Mohan’s Morning Rice

Every morning, from before dawn, Mohan’s tea stall by the big Hindu temple in Udaipur (in southern Rajasthan) is busy. Taxi drivers and schoolchildren, laborers and office workers stop in for a quick glass of hot tea or milky coffee, or for a plate of poha, aromatic rice flakes cooked like an easy pilaf. It’s wonderful morning food, slightly sweet, soft textured, easy to digest. If you don’t like hot chiles in the morning (these give a mild heat), then simply omit them.