Flattened rice

Flattened rice

Uncooked Flattened rice flakes
Alternative names Aval, Avalakki, Chiura, Poha, beaten rice
Main ingredients Dehusked rice
Cookbook: Flattened rice  Media: Flattened rice

Flattened rice (also called beaten rice) is a dehusked rice which is flattened into flat light dry flakes.They are most famously known as "Pohe" in the Malwa region, where they are considered to have originated. These flakes of rice swell when added to liquid, whether hot or cold, as they absorb water, milk or any other liquids. The thicknesses of these flakes vary between almost translucently thin (the more expensive varieties) to nearly four times thicker than a normal rice grain.

This easily digestible form of raw rice is very popular across India, Nepal and Bangladesh, and is normally used to prepare snacks or light and easy fast food in a variety of Indian cuisine styles, some even for long-term consumption of a week or more. It is known by a variety of names: Pauaa/Paunva (પૌંઆ) in Gujarati, "Poya" in Rajasthani, Chuda in Oriya, Atukulu in Telugu (అటుకులు), Aval in Tamil(அவல்) and Malayalam(അവൽ), Chiura in parts of Bihar and Jharkhand, Chira in Bengali (চিঁড়া) and Assamese, Chiura (चिउरा) in Maithili, Nepali, Bhojpuri and Chhattisgarhi, Poha[1] or Pauwa[2] in Hindi, Baji in Newari, Pohe in Marathi, Phovu in Konkani, Avalakki (ಅವಲಕ್ಕಿ) in Kannada,.[3]

White aval
Cooked pohe

Flattened rice can be eaten raw by immersing it in plain water or milk, with salt and sugar to taste, or lightly fried in oil with nuts, raisins, cardamoms, and other spices. The lightly fried variety is a standard breakfast in Malwa region (surrounding Ujjain and Indore) of Madhya Pradesh. It can be reconstituted with hot water to make a porridge or paste, depending on the proportion of water added. In villages, particularly in Chhattisgarh, flattened rice is also eaten raw by mixing with jaggery.

In Maharashtra, pohe is cooked with lightly fried mustard seeds, turmeric, green chilli, finely chopped onions and then moistened pohe is added to the spicy mix and steamed for a few minutes.

Flattened rice can be viewed as a convenience food and is very similar to bread in usage.

Prepared flattened rice dish, locally known as Poha or Pauva from India.

Dishes made from beaten rice

Wikibooks Cookbook has a recipe/module on

Flattened rice is made by Cambodians during Ak Am Bok (around the fourth week of November) and is eaten with bandanna fruit.

In popular culture

In the Marathi movie Sanai Choughade, there is a song about Kande Pohe, also called 'Kande Pohe'.[6]

References

  1. Raghunandana, K. "Avalakki Oggrane'it contains 100 g of iron". Retrieved 2009-02-09.
  2. "The Vocabulary of Indian Food". Retrieved 2009-02-09.
  3. Raghunandana, K. "Avalakki Oggrane'". Retrieved 2009-02-09.
  4. "magazineoftheworld.com". magazineoftheworld.com. Retrieved 2013-12-15.
  5. "Yes, Muskmelon Pohe". Retrieved 2011-12-18.
  6. Sanai Choughade
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 10/11/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.