Bread Upma - Tangy Bread and Vegetable Stir Fry

ver bread pudding and then of course there are bread salads, such as the Italian panzanella which is a perfect foil for leftover crusty bread. What tends to be common amongs most of these recipes is that they tend to use a flavorful "soaking solution" to soften aged bread. Interestingly enough this is why most of these recipes do not really work well with fresh bread, since quite often the bread tends to be too soft to absorb the liquid.

Well, there is an Indian style stir fry too, that works very well with left over bread, especially if it is Bread Alone's multigrain baguettes. Ok, so I am biased here. But this is something that tends to be weekend comfort breakfast in many households and I like it with Indian style eggs. Try this as a side dish with a comfoting bowl of soup or even a quick all purpose meal after a busy shopping jaunt and you shall find the perky flavors comforting and reviving.

Bread Upma

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Serves 4

Ingredients

2 cups crusty 2-3 day old bread

1/2 cup buttermilk

4 tablespoons oil

1 teaspoon mustard seeds

10-15 curry leaves (available at a local Indian store)

1 red onion, cut into a dice

1 bell pepper, cut into chunks

2 tomatoes, cut into small pieces

1.5 teaspoons salt

3 tablespoons chopped cilantro

1/3 cup dry roasted peanuts

1 lime or lemon 

Method of Preparation

1. Place the bread in a mixing bowl and toss lightly with the buttermilk and let this rest for about 15 - 30 minutes.

2. Heat the oil on medium heat for about 1 minute and add in the mustard seeds, the seeds should begin to crackle much like popcorn.

3. Add in the curry leaves and the onions and saute for 5 minutes.

4. Add in the tomatoes and cook for 2 minutes.

5. Add in the bread cubes and the salt and mix well for 2-3 minutes to let the ingredients mix well.

6. Add in the cilantro and the peanuts.

7. Squeeze in the lime juice and mix well.

8. Serve hot.