How to ferment Idli batter in Winter in Cold Countries

Hi Friends,
Today’s post is a very basic post about fermentation of idli,dosa batter in winter season especially in cold countries like Canada,US etc. I have got few requests from my readers to post some tips for fermentation in cold countries and a video to make idlis. Very soon i will make a detailed video post on how to make soft idlis. My younger sister Radha is in Canada.As u all know, Canada is one of the coldest countries in the world.My sis always makes the best  & super soft idlis in spite of the cold weather. So i thought she is the best person to clear all my doubts.When i asked her to make a post,she happily accepted my request & helped me a lot by taking step by step pictures and mailed everything clearly. Thank u so much my dear.Luv u!
I hope this post will help the people who is feeling bad & worried about making non-fermented,hard idlis. The tips i have shared here will solve the fermentation problems i feel. Friends,please mail me or leave a comment here if u have any tips to share.It will help everyone. Thanks for visiting this page.

My sister grinds the batter once in a week.The quantity she had mentioned below comes for 5 days.She makes idli for the first two days for both breakfast & dinner and dosa for 3 days.She uses Thanjore idli rice & plain packet of urad dal,not any particular brand.My sister’s friend Sukanya in US also follows the same method to make idli. One more tip from my friend Shalini : When she was in US for two years,she used to keep the batter vessel near room heater and she told the batter gets fermented like the same in India.Try this tip too. Ok,Here is the idli batter procedure along with the quantity of ingredients mailed by my sister. ldi batter procedure Soak 9 cups idli rice + 1 tsp methi seeds.Soak 2.5 cups of urad dal separately for 3 to 6 hrs. ( Half this quantity if you are doing for first time) After soaking,drain the water and grind urad dal first adding enough water.Remove in a big container.Then grind the rice,add salt and mix it thoroughly with the urad dal batter using your hands. Here is the picture of batter i got before fermentation by 4pm.Keep it inside the oven and switch on the oven light. Leave the batter for one full day(24 hrs). The batter is fully fermented the next day by 4pm. During this process the outside temperature was -23c and the heater temperature at home was 23c. Check out my idli,dosa batter post for grinding with stepwise pictures.My sis does the same way.You might also like Soft Idli,crispy dosa batter using mixie Soft idli using idli Rava 15+ Idli varieties collection

Some general tips for fermentation of idli batter

TIPS FOR FERMENTATION

After going through some websites ,  i am giving some additional tips for batter fermentation. Hope it will work for you .

• First recommended thing for batter fermentation is to mix the batter using ur hands..Mix the dal and rice batter thoroughly.. Uneven mixing causes failures. Mixing them by hand works best!
• Don't forget to add the grinder washed water to the batter before'mixing it with your hands. But add very little. 
• You can also add a handful of Poha or cooked rice while grinding the rice. It helps for quick fermentation.
• A warm temperature is essential for fermentation. 25 to 28 °C (77 - 82.4 °F) will be ideal. If the weather is cold, keep some warm water in a large bowl and immerse the vessel containing the dough. To help maintain the temperature of the warm water bath, cover it with a blanket, or better, use a regulated heater, like a heating pad or aquarium heater. Even easier, turn on the light in the oven, and use that to keep the batter warm.
• When u grind the batter, pre heat the oven in 90c for 10 minutes and switch off the oven.Now keep the batter covered inside the oven and turn the oven lights on.. It helps ..
• Add 1/4 tsp of baking soda or baking powder to the ground batter and then ferment. It will help the batter to raise well in harsh cold conditions..Adding poha or cooked rice while grinding also helps for quick fermentation.
• Allow at least 24 hours to ferment. If you don't see tiny bubbles the next morning, the dough will not rise and you have to start all over again.
• If nothing works for u , try adding a fermentation starter like a spoonful of commercially prepared idli batter as they have live culture, it helps for fermentation..
• Use chlorine-free water when grinding, as this will be the water that the batter will have in it when fermenting. Tap water will work, but will inhibit the ferment a little. Most modern water filters remove both chlorine and chloramine. Use non-iodized salt such as ‘Kosher salt’ and Use spring water, boiled or filtered tap water to avoid Chlorine/Fluorine.
• I also read from Indus ladies that adding 1/2 tsp of ENO plain fruit salt for 1 cups of idli batter makes the idli soft even if its not fermented well.Please try this too but iam not sure how it works.

I hope u find this post useful . Thank you.Have a nice day !

Last but not the least,check out my
 15 Idli varieties here if interested.

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