I am not a fan of ready-to-eat Indian food because I believe that Indian food doesn't naturally lend itself to this format. There is a peculiar smell and taste attached to any such packaged food, which I suspect could be because of the added preservatives. Normally, I don't go to grocery stores without a list of items to be bought - saves a lot of time, not to mention the calories. But last weekend I was roaming about the aisles of Food Bazaar with the specific aim of locating any new food products in the market when my eyes caught sight of the South Indian Breakfast Kit from Gits. The kit contains 2 packets each of Dosa mix, Idli mix, Sambhar mix and Upma mix. All for Rs. 120. I bought one.
Since the Upma is relatively easy to make (!) I chose that first. The experience with the first packet wasn't very good. I had put in plenty of water as per the instructions but the mixture dried up pretty soon and the green chilies that I added later on didn't get cooked at all. The result was a tasteless lumpy mix.Yuck! I was better prepared for the second packet though. I added the chilies to the water before turning on the gas so they got cooked through. I not only added a bit more water but kept stirring it continuously and turned off the gas while the mixture was still a bit wet. This time the end result was much better - though, obviously, not as good as Umpa prepared from scratch using fresh ingredients.
I used one Sambhar packet when I made Upma the second time around. On its own, the gravy is a bit salty, at least for my taste. But if you mix it with Umpa, both taste better. You have to add veggies like tomatoes, drumsticks etc as per your taste as the Sambhar mix doesn't contain any vegetables.
The Dosas made from the batter turned out to be pretty good. Of course, there isn't much that can go wrong with Dosa batter - except maybe the proportion of salt. I made tomato chutney as an accompaniment. Just heat oil. Add cumin seeds, mustard seeds, asafoetida, chana dal (if you want), curry leaves, turmeric, onion (finely sliced)., salt and green chilies (finely sliced). Once the onion is translucent, add finely chopped tomatoes. Once they are cooked add chopped coriander leaves. Let the mixture cool down a bit and then grind it to a coarse paste using blender. I like this chutney better than the coconut one.
I am yet to try the Idli mix but judging by the Dosa mix, I guess it should be okay.
All in all, I think this breakfast kit is a must to have in case you need to rustle up a healthy breakfast in no time.
Since the Upma is relatively easy to make (!) I chose that first. The experience with the first packet wasn't very good. I had put in plenty of water as per the instructions but the mixture dried up pretty soon and the green chilies that I added later on didn't get cooked at all. The result was a tasteless lumpy mix.Yuck! I was better prepared for the second packet though. I added the chilies to the water before turning on the gas so they got cooked through. I not only added a bit more water but kept stirring it continuously and turned off the gas while the mixture was still a bit wet. This time the end result was much better - though, obviously, not as good as Umpa prepared from scratch using fresh ingredients.
I used one Sambhar packet when I made Upma the second time around. On its own, the gravy is a bit salty, at least for my taste. But if you mix it with Umpa, both taste better. You have to add veggies like tomatoes, drumsticks etc as per your taste as the Sambhar mix doesn't contain any vegetables.
The Dosas made from the batter turned out to be pretty good. Of course, there isn't much that can go wrong with Dosa batter - except maybe the proportion of salt. I made tomato chutney as an accompaniment. Just heat oil. Add cumin seeds, mustard seeds, asafoetida, chana dal (if you want), curry leaves, turmeric, onion (finely sliced)., salt and green chilies (finely sliced). Once the onion is translucent, add finely chopped tomatoes. Once they are cooked add chopped coriander leaves. Let the mixture cool down a bit and then grind it to a coarse paste using blender. I like this chutney better than the coconut one.
I am yet to try the Idli mix but judging by the Dosa mix, I guess it should be okay.
All in all, I think this breakfast kit is a must to have in case you need to rustle up a healthy breakfast in no time.
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