Rava Uttapam (Sooji Uttapam)

These delicious Rava Uttapam make for a great Indian breakfast & can be made under 30 mins. Unlike the traditional Uttapam, these instant uttapam do not require a fermented batter. So that saves a lot of time and effort. Rava uttapam can be eaten plain or with a spicy chutney & Podi. You can also get fancy and add some grated cheese to make them cheesy.

Apart from this rava uttapam, breakfast foods like this Rava Dosa, Wheat Dosa, Oats Uttapam & Besan Chilla come handy when you don’t have much time to prepare in advance.

For the uninitiated, Rava Uttapam are Indian savory pancakes made with semolina (rava), spices, yogurt, veggies & herbs. Traditionally, lentils and rice are soaked and then ground to a batter which is later fermented until airy.

This batter is poured to a hot pan and topped with onions, chilies, coriander leaves and cumin seeds. The fermented batter cooks up to fluffy thick pancakes which are cooked in ghee or oil.

Making these rava uttapam is much easier than the traditional version because this recipe helps you by-pass the lengthy steps of soaking, grinding and fermenting. Instead we make a simple batter by mixing all the ingredients.

This recipe uses yogurt (homemade curd) to impart a slight tangy flavor & it also helps to rise the uttapams a bit when you cook the batter. I have not used baking soda or eno at all as I did not feel the need. But if you prefer, you may add as mentioned in the recipe card.

Do check out the tips and notes section below, after the stepwise photos.

More Indian Breakfast Recipes
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Poha Recipe
Bread upma
Upma Recipe
Tomato Upma

Photo Guide

How to make Rava Uttapam (Stepwise Photos)

Preparation

1. Add 1 cup semolina (176 grams fine rava / suji) to a mixing bowl.

2. Add ½ cup water (120 ml).

3. Mix it well.

4. Next add ½ cup yogurt (120 ml) and ⅓ to ½ teaspoon salt or as needed.

5. Mix well. Cover and let the batter rest for 20 mins at room temperature. Some of the moisture is absorbed and it turns thick after resting. If it is too thick add 1 to 2 tablespoons water (only if required).

6. This is the consistency required.

7. While the batter rests, chop the veggies like onions, green chilies, tomatoes, bell pepper. You can also use grated carrot & coriander leaves.

Make Sooji Uttapam

8. Grease or season your tawa well with few drops of oil. Rub with a sliced onion or kitchen tissue. I season my cast iron pan after every wash and wipe off the excess oil before storing it. I heat it and grease it again before use.

9. If you want to use eno, you may add ¼ teaspoon eno or a pinch of baking soda to the batter & mix it well. When the pan turns hot, pour ⅓ cup of the prepared batter.

10. Spread it gently, only a little. We want thick uttapams, so avoid spreading it a lot.

11. Immediately add some cut veggies.

12. Press down with a wooden spatula. If you do not do this, veggies will come off the uttapam when you turn it.

13. Pour ½ to ¾ teaspoon oil or ghee and cook on a medium heat.

14. After a while you will see the edges loosen from the pan, gently lift it with a spatula and turn it.

15. Cook on both the sides till fully done. If you want you can also cook longer to brown your veggies & the uttapam both. If you want you can also add cheese or Idli podi at this stage. To make the next uttapam, make sure the pan is hot enough.

Serve these instant rava uttapam just with a cup of masala chai or a Chutney, podi, or Pickle.

Ingredients

1. If you want to use Greek yogurt, cut down to to 1/3 cup and use a bit more water.
2. Rava is nothing but semolina. For this recipe you will use the fine rava also known as Bombay rava, suji, sooji. It is the same kind we use to make halwa & sheera. This recipe also works with chiroti rava (extra fine suji) which is used to make chiroti.
3. I have used just onions and bell peppers here. Chopped tomatoes, grated carrots, lots of coriander leaves go well on this rava uttapam.
4. Sometimes I also add dill leaves. If you like the flavor you can just add about a tbsp of the fine chopped leaves.

Pro Tips

1. Ensure the pan is hot enough before you pour the batter. The batter will get stuck to the pan if it is not hot enough.
2. The batter should to be of pouring consistency yet thick. If it is too runny, it will get stuck and not get cooked well.
3. The recipe can be easily doubled or tripled.

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Recipe Card

Rava uttapam recipe originally published in Aug, 2016. Republished in June 2019.