Alma Bax If you are not familiar with making a dosa, it is the most popular South Indian breakfast. It is a semi-layered flatbread made from rice and lentils that is served with various toppings like sambar, chutney, chutneys, …etc. It is usually served as a breakfast or lunch item, but can be eaten anytime of the day.
Use dosa batter for crispy dosa.
One of the most common breakfast dishes is a dosa, or crepe. Dosa is made with a batter, which is a combination of rice flour, water, ghee (clarified butter), and salt. The batter is poured in a frying pan and cooked until the edges look done, and the center is still soft. The dosa is then flipped over and cooked on the other side.. Read more about idli dosa batter proportion and let us know what you think.
In south India, dosa is a popular morning dish. It is a staple of Tamilnadu’s and a few other states’ diets. Dosa is a kind of pancake prepared with rice and lentils.
To make dosa, soak rice and dal, then grind it into a smooth paste and let it to ferment. After it has fermented, it is fried into a thin, crispy, golden brown pancake.
Dosas come in a variety of flavors, with the most popular being Masala dosa (potato packed beneath the dosa). Mysore dosa is a reddish-brown chutney with potato filling that is put within the dosa. Ghee roast is a crispy dosa that has been fried with ghee. Onion dosa is a dosa with onions within. Paneer dosa is a dosa with paneer filled within.
We may create a variety of dosas using the same batter. There’s another dosa called rava dosa that uses a different batter, which I’ll show you shortly.
I often make dosa using idli batter, since both idlies and dosa may be prepared with it. I prepare batter just for dosas for a new flavor and a change of pace. They turn out crisp, golden brown, and taste great. This recipe comes from my aunt, who lives in Anantapur (Andhra Pradesh), and she prepares a variety of dosas. She sometimes adds wheat flour for flavor and a distinct taste, which I will show you shortly. In terms of dosas, she prepares a variety of batters, which I will share with you. She and her family are huge dosa fans. I create tiny cone-shaped dosas, masala dosas, ghee roasts, and more using this dosa batter because it produces extremely crispy dosas. You may also see the recipe for another dosa called uttapam, which is soft and thick with veggies. Another dosa is the set dosa, which is thick and tiny in size.
Dosas are served in restaurants in a variety of forms, including triangles, cones, and the most popular rolled shape, which is folded on both sides. The dosa is accompanied with a selection of chutneys and sambars. You may have simple dosa with chutney and sambar or with chutney and sambar.
Add the necessary quantity of water to the urad dal while grinding, and a nice froth should develop as shown in the image; it should be light and fluffy like whipped cream.
After the rice has been crushed, it may be kept as a coarse or smooth paste.
Fermentation is critical; keep it warm if you’re in a cold country, and close to a boiler or heater. In chilly regions, ferment in the morning or at night since the rooms will be warm due to the heater.
When using batter from one box for producing idlies and dosas, the froth drops down as we combine it with a spoon, which is why I move the mixture into 2 or 3 airtight boxes to preserve the consistency, but before fermentation fill half of the container or box.
For dosa, my mother only uses raw ponni or sona masoori rice and urad dal in a 3:1 ratio, and a nice crispy dosa comes from her dosa griddle, which has been used for many years and is exclusively used for dosa. This batter may also be used to create dosas. You may create dosas using my other idlies and uttapam batter, but not ghee roast dosas or cone dosas.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups parboiled ponni rice
- 1 cup basmati rice (long grain) or uncooked rice
- 1/2 cup chana dal (Bengal gram)
- 1/2 cup mung dal (split green gram)
- 1 teaspoon methi (fenugreek) seeds
- 1 1/2 to 2 cups water (one cup is 200 ml)
- 1 cup urad dal
- 1 1/2 cups water
- if necessary, salt
Method
Preparing the rice and lentils by soaking them.
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- After thoroughly washing rice, chana dal, and mung dal, combine them in a large mixing basin. Soak for a minimum of 4 to 6 hours.
- In a separate dish, soak urad dal for 1 to 4 hours.
- I used ponni rice that had been parboiled and basmati rice. Instead of basmati rice, you may use uncooked ponni rice or long grain rice.
- To give the dosa its crispness and golden brown color, chana dal and mung dal are added.
urad dal, ground
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- Using a strainer, remove the water from the urad dal. Keep the water in a separate container for grinding.
- To begin, place urad dal and a little amount of water in a grinder. If the mixture becomes too dry and thick, add water as needed. About 1 1/2 to 2 cups of water was utilized. Continue to grind until you get a decent quantity of froth. Like whipped egg white or cream, the paste should be extremely smooth and fluffy. If you don’t have a grinder, you may use a mixie.
- Place the urad dal paste in a container or carton.
Rice and lentils are ground
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- Using a strainer, remove the water from the rice and dal combination. This water may be used to grind with.
- There’s no need to clean the grinder. Fill the rice grinder halfway with water. Pour 3/4 cup of water into the rice and dal grinder first. Slowly drizzle water over the stones and down the edges where a thick paste is forming. Otherwise, the grinder will not adequately grind and may stop rotating. Mix the ingredients together using a spatula.
- As soon as the batter becomes thick, add water a bit at a time (approximately 1/4 cup) to keep the grinder running smoothly. In all, you may need 2 to 2 1/2 cups of water.
- The grinding procedure is finished when the rice and dal have been ground to a smooth and fluffy mixture.
urad dal and rice paste are mixed together.
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- Mix in the urad dal paste with the rice paste for a few minutes to ensure that everything is properly combined. It should take no more than 5 minutes to complete. During this period, season with salt. Always use caution while adding salt. If there isn’t enough, salt may be added afterwards.
- It should take around 45 to 50 minutes in total. Grinding urad dal takes 20 to 25 minutes, and rice takes 20 to 25 minutes.
- The batter should not be excessively thick or thin in consistency. Water should be added according to the amount of rice, lentils, and urad dal you’re using. The batter should have the consistency of custard.
- The batter for dosas may be smooth or coarse, depending on your preference. Dosas should be simple to make with this material. Idli batter is often somewhat thicker than dosa batter. It should be simple to create dosas when you pour the batter onto the tava/pan. It should be neither too thin nor too thick.
Fermentation and storage
- Divide the batter into two or three boxes. Only half of these should be filled. The batter will rise as a result of fermentation. You may ferment and then refrigerate in colder climates. When the batter is pounded in hot regions like India, however, it is stored in the refrigerator. The necessary amount is taken and fermented as needed. For example, the necessary quantity of batter for the following day’s breakfast may be taken and fermented overnight in the kitchen. After the batter has fermented in the morning, add the necessary salt and proceed to make idlis or dosas. In colder climates, grind in the evening (say, 4 p.m.) and ferment near a heater till the following morning. To ferment properly, the batter should be kept in a warm atmosphere. If the batter ferments in a shorter amount of time, there is no need to store it for a longer length of time.
- You can see the bubbles in the batter as you mix it. This image demonstrates how light and airy the batter is. To keep the batter light and airy, do not overmix it; instead, gently toss it with a ladle before starting to cook dosas.
Notes
- It’s important that the batter isn’t too thick or too thin. The batter should have the consistency of condensed milk or custard.
- The batter for dosas should be somewhat thinner than that for idlis.
- The batter will be light, fluffy, and airy after fermentation. If you overmix, the airy bubbles will pop and you will not obtain a crispy dosa.
- For grinding, you may use the water in which the urad dal/rice was steeped.
When we talk about dosa batter, we talk about crispy dosa. The combination of heat and steam, produces a texture that is crisp on the outside, soft on the inside, and airy on the surface. I love the way dosa batter looks. I love the way it smells. I love how it tastes. I love the way it sounds, when I talk about it. I love that I am talking about it. I love that it makes the best crispy dosas.. Read more about readymade dosa batter and let us know what you think.
Frequently Asked Questions
What makes dosa brown and crispy?
Dosa is a type of Indian crepe made from rice batter and thin lentil dough. The browning agent in the batter is urad dal, which gives it its distinctive color and flavor.
Why is my dosa not crispy?
The dosa needs to be cooked on a flat surface.
How do you fix soggy dosa batter?
You can use a little bit of water to make it more fluid.
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