Chirer Polao (Bengali style Poha) is a little different than the other versions of poha made across many Indian states. A popular breakfast dish, mildly sweet in taste, includes lots of seasonal veggies, and dry fruits which makes it very healthy and perfect food, especially for kids. Mom would cook this on weekends, that big Kadai of hot polao, the waiting, plates full of this yellow goodness, and then how we used to devour, I can still remember those good old days. Later I learned this from her, and now I can proudly say that I make Chirer Polao just like her. The recipe is easy, you need to prepare a few things quickly prior to cooking. I hope you’ll enjoy doing this at home, and if you’re trying my recipe, I’d love to hear about your experience. 🙂
Chirer Polao/Bengali style Poha with Veggies
Bengali style Chirer Polao is different than the other versions of Poha. This includes a lot of veggies, dry fruits, and mildly sweet in taste.
Ingredients
- 250g- Poha/Chire/Rice flakes
- 1 medium-sized- Onion (thinly sliced)
- 1 medium-sized- Carrot (cut into small strips)
- 10-12- French beans (cut into small pieces)
- ½ cup- Cauliflower florets (cut florets into small sizes)
- 1 handful- Peas
- ¼ cup- Roasted peanuts
- 3 tbsp- Raisins
- ¼ tsp- Nigella seeds/Kalonji/Kalojire
- ¼ tsp- Turmeric powder
- Salt to taste
- ½ tsp- Black pepper powder
- 4 tsp- Sugar (adjust as per your taste)
- Vegetable oil
Instructions
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Boil peas, carrots, and french beans, keep aside.
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Heat 1 tsp oil in a frying pan, add cauliflower florets with a pinch of salt. Stir fry until the florets turn golden brown in color. Remove and keep aside.
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Add the poha/chire into a colander. Wash under running water. Just a quick wash is enough while washing use your fingers to move them gently. They will turn mushy if washed for a longer time, and no need to soak them in the water either. Keep the poha aside in the colander itself to drain out the water completely.
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Heat 4 ½ tbsp oil in a deep frying pan/kadai (nonstick preferably). Temper with kalonji.
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Add sliced onions, stir on medium heat until light brown in colour.
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Now add turmeric powder, boiled veggies, cauliflower florets, peanuts, raisins, salt, and sugar. Mix well and fry on medium heat for a minute.
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Add washed poha, mix gently and cook for 4-5 minutes on medium heat. Stir in between. Add black pepper powder, mix well. Remove from the heat.
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Serve immediately.
Recipe Notes
- You can add fried potato strips (aloobhaja in Bengali) into this, my Mom used to add aloobhaja in Chirer Polao. How to cook aloobhaja? Check this for reference.
- You can add chopped green onions while adding the other veggies, it gives a great flavour and taste to the dish.
- Scrambled eggs can also be added for a non-vegetarian version.
