Poha
Also known as: rice flakes, flattened rice, chiura, ポハ
What Poha is
Flattened rice — paddy steamed and rolled into thin flakes. In India it is the breakfast of a large belt of the country as kanda poha; in Nepal it is chiura, a daily staple with yoghurt and a fixed part of celebratory Newari meals.
Rice that has been soaked, partially cooked by steaming, and rolled flat between heavy rollers while still soft, then dried. The flaking half-cooks it, which is why a rinse is enough to make it edible — and why it spoils faster than whole rice. Grades run from paper-thin flakes to thick ones: the thick grade holds texture in cooked dishes, the thin is the one eaten soft.
Taste and texture
Mild and faintly sweet, tender but with a wet-flake body rather than distinct grains. Thick poha keeps a slight chew; thin poha softens almost to a paste. It carries turmeric, lemon and mustard-oil seasonings immediately, having little flavour of its own to push back.
Forms to buy
- Thick flakes — For kanda poha and upma-style dishes; holds its bite.
- Thin flakes — The Nepali chiura grade; softens with a brief rinse.
How to cook it
Rinse briefly in a colander and let it drain and soften 5–10 minutes — never soak it in standing water or it turns to mush. For kanda poha, crackle mustard seed and curry leaves, soften onion, add turmeric, then fold in the wet rice with salt and a splash of water; finish with lemon and groundnuts. In Nepal chiura is simply rinsed and eaten with dahi, or salted and mashed with it; in the Newari samay baji spread it sits at the base of the plate alongside buffalo, achar and aila.
Buying note
Typically ¥300–¥500 for 500 g. Fresh flakes are brittle with a clean, sweet smell; staleness shows as dust, discolouration and a faintly sour edge. Buy thin and thick separately — one bag cannot do both jobs.