There are some things that are meant to ease up your life. Like Semiya or the versatile Vermicelli. On most days for dinner, I would be thinking of some easy to prepare stuff, that would give me enough time to take care of other things on a busy weekday rather than sweating it out in the kitchen. Vermicelli tops my list. It is enough to have a cup of Semiya along with some veggies to make a wholesome dinner in less than 20 mins flat. If you don’t want to spend time chopping the veggies, just use one onion – you would still have flavorful Vermicelli.
Few weeks back I shared Semiya Payasam, a sweet South Indian dessert made with Vermicelli and today’s post is the savory version of Semiya. I wanted to spice things up a bit and turned a simple Vermicelli upma into Semiya Pulao. With the addition of whole spices and mint/coriander leaves, this is quite flavorful. And what more, you don’t have to wait as long as you would for rice to get cooked up or worry about the carbs in the white rice. Since Vermicelli is made from wheat, it is much better and easy to digest too. It works best for lunch boxes too and can be had as it is 🙂 So, over to my simple recipe.
In a pan, heat oil. Add cumin seeds, cinnamon piece, clove, cardamom and dried bay leaf. Fry for 10 secs and add slit green chillies. Fry for another ten secs. Add chopped onions and fry until translucent. Add ginger garlic paste and fry on low flame until the raw smell is gone.
Add mixed vegetables and fry on low flame until they are half cooked. Add chopped coriander and mint leaves along with finely chopped tomato. Fry until tomatoes are mushy. Add two cups of water. Add salt as required. Let the water come to a boil.
Once the water comes to a boil, add roasted vermicelli/semiya. Stir in and cover the pan with a lid. Keep cooking on low flame until all the water is evaporated and vermicelli is cooked. Should take about 4-5 mins. Switch off the flame and let this Pulao rest for another 5 mins before mixing in.
Serve hot! Additionally onion raita can be served on the side.
I use 2 cups of water for 1 cup of Vermicelli. Adjust as per preference. If the vermicelli is not pre-roasted, roast it in a dry fan for 4-5 mins until it is golden brown and nice roasted. Use of vegetables is as per preference. A combination of any of these vegetables can be used – potato, carrot, French beans, cauliflower and green peas. For a nice flavor, replace oil with ghee. Adjust the number of green chillies as per spice preference. For additional spiciness, red chilli powder can be used.
If you wish to get regular updates on my recipes, do follow me on Facebook @ Cooking From My Heart. You can also reach to me at [email protected] for any suggestions or queries! Taking this yummy Semiya Pulao to Fiesta Friday #112. This week’s co-hosts are Mollie @ The Frugal Hausfrau and Aruna @ Aharam 🙂
