

Super fast tiffin-lemon poha looks tasty..

Anonymous said...

Dear Rajani:
THe poha looks delcious and tasted even more so!!Your notes are so informative. Congratulations.