Bread upma is a South Indian style breakfast or snack made with bread & spices. It is a super quick way to use up your left over bread and can be done in just 15 mins. Upma is a Indian breakfast made with semolina. Bread upma is a variation to the basic dish and is most commonly served in South Indian Tiffin centers.
It is made with white bread and is quite delicious if made properly. This can be served as a Breakfast or Evening snack. I make this sometimes when I am left with only a few slices of bread.
I have used brown bread, however white bread, baguette or pav can also be used. If using brown bread, then do not skip toasting the bread otherwise it doesn’t taste good.
Apart from removing the raw smell of bread, toasting also prevents the chunks of bread from turning mushy. Bread upma is best served hot, immediately after preparing.
Step-by-step photos
Preparation
1. Toast the bread until crisp either on the tawa or in a toaster. If you are making use of more than 2 slices, it is convenient to do it in a oven.
Do not skip this step if you are using brown bread or whole meal bread or sprouted flour breads. You can skip toasting if you are using pav, white bread or french baguette.
2. Cool completely and cut to cubes.
How to make bread upma
3. Heat oil in a pan. Add cashews or peanuts to the hot oil and fry until golden. Set these aside with bread.
4. Add mustard and urad dal. Saute until the dal turns lightly golden.
5. Then add green chilies and curry leaves. Saute until they turn crisp. Add hing.
6. Add finely chopped onions.
7. Saute until they turn golden. Add ginger paste.
8. Next saute just until you get the aroma of ginger. Do not over fry, ginger turns bitter.
9. Add tomatoes, salt and turmeric. Saute until the tomatoes turn completely mushy.
10. Next put in chili powder and little sugar.
11. Saute for another 2 mins.
12. Add 3 to 4 tbsps water.
13. Cook until the masala turns thick. Check the taste and adjust salt and spice if needed.
14. Add bread and cashews.
15. Mix everything well till the masala clings on to the bread pieces well. Do not stir a lot, bread gets mushy. Add some coriander leaves.
Serve bread upma hot with some lemon juice sprinkled on top.
You can also check this similar recipe of Bread masala.
For more Bread snacks recipes, you can check
Paneer cheese toast
Garlic cheese toast
Bread pakora
Bread vada
Recipe
Easy bread upma
Bread upma
For best results follow the step-by-step photos above the recipe card
Ingredients (1 cup = 240ml )
- 2 to 3 slices bread (prefer brown bread)
- 1 tbsp oil
- ½ tsp mustard seeds
- ½ tsp urad dal (skip if you don’t have)
- 1 sprig curry leaves
- ¾ tsp ginger paste or grated
- 1 green chili slit or chopped
- 8 to 10 cashew nuts split or peanuts
- ¼ cup onions chopped finely (1 medium)
- ½ cup ripe tomatoes chopped finely (1 large) (adjust as needed)
- Salt as needed
- 2 pinches turmeric or haldi
- ½ tsp chili powder (less spicy variety)
- ½ tsp sugar (skip if using milk bread)
- 3 to 4 tbsp water
- 2 tbsp coriander leaves chopped finely
- Lemon juice to serve (optional)
Instructions
Preparation
- Heat a pan and toast the bread until crisp on both the sides. Cool completely. Cut them to small cubes and set aside.
- Pour oil to the same pan and fry cashews or peanuts until golden. Set these aside with bread.
- Add mustard and urad dal. Saute till urad dal turns lightly golden.
- Next add green chilies and curry leaves. Saute until the leaves turn crisp.
- Sprinkle hing. Add onions and saute until they turn golden. Saute the ginger paste as well.
- Next add tomatoes, salt and turmeric. Saute until tomatoes turn soft and mushy.
- Then add chili powder and sugar. Saute for 2 mins until the raw smell goes off.
- Pour 3 to 4 tbsp water and mix.
How to make bread upma
- Cook until the mixture turns thick. Check spice and salt. Add more if needed.
- Add bread cubes and cashews. Mix to coat the spice mixture to bread.
- Sprinkle coriander leaves.
- Serve bread upma hot. Sprinkle some lemon juice if desired.
Video
NUTRITION (estimation only)
Alternative quantities provided in the recipe card are for 1x only, original recipe.
For best results follow my detailed step-by-step photo instructions and tips above the recipe card.
© Swasthi’s Recipes
Shuba says
Tasted great! Love the addition of roasted cashews. Tip to toast the bread was definitely worth the effort! Thanks for the recepie.
swasthi says
Welcome Shuba
Glad it tasted good. Thank you!
Sampoorna Gonella says
Hi! I really enjoyed your recipe and I doubled it with 2 large onions and 2 tomatoes. Unfortunately I was not able to get the fine paste that you got because a lot of my onions remained as individual pieces. Can you give me some tips to get the paste that you obtained?
swasthi says
Hi Sampoorna
I think the onions and tomatoes needed more water to soften and turn mushy. Next time, keep adding more water as needed and cook until you get that smooth and mushy mixture.Hope this helps
Manjula says
Very simple and tasty recipes
swasthi says
Thank you!
Winnie says
Tried this recipe today with a few slices of leftover bread. Toasted the slices using little butter. It was so very tasty. Perfect evening snack with tea.
swasthi says
Thanks Winnie
Glad to know!
🙂
Min says
Hello
Can you try and keep the option, send recipe to google home? It would be really helpful.
Thanks
Min
swasthi says
Hi Min, are you using google nest hub?
Snehalatha Kulkarni says
Recipe is good. Poha tastes good and easy to prepare.
swasthi says
Thank you
Snehalatha Kulkarni says
Nice recipe. Easy to prepare and tastes good.
Iti says
I was searching for a good bread poha recipe since 7 years(yes u read it right 7 years). My husband is a big fan of bread poha which he used to have outside his hostel in college days…… And when I made poha using your recipe he was so happy and he is said this is better than Ramu Da’s Poha 🤣😉 Thanks a lot
swasthi says
Hi Iti
Glad to know your husband liked it! You are welcome.Thank you so much for the comment
🙂
Priyanka Pritee says
Hi Ma’m
I like all yr recipes nd i tryed also many more…
I love cooking nd everyday I’m trying something new nd yr recipes r really help me a lot …Pls help us to post many more 😊😊👍🏻👍🏻
Thanks 🙏🏻
swasthi says
Hi Priyanka,
You are welcome! Thank you so much. Glad you like them. Yes sure will post more recipes.
Archana says
Today I made this recipe for breakfast and believe me it was awesome👏✊👍, it was little bit tikha but still my 2 n 1/2 yrs son ate with great taste👅
swasthi says
Hi Archana
So glad to know your kid too enjoyed it. Thanks for the comment.
🙂
Mrs F A Amiri says
I tried 2 of your recipes..
Handi Chicken n Palak Paneer…..Must say Swathiji… they turned out to be better than expected !! As i am not a very gud cook. So A Million Thanxxx to U !!!
swasthi says
Mrs. F A Amiri
You are welcome. Thank you so much for the comment. Happy to know the recipes turned out good.
🙂
Luke says
Delicious and quick recipe, thank you! Now I know how to use up my stale bread
Christa Nice says
Thank you Swasthi! I just made this for a light healthy breakfast. The flavours are wonderful! Now I know what to do with the hard ends of French bread.
swasthi says
Welcome Christa Nice,
Glad to know you liked it. Yes a good idea to use up bread. You can also scramble some eggs if you like. Thanks for trying
vadivel loganathan says
Its very simple and yummy… Thanks for sharing…
Loreto Xavier says
Hi Swasthi
Simply great recipes. Just reading them makes one want to cook. I m a fan of ur laddoo recipes.
Well done!!☺
swasthi says
Thanks Loreto Xavier
Very happy to know you like the recipes. Oh yes ladoos!! we love them at home so I keep sharing!
Thanks again
🙂