The next recipe in my quick and easy meals is the poha pulao. Yes, you read it right, pulao with poha. Why not? When we can make tamarind-based and coconut-based aval dishes, why not pulao? I treat poha as my rice substitute in many dishes, and that’s how I started making this poha pulao or aval pulao.
Poha | flattened Rice | aval
I have talked about why poha is a must-to-have pantry ingredient in my thengai aval post. Please do check it out. You can whip up several dishes with poha/aval in no time. Poha, or aval as we say in Tamil, is nothing but beaten or flattened rice. Rice is parboiled, and it is then dried and flattened. It is light on the tummy and easy to digest. It has a decent amount of vitamins and minerals, and as per the studies, it doesn’t spike blood sugar like rice. I use it a lot, and you can find quite a few dishes on my blog. I have linked them up below.
30 Minute Poha pulao with mushrooms and peas
This pulao with minimal chopping is a well-balanced recipe with the goodness of poha and mushrooms and peas. It’s not a spicy recipe making it perfect for toddlers and kids. You can very well customize the spices as per your preference. Oh yeah, it’s a perfect beginner-friendly and bachelor-friendly recipe.
Here is how you make this pulao in less than 30 minutes.
- Rinse the pulao and let it sit for 8 to 10 minutes. I used frozen peas, so I soaked in water for 8 to 10 minutes.
- Parallelly chop the vegetables; it’s only onion and mushrooms, so not much effort here. Gather the required ingredients too.
- Temper and saute the vegetables. Overall it takes about 12 minutes. We don’t want to overcook the mushrooms. We want that tender and soft mushrooms. Finally, we add the pulao and cook for a minute or two. In less than 30 minutes, you have a delicious pulao. PS – There is a special Bengali special chirer pulao, and this recipe is not that. It’s very similar to mushroom and peas pulao. PPS – If you are interested in rice-based pulao, check my veg pulao, no-onion, no-garlic pulao, and other varieties.
Ingredients required
Poha – I used white poha, but you can use red ones too. But make sure to use the thick variety for this pulao. Whole spices – We need green cardamom, cloves, cinnamon, star anise, and dagad phool/black stone flower/kalpaasi. These whole spices add all the flavor to the pulao, so don’t skip it. Green chilies: We don’t add any red chili powder, so green chilies are the only source of the spice. So add accordingly. Vegetables, mint, and ginger-garlic paste – I cannot imagine my pulao without mint. You need only 8 to mint leaves for this measure. We also need onions, mushrooms, peas, and ginger garlic paste. Garam masala – Along with whole spices, I have used ½ tsp of garam masala for added flavor. Apart from these ingredients, we need oil, salt, and water. Please check the recipe card for the measurements.
Dietary specifications and serving suggestions
This poha pulao is a vegan, gluten-free, and nut-free dish. You can serve it with plain yogurt or onion raita. Relish it warm, and I haven’t stored it for more than a day.
How to make poha pulao
Wash and prep the poha
Add the poha to a strainer or colander and rinse it thoroughly atleast twice. Drain the water, drizzle some water (¼ to ⅓ cup approx) and let it sit for 8 to 10 minutes.
Prep the vegetables
Clean the mushrooms and remove the stems, and cut them into halves. Soak the frozen peas for 10 minutes to bring them to room temperature.
Prepare the pulao
Heat the oil in the kadai and when it is hot, add the whole spices – cardamom, cloves, cinnamon, star anise, dagad phool, and green chilies. Fry for 30 seconds and add the onions, mint leaves, and ginger garlic paste. Saute for about 5 minutes or until the onions are translucent.
Next, add the mushroom, peas, garam masala, and salt.
Mix well like below and cook for 4 to 5 minutes until the mushrooms are tender and soft.
Now add the poha.
Gently mix and cook for a couple of minutes, and that’s it; pulao is ready. Enjoy it with raita.
Recipe notes
Adjust salt and spices to taste. Add turmeric powder for a nice yellow color. I did not add any cilantro, but you can add it with mint or towards the end as a garnish.Never soak the pulao. Rinse and drizzle water and let it sit for it to soften.You can also add more vegetables like cauliflower, grated carrots, etc.
More poha recipes
PS: If you try this poha pulao, please don’t forget to comment and rate this recipe. If you have any questions, please leave a comment, and I will get to it ASAP. Follow me on my Pinterest for more healthy and delicious ideas! Follow me on Instagram or join my Facebook Group for more recipe updates! You can also sign-up for my newsletter for weekly updates.
📖 Recipe
