Dharitri Ganguly
Upma
The most famous South Indian variation, made by dry-roasting semolina or oats. Flavoured with mustard seeds, curry leaves, ginger, onions, and garnished with roasted peanuts and fresh coriander, upma tastes best when served hot.
Savoury Dalia
Made with broken wheat/dalia or a mix of millets like jowar or bajra, namkeen or savoury dalia is often pressure cooked with peas, carrots, turmeric, garam masala, chopped green chillies and salt. Top it with lemon juice, chopped coriander and a dash of chilli oil.
Jowar Porridge
Pressure cook soaked jowar for 5-6 whistles or until soft. Now boil some milk, and add the jowar and let it reduce a bit. Now add a sweetener of your choice, garnish with chopped nuts and seeds and serve hot/cold.
Ragi Malt
Ground finger millet or ragi is cooked with water or milk and sweetened with jaggery and cardamom. Alternatively, it can be made savory by mixing it with salted buttermilk and chopped onions, and have it as a kanji.
Sweet Dalia
Broken wheat simmered in water and milk, sweetened naturally with jaggery (gur) or sugar. Flavour the porridge with cardamom powder or a dash of vanilla essence and garnish with chopped almonds, cashews, and raisins. Serve hot or cold.
Venthiya Kanji
A cooling porridge made from rice, yellow moong dal, and fenugreek seeds, often finished with fresh coconut milk.
Rava Porridge
Add 1 tsp ghee in a pan, and roast semolina until fragrant. Now add water or milk till it is creamy and is in your desired consistency. Add sweetener of your choice and garnish with cashews and raisins.
Chow Chow Bath
A classic breakfast dish from Karnataka that brings together two contrasting preparations: A savoury Khara Bath (closely related to Upma), a sweet Kesari Bath (a South Indian cousin of rava halwa), and a side of chunky coconut chutney.
Ven Pongal
A deeply comforting, savoury South Indian porridge made from rice and split yellow moong dal, is generously spiced with ghee, cumin, ginger, and black pepper, and is traditionally served for breakfast with coconut chutney, sambar, or a savory dip known as gotsu.