‘Indian Noodles’ for the Book club

Vegetarian,Indian and Thai flavored seviya upma with Bambino brand roasted noodles, peanut meal and classic Indian cuisine tempering. Served with samosas , chida and chai. Seviya recipe with gluten free option too.

Indian and Thai inspired Seviya Upma!

Vegetarian,Indian and Thai flavored seviya upma with Bambino brand roasted noodles, peanut meal and classic Indian cuisine tempering. Served with samosas , chida and chai. Seviya recipe with gluten free option too.
‘Indian Noodles’ at my book club

It was my turn to host the book club this month.

We read ‘Inside the O Brien’s’ by Lisa Genova. I absolutely love her style of writing! I was riveted to the story of a seemingly ‘regular’ family in the Boston area while learning about Huntington’s disease. Lisa Genova is brilliant at educating us about a disease, while showing us how it affects families.

I am lucky to be a part of a book club with a multicultural background. I enjoy our conversations and discussions. We also share our love of international foods. I am the only Indian American in this group and my carte du jour/ bate (in Marathi) is based on Indian or Indian inspired foods that my friends like.

So my menu/bate consisted of Seviya Upma topped with chivda, samosas and chutney, gluten free and low cal mung dal salad, chakli, khakras and papads for crunch, fruit bowl, cardamom cookies, Mango cake with a lemon filling and topped with fresh fruit and the much loved chai.

I enjoy the noodles made by my Asian American friends so was very surprised when they had said that they like my ‘Indian noodles’. I love Pad Thai and try to bring in its flavors and vegetables many times when I make seviya upma. This version is simpler to go along with tea. So I start with the traditional tempering, but add garlic, red chili powder, lime juice and peanut meal for that fusion taste. The peanut meal and spices cling to the seviya noodles giving a boost of flavor.

I used the roasted Bambino brand noodles available in the Indian store but Thai rice sticks can be used for a gluten free alternative too.

Here is the simple yet flavorful Seviya Upma or as my friends call it, ‘The Indian noodles’

Vegetarian,Indian and Thai flavored seviya upma with Bambino brand roasted noodles, peanut meal and classic Indian cuisine tempering. Served with samosas , chida and chai. Seviya recipe with gluten free option too.
Vegetarian Seviya Upma

Seviya Upma

  • Servings: 12
  • Difficulty: easy
  • Print

Ingredients-

1 (16 oz) pack roasted noodles

About 6 cups water+ 1 teaspoon oil+ salt, to cook the noodles

2 teaspoons oil+ 1 teaspoon ghee

½ teaspoon urad dal

12 fresh curry leaves

1 ½ teaspoons mustard seeds

1 ½ teaspoons cumin seeds

1/8 teaspoon asafetida powder

3 cloves garlic, grated or chopped fine

3 to 4 dry red chilies

½ teaspoon mild chili powder

2 tablespoons dry roasted cashew nuts or roasted peanuts with skin (optional)

2 tablespoons sugar

2 teaspoons salt or to taste

1/2cup peanuts- crushed fine or processed in a food processor to make peanut meal

Juice of 1 lime

To make the Seviya Upma-

  1. In a large saucepan bring the water to a boil, add 1 teaspoon oil and salt and add the noodles. Stir and cook the noodles until soft, about 4 minutes. Drain the noodles, pour cold water over them and drain again and set aside.
  1. In a frying pan, heat the 2 tablespoons oil and the ghee over medium heat. Add the urad dal, curry leaves, mustard seeds, cumin seeds, asafetida powder, grated garlic and dry red chilies. Stir until the mustard seeds begin to sputter and the garlic is golden in color. Add the chili powder and cashew nuts or peanuts (optional) stir and remove pan from heat.
  1. Add the drained noodles, stir and add the sugar, salt, peanut meal and lime juice. Combine well with the noodles.

Make ahead tips-

  • The entire dish can be made in advance and reheated in a microwave.

Notes-

  • These noodles can be served hot or at room temperature.
  • You can add mixed vegetables to the upma. In the frying pan, stir in 1 cup of the mixed vegetables and sauté them before adding the noodles and proceed according to recipe above.
  • Top with chivda or mung bean sprouts.

Enjoy! I am taking my book club menu and my seviya upma to another party hosted by Angie @Fiesta Friday and co-hosted by  Sonal @ simplyvegetarian777 and Laurie @ ten.times.tea.

Have a great weekend!

Love,

Sandhya

40 thoughts on “‘Indian Noodles’ for the Book club”

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    1. Thanks Suzanne. I had liked her previous book Still Alice so was happy that the book club decided to read Inside the OBriens.
      Yes the book club is fun! We have such a multicultural group which adds so many perspectives to the discussion. Also we have known each other for quite some time now so everyone is comfortable saying whatever is n their mind.

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  7. Sandhya, your book club sounds so fun! I’ve heard of Lisa Genova before because of Still Alice, but I’ve never read any of her novels. I will have to start with Inside the O Brien’s. And I love the sound of your noodle contribution! They look filling and starchy in a way that makes me want to serve myself a massive bowlful, especially when it is so flavourful with all the spices!

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    1. Thank you so much! I had read Still Alice and loved it. So I was looking forward to Lisa Genova’s next book .I have not seen the movie ‘Still Alice ‘ but have heard that it is done really well.

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    1. We meet in the mornings, Liz. One of our friends is also gluten free but she was happy having the mung dal salad, fruit, chakli and chai, which were all gluten free.

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  10. I use to belong to a book club when I lived in another city – they are always fun, not just reading a new book but sharing food and having a good time with friends. These noodles sound delicious and easy for me to make – so flavorful. I do not have asafetida powder, so that is one my grocery list 🙂

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    1. Judi , that is so true. My book club friends are foodies like me and with women from diverse cultural back grounds both the discussion with various perspectives and the food is a gift! It has also evolved into a group where the women find support in each other, which is just wonderful.
      These noodles have been a mainstay with this group and another potluck craft group I belong to. They are so easy to make! Asafetida powder, as you know, is pretty strong and pungent. So once I get a small container, it lasts me a long time.
      Do let me know how you like the noodles.

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    1. Judi, urad dal is black gram dal The black husk is removed and the dal looks pale beige in color.It is used to make the crepe like dosas and the steamed idlis . When used in tempering as I did, it adds a nutty, unique flavor to the dish which I love. Since I get it to make idlis and dosas too, I buy it in 5 pound bags but is available in smaller portions.

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    1. Thank you so much Lynn. Yes I like the fact that the women in my book club come from diverse cultural backgrounds. It makes for such an interesting discussion and of course the variety of food is always amazing:)

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  15. Your presentation and post was wonderful. I don’t hardly ever read books anymore. I joined a book club but ended up dropping after 3 months. I felt my blog was not getting enough time to look at other’s posts. Take care, Sandhya! xo

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    1. I know what you mean Robin. I hardly get time to read after I started blogging too. The last book just grabbed me but could not keep up with other books. My book club is focused on food so it does not matter much:)

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