Masala Oats - The spicy Indian version of oats porridge

September 17, 2014

Masala Oats - The spicy Indian version of oats porridge

Being a working mother or wife is never an easy journey especially when you want to prepare something nutritious for breakfast or dinner. I do have times when I intend to fall for a ready to cook stuff as it makes my life much easier. But when things can be done at home with your own available ingredients, why not try it? That’s how I got this dish – I was inspired by the different varieties of Masala oats and other options available in the Indian markets. Since I am not residing in India, this made me to do it at home, to do it my way! Masala Magic oats!

I usually make oats porridge for my family in the usual way by adding either milk or Yogurt and serve it as a breakfast. But the addition of the spices and the vegetables to the less tasty oats makes it even better. You can add your own set of vegetables and spices depending on your taste.

If you are a lover of oats, vegetables and some interesting Indian spices, make it at your home and enjoy it hot! This will make a wonderful breakfast as well as a dinner recipe since this does not feel so full. I would like to add some yogurt the next time to give it a different twist!

Servings: 2

Time to make: 30 -40 minutes

Ingredients:

Oats – one cup of oats - 200 mg

Water – 3.5 cups as of oats – 700 ml

Red chili powder – 1/4 tsp

Turmeric powder – 1/8 tsp

Coriander powder – 1/4 tsp

Kitchen king masala – 1/2 tsp

Garam masala - a pinch

Vegetables (Mix of half carrot, half capsicum, 1 onion, Little Violet cabbage, 4 baby corn)

Fresh Red chili – ½

Oil – 1 tsp

Recipe:

- Chop your vegetables into really small pieces. You may add your own list of vegetables into the masala like potatoes, tomatoes, cauliflower, broccoli, etc. But make sure to boil your vegetables which are too hard to cook easily.

- Place a pan in the flame; once the pan is hot, add the oil.

- Add the onions and chilies and saute them till the onions turn translucent or golden brown.

- Continue to add the remaining vegetables and saute them for 4-5 minutes.

- Add the spice powders like Turmeric powder, red chili powder, coriander powder and the kitchen king masala to the vegetables. At this stage add some salt to the vegetables and mix well. Let it cook for another 2-3 minutes with the spices.

- Next add the oats (I am using quick cook oats here) to the mixture and add some water so that it does not lump when cooked.

- Mix them well and adjust salt as per your taste.

- Make sure the oats gets cooked well as per the time it takes to cook and the vegetables are little crunchy. Garnish it with some coriander leaves.

The next time you need a quick recipe which demands for the use of your vegetables and something light, use your oats to spice up a bit. This is so light for your tummy and takes much less time to get cooked. Try this home cooked spicy masala oats for a quick breakfast in the morning!

Notes:

You can add any vegetables of your choice as per your taste.

You can add any type of oats to this recipe; just vary the water ratio and cooking time as per the used one.

You can skip the red chili powder and add some chilies or vice versa depending on your spice liking.

I would also add some mint flavor to this recipe by just adding 1-2 cubes of my frozen mint-coriander. This makes it a wonderful variant and you can name it Minty masala /Minty magic oats!