Whenever I’m in India, my mom and mother-in-law make sure that VJ and I eat fresh, hot breakfast every morning. They pamper us so much there that it’s impossible to stay on a diet. At mom’s she makes sure we have five or at least four meals in a day. I don’t know why she makes so much! I hate it that she works so hard and I just sit and eat. The guilt kills and eats me. When she was visiting me I couldn’t cook for her as I was recovering from my C-section and I wanted to cook so badly. My mother in law makes amazing breakfasts too. Her vadas are simply superb. They are crispy and tasty. She whips them up and puts them on a plate in a matter of minutes when it takes me about hours to even get the batter ready. Moms are simply the best. I’m not sure if I’ll ever be such an amazing mother to Arlo or not, but my mom was definitely the best. Every evening mom used to make us snacks. Maramarala masala was the most favorite and most asked by us.

But mom made Maramarala Upma when we were visiting. I totally forgot about this dish, as I haven’t made it since I came here. I don’t know where or when I first ate it but it is a definitely a Rayalseema dish. Mom grew up most of her teenage and adult years before her marriage in Ananthapur and picked up a lot the traditional Rayalseema dishes and this is one of it. I absolutely love all the tiffins and snacks that my mom makes. because they are so wonderful and tasty. But she’s my mom so I could be biased with her cooking. But VJ likes it too. I know it because I make most of my recipes based on my mom’s. So when I was visiting my mom this is another recipe she let me lift off. I’m so grateful for my mom giving me her recipes since I have been exhausted since I’ve been back, that I’ve been making basic food for the family. Poor VJ hasn’t complained once about my cooking and lets me cook the way I want. So here are the ingredients for Uggani or Maramarala Upma.

Ingredients

Onions – 1 thinly chopped

Green chilies – 4 (mom used around 6 or more)

Maramaralu – 250 grams

Putnala Pappu (Roasted Channa Dal) – 1 cup

Channa Dal – 2 tablespoons

Urad Dal – 1 tablespoon

Mustard Seeds – 1 teaspoon

Peanuts – 3 tablespoons

Cumin Seeds – 1 teaspoon

Oil – 3 tablespoons

Salt – As needed

Turmeric – a pinch

How to Make

Step 1: In a food processor jar, add the Putnala pappu and green chillies. Make it into a coarse powder without adding water.

Step 2: In a pan, once hot add the oil. Once the oil is hot add channa dal and urad dal, fry them until they start to change color, now add the mustard seeds and peanuts. Once the mustard seeds start spluttering add the cumin seeds.

Step 3: Now add the onions, and fry them until they are translucent.

Step 4: Now in a huge bowl add some water. Add the maramaralu into the water, wash them in the water, squeeze the water out and add them to the onions.

Step 5: Add turmeric and mix it up a bit and then add the putnala pappu and green chili powder and mix it well.

Step 6: Serve it as breakfast or a snack, no chutney required.

Tips:

1. To make it kid-friendly do not add green chilies to the putnala pappu.
2. You can add lemon to it before serving. A reader tried this and I was told it is delicious.