Tarri Poha

P oha is a nation-wide favourite recipe for breakfast. This Indian snack has its origins deeply embedded in the city of Indore, but each region has made the dish its own with slight variations. While Kanda Poha may well be the unanimous favourite, there are innumerable versions of this dish. 

Poha essentially consists of poha or flattened rice flakes or chiwda. After soaking the flakes in water for a while, it is tossed on a hot wok with tadka (mainly consisting of vegetable oil, mustard seeds, curry leaves, dried red chillis and salt). The Tarri Poha is also prepared in a similar way. The only difference in this dish is that a Kala Chana gravy is added to it at the end.

The gravy element to the otherwise dry Poha adds considerable body to the dish and also makes it a sumptuous meal option. Tarri Poha is an excellent blend of good proteins and carbohydrates, making it a wholesome dish. The gravy in Tarri Poha is of a red, watery consistency and is cooked using a blend of onions, tomatoes, chillies, peppers, chickpeas, garlic, ginger and bay leaves. Though spicy, the gravy is not extremely rich, but has a sharp flavour profile to it. 

Considering that the Poha has its roots as far back as the reign of Scindias and Holkars, it is indeed one of India’s authentic indigenous dishes. In fact, the Mahabharata has a mention of Poha as a humble dish offered to Lord Krishna by his childhood friend Sudama.