Happy Holidays !

Wishing you Merry Christmas and Happy New Year !!

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IDLI

Idlis, as tender as a flower, soft and fluffy white cakes is everybody's favorite breakfast food. It is easy, yet time consuming relish made with rice and lentil batter. I remember savoring them as a child, small sized cakes, topped with ghee and sprinkled with sugar. Now, I enjoy them with coconut chutney, karam podi and sambar.

You need to plan ahead to make them. Usually, I make them for the weekend. The recipe follows :

Ingredients:
( Makes around 20 Idlis , depending how big your Idli plates are ! )

2 Cups Boiled rice ( Parboiled rice, Idli rice-u get in any Indian store)
1/4 Cup Rice
1 Cup Urad dal ( Minnapappu )
1 Tsp Fenugreek seeds ( Menthulu )
2 Tsp Sesame oil / any other cooking oil
Salt to taste.

Utensils needed :

Blender/Wet grinder, Idli plates, Idli cooker or Pressure cooker.



Wash and soak rice, dal and fenugreek seeds for about 4-5 hrs or overnight with enough water .

Take out all the water and grind it into a almost smooth yet little coarse, medium tight batter.
Add salt and mix it well .

Keep it aside overnight in a warm place for fermentation. I usually in winter pre-heat the oven to 100F and turn the oven off and place the batter inside overnight or at least 8-10hrs. It keeps it warm which is suitable for fermenting.

Next day, the batter would have doubled in volume. So, make sure after grinding the batter and pouring into the bowl, there is enough place for it to double, else, you will have to clean the spilled mess.

Stir the batter once more. The batter has to be medium thick consistency. Add little more water if necessary. If it is too thick you will end up with white stones and if it is too watery you will end up with a paste.

Grease the Idli plates with sesame oil ( I suggested sesame oil because, traditionally that is how it is made , any other oil is okay too ) and pour the batter into the plates.

Pour water into the cooker and place the Idli plates into it. Close it tightly. Do not place weight if you are doing it in pressure cooker. Steam it on medium heat for about 15-20mins until tender soft.

Steamed idlis, when touched on top, should not stick to your fingers. If it sticks, put them back for 5 more mins. Gently, with a sharp edged spoon take out the idlis from the plates. You can reuse the same plates for making more idlis the same way.

Serve hot hot idlis with chutney, karam podi and sambar, the traditional South Indian style.

Coming soon !!!! Variations of Idli !