Oaty Breakfast: Pidi kozhukatai and Upma

  Never skip your breakfast
     Having a healthy and wholesome breakfast is a best way to start your day. People think that if you skip meals, you lose weight, which is completely wrong. Your body expects refueled several times a day starting from breakfast. When you skip a breakfast, you might feel tired in the mid morning and you might want to grab a sugary cup of tea, cake or chocolates...
    Just having a white bread with jam, sugary cereals or pastries doesn't count as good breakfast. A good breakfast should contain some protein and fibre. You can get protein from low fat milk, lean meat, eggs or diary products and fibres from whole grains or vegetables and fruits. Including whole grain in your diet keeps you filling for a longer times and also gives the essential nutrients for your body.
   Next coming to today's recipe, initially I was making only oats upma, but due to some mild changes this oats kozhukatai also evolved. Have a healthy breakfast and have a nice day.

Oats Pidi Kozhukatai

Preparation Time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 10 minutes
Makes about 7 kozhukatai

Ingredients:
Oats- 1 cups
Onion- 1 medium sized finely chopped
Carrot- 1 medium sized finely chopped
Coriander leaves- 1 tbsp finely chopped
Turmeric powder- 1/4 tsp
Chilli powder- 1/4 tsp
Salt to taste
Seasoning:
Ginger- 1/4 inch finely chopped
Mustard seeds- 1/2 tsp
Urad dhal- 1/2 tsp
Dried red chilli- 2
Oil- 2 tsp

Method:
Add water to the oats in a bowl just enough to cover it. Let it soak for 10 minutes. Heat oil in a pan, add the seasoning ingredients, then add the onion and fry well. When the onion becomes transparent, add the carrot and fry for 2 minutes. Add the spice powder and mix well. Finally add the oats and stir well. It well look like quite lumpy, add coriander leaves and switch it off from flame.
  Shape into small size balls using your hand and serve with some chutney.

Oats Upma

Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time: 10 minutes
Serves 2

Ingredients:
Oats- 1 cup
Carrot- 1 medium sized chopped
Onion- 1 medium sized chopped
Turmeric powder- 1/4 tsp
Salt to taste
Coriander leaves- 1 tbsp chopped finely
Seasoning:
Oil- 3 tsp
Mustard seeds- 1/4 tsp
Urad dhal- 1/4 tsp
Chana dhal- 1/4 tsp
Ginger- 1/4 inch finely chopped
Green chilli- 2 slit lenghtways

Method:
Dry roast the oats in a pan for 1 minute. Sprinkle some water on oats to make it just wet. Heat the oil in a pan, add the seasoning ingredients one by one, when the mustard seeds start spluttering add the onion and fry for 1 minute. Then add the carrots and fry for 2 minutes. Add the turmeric powder and salt and mix well. Finally add the oats and fry well for 1 or 2 minutes until it looks a bit dry. Garnish with the chopped coriander leaves.
Serve warm with chutney or yogurt.

These both recipes goes to my own event Eat Well Live Well and to the CWF- Oats hosted by Priya started by Kiran.