Indori Poha (Poha of Indore) is a type of flattened (beaten) rice that is likely to have originated in

India India, officially the Republic of India ( Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the ...

metropolis A metropolis () is a large city or conurbation which is a significant economic, political, and cultural center for a country or region, and an important hub for regional or international connections, commerce, and communications. A big c ...

Indore Indore () is the largest and most populous city in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. It serves as the headquarters of both Indore District and Indore Division. It is also considered as an education hub of the state and is the only city to ...

. It contains steamed ''Poha'' (flattened rice) and is usually served with a unique combination of

Jalebi ''Jalebi'' (, , , Urdu: جلیبی‎, , , si, පැණි වළලු, ), is a popular sweet snack in south and west Asia, Africa, and Mauritius. It goes by many names, including ''jilapi'', ''zelepi'','' jilebi'', '' jilipi'', ''zulbia'', ...

(called Poha-Jalebi combined), Sev,

Usal Usal or Oosal ( mr, ऊसळ) is a Maharastrian dish made of legumes such as peas, lentils, black eyed beans, Matki, Moong or Hyacinth bean ''Lablab purpureus'' is a species of bean in the family Fabaceae. It is native to Africa and it ...

, sliced

onions An onion (''Allium cepa'' L., from Latin ''cepa'' meaning "onion"), also known as the bulb onion or common onion, is a vegetable that is the most widely cultivated species of the genus ''Allium''. The shallot is a botanical variety of the onion ...

and fennel seeds. Unlike the other varieties of Poha found across India, Indori Poha is cooked in steam instead of being cooked directly with other ingredients. This provides Indori Poha its distinct taste, softness, and flavor. Vendors generally prefer

pea The pea is most commonly the small spherical seed or the seed-pod of the flowering plant species ''Pisum sativum''. Each pod contains several peas, which can be green or yellow. Botanically, pea pods are fruit, since they contain seeds and d ...

instead of

peanut The peanut (''Arachis hypogaea''), also known as the groundnut, goober (US), pindar (US) or monkey nut (UK), is a legume crop grown mainly for its edible Seed, seeds. It is widely grown in the tropics and subtropics, important to both small ...

s as opposed to the traditional

Pohay Poha/Pohe is an Indian breakfast and snack prepared in the cuisines of Indian states of Maharashtra, Odisha, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Kerala, TamilNadu, Gujarat, Goa and Rajasthan. Preparation Each Indian state has ...

of India. Indori Poha is generally served with

History

Indori Poha resembles its name from the city of

being its place of origin. It is believed that it was created after India's independence (1947). Recipe of Indori Poha though differs from vendors to vendors, generally it comes with a blend of North and Central

n spices, snacks and

namkeen ''Namkeen'' (), is a 1982 Hindi-language social drama film, directed by Gulzar, it stars Sanjeev Kumar, Sharmila Tagore, Shabana Azmi, Waheeda Rehman in the lead role. It was yet another film by Gulzar made on some very sensitive but unt ...

. Indori Poha is mainly sold by vendors all around the city during morning time, often alongside the city's other popular snacks ''"Kachori-Samosas"''. It is also available in nearby cities

Ujjain Ujjain (, Hindustani pronunciation: �d͡ːʒɛːn is a city in Ujjain district of the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. It is the fifth-largest city in Madhya Pradesh by population and is the administrative centre of Ujjain district and Ujjain ...

Dewas Dewas is a city in the Malwa region of the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. The municipality was formerly the seat of two 15-Gun Salute state princely states during the British Raj, Dewas Junior state and Dewas Senior state, ruled by the Pu ...

, Sagar,

Dhar Dhar is a city located in Dhar district of the Malwa region in the state of Madhya Pradesh, India. The city is the administrative headquarters of the Dhar district. Before Indian independence from Great Britain, it was the capital of the ...

Ratlam Ratlam, known historically as Ratnapuri (lit. ''gem city''), is a city in the northwestern part of the Malwa region in Madhya Pradesh state of India. The city of Ratlam lies above sea level. It is the administrative headquarters of Ratlam di ...

and

Bhopal Bhopal (; ) is the capital city of the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh and the administrative headquarters of both Bhopal district and Bhopal division. It is known as the ''City of Lakes'' due to its various natural and artificial lakes. It ...

and is becoming a very popular cuisine in Maharashtra,

Gujarat Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the nin ...

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...

and

Bihar Bihar (; ) is a state in eastern India. It is the 2nd largest state by population in 2019, 12th largest by area of , and 14th largest by GDP in 2021. Bihar borders Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West ...

References

{{Reflist Rice dishes Indian snack foods Indian rice dishes Indore