Black rice idli, dosa and sweet paniyaram was my recent try using black rice/ Karuppu arisi (Kavuni arisi). Black rice / Karuppu arisi popularly known as kavuni arisi is a rice variety with amazing health benefits. Recently I shared Chettinad special Kavuni arisi sweet recipe. When I shared that recipe, some of my readers asked me to share more black rice recipes. So I made black rice sweet paniyaram and idli, dosa. Both came out well in the first attempt.
I thought of starting black rice recipes with this soft and spongy black rice idli, dosa recipe. Next week I will try to post the paniyaram recipe. Here I have used idli rice and black rice in equal quantities. The quantity of rice and urad dal is important to get a soft and spongy idli. I have also used some poha / pressed rice for additional softness. Friends do try this healthy black rice idli / karuppu arisi idli and dosa. You will love it.
Wash and soak idli rice, black rice, urad dal, methi seeds and poha for 6 hours.
Black rice takes longer time to soak.
Grind everything to a smooth paste adding required water and salt.
Transfer the idli batter to a vessel. Mix the batter with hands.
Cover and ferment over night. The next morning mix the batter well.
Steam in idli pot till done. Remove and enjoy with chutney, sambar !
BLACK RICE IDLI DOSA - STEP BY STEP PICTURES
Wash the black rice thrice in a wide bowl. Add idli rice, urad dal, methi seeds and poha. Wash everything together for once or twice. Soak it for 6 hours minimum because black rice takes longer time to soak.
Grind everything to a smooth paste in a mixie or grinder. Use ice cold water for grinding if you use mixie. While grinding you can add salt if you like OR add it the next day before making idli.
After grinding the batter, transfer to a big vessel. Mix it with hands to aid fermentation. Cover the vessel and leave the batter overnight or 8 hours minimum to ferment. Consistency of batter should be like regular idli batter.
The next day, batter would have raised well. Mix it well and pour the batter in a greased idli plate.
Boil water in idli pot. Place the idli plate and steam it for 10 to 15 minutes in high flame till idli is cooked well. Cracks may form on top of idli. But it will be soft.
Remove the idli plate and rest it for 5 minutes before removing the idli. Take the idli and serve hot with chutney or sambar. I made dosa the next day. For making dosa, add little water to the batter if needed. Heat dosa pan, pour a ladleful of batter and spread it. You can make it thin or thick as you like. Flip and cook both the sides. Remove and serve hot !
Enjoy !
Note
For variations, you can soak and grind black rice, idli rice, methi seeds together. Soak urad dal separately and grind it first. Mix both the batter and ferment it. In that case, skip poha.
Color of idli may vary based on the color of black rice. Some rice looks reddish.
This batter stays good for 3 days in refrigerator but it turns sour the next day. You can make dosa with it.
Healthy black rice idli dosa is ready to enjoy with chutney and sambar !
I must thank my MIL for teaching me how to make soft idli batter with ration rice (Ration arisi). For the past 2 years my in-laws are getting ration rice (both idli rice/ puzhungal arisi and raw rice / pacharisi) regularly in Salem, Tamil nadu. Most of the people avoid using ration rice/ idli rice because it looks pale yellow in color with lots of dirt, sometimes with worms too. Cleaning itself is a big deal. But my MIL does everything patiently and gives me few kgs whenever we visit Salem.
After trying so many combinations, my MIL is fixed with this ratio of rice and dal (6:1) to make soft idli and crispy dosa batter using ration rice. So I too follow the same and get good results every time. The biggest problem with ration rice idli is its pale color, sticky in texture with musty smell (We call it as Oora naatham in Tamil). To avoid this & to get white colored idli without any smell, we must wash the rice at least 5 to 6 times before soaking and thrice after soaking. Similarly the quality of ration rice keeps changing.
Based on that we make idli dosa in two ways by changing the ratio of rice and dal. I have given both of them below. You can follow the ratio of 6:1 (rice : urad dal) if you use grinder. If you want to use our Indian mixie for grinding the batter, use 4:1 ratio. I hope this post will help the people who are using ration rice for the first time. By following this recipe, you can make soft idli, crispy dosa, paniyaram, uthappam and appam with the same batter. Ok, lets move on to the recipe below.
Ration idli rice / Puzhungal arisi - 3 cupsOR Ration idli rice + ration raw rice – 1.5 cups each
White, round urad dal - 1/2 cup
Fenugreek seeds - 1/2 tsp
Salt & water - as needed
HOW TO MAKE RATION RICE IDLI
Wash the ration idli rice 5 to 6 times to remove the dust. Soak for 4 to 5 hours adding fenugreek seeds. Wash and soak urad dal for 1 hour.
Drain the soaked water and wash twice again to remove the bad smell of rice.
Grind the rice to a smooth paste adding clean water. Remove the rice batter in a big vessel.
Grind the soaked urad dal adding required water. Add water gradually and make smooth, fluffy batter.
Add to the rice batter and mix with your hands. Ferment it over night or minimum 12 hours.
The next day, add salt and mix the batter well. Make idli in a plate and steam it for 10 to 15 minutes. Rest it for 5 minutes and then remove the idli.
To make dosa, take the required batter in a vessel. Add little water. Spread thin dosa in a pan and cook till done. Fold and remove. Serve soft idli and crispy dosa with chutney , sambar. Enjoy !
RATION RICE IDLI - STEP BY STEP PICTURES
Wash the ratio idli rice 5 to 6 times thoroughly with your hands till the water becomes clear without any debris or dust. Remove the husk, black particles while washing the rice. Discard it.
Soak the rice in enough water for 4 to 5 hours. Color of the rice becomes white after soaking. To avoid the musty smell from the rice, again wash the soaked rice twice or thrice before grinding.
Wash and soak urad dal + fenugreek seeds for 2 hours.
After soaking, rice looks white in color. Now drain the soaked water to remove the musty smell in rice. Wash it twice or thrice based on the smell. Add fresh, clean water and grind to a smooth paste. It takes 25 to 30 minutes approx for grinding. ( If you have the practice of grinding dal first, you can grind the urad dal and then rice).
Remove the rice batter in a big vessel. Do not add salt while grinding rice If you live in cold countries. ( Salt delays fermentation). Grind the soaked urad dal to a fluffy, spongy batter by sprinkling water gradually. It takes 20 minutes approx.
Mix the urad dal batter with rice batter with your hands. (Do not add salt If you live in cold countries or during winter season because salt delays fermentation process. If you are in hot place or during summer season, you can add salt in the batter while mixing or grinding.)
Close the vessel with a lid. Let the idli batter ferment over night or minimum 12 hours. The next morning, batter would have become sour and raised well or sometimes doubled based on the weather.
The next morning add salt if you haven’t added it. Mix the batter well. Check the batter consistency. Add little water if the batter is too thick. Grease idli plate with oil. Pour the batter. Keep the idli plate over the boiling water in idli pot. Steam it for 10 to 15 minutes. Switch off the flame. Remove the idli plate and rest it for 5 minutes. Then take the idli using a small ladle or spoon.
To make dosa, take the required batter in a bowl. Add little water to adjust the consistency. Spread thin or thick dosa as you like on a hot dosa pan. Cook both sides, fold and remove.
Enjoy this soft idli and dosa with your favorite chutney and sambar!
Note
You can either use idli rice alone or ration idli rice + ration raw rice in equal quantities. Both works for me.
The ratio of rice and dal is 6:1.
Try this soft idli batter using ration rice at home and enjoy with your favorite chutney and sambar !
Instant Quinoa idli recipe with semolina/rava/sooji and curd. This is my very first post using quinoa. Quinoa is a super natural grain which is gluten-free, high in protein, fiber, vitamins and minerals. Quinoa is not called as thinai in Tamil. There is no proper Tamil word for quinoa (Keen-wah). But many of us think quinoa is very similar to our Indian Foxtail millet (thinai in Tamil). It is not. There are slight differences between quinoa and thinai mainly in their amino acid profile.
Quinoa has high protein when compared with other millets. Both are gluten free, high in fiber that helps for weight loss and control diabetes. Both takes the same quantity of water for cooking pulao, upma, porridge and soup. Similar in Calories too. But cost wise quinoa is not affordable and its not easily available in all the stores in India like millets.You can find it in very few organic shops in big cities Or you can buy from online stores like Amazon. I bought it from an Organic shop in Gandhi bazaar, Bangalore. Quinoa is most popular in US and other foreign countries.
Many of my abroad readers asked me to share quinoa recipes years ago. At that time, I was not aware of this grain. I did not even know how to pronounce it. Then I came to know from Shalini that it should be pronounced as “keen-wah”. Some people also call it as Kinua. People usually consume this healthy grain for weight loss and to control diabetes.
To begin with quinoa recipes, I felt Idli would be ideal for me. Being a South Indian, Idli is the staple food in my family. I like to consume millets and other super natural foods in the form of idli more than upma, kichdi, pulao or porridge. I can eat it 24x7 if its an idli with some spicy chutney or sambar. So this morning, I prepared instant quinoa idli with semolina/rava/sooji and curd just like our usual rava idli for our breakfast & refrigerated the remaining batter for dinner.
Quinoa idli came out great with soft and spongy texture. I was very happy with the results. Color of the idli was grey otherwise there is no particular difference in taste between this idli and rava idli. Sendhil and myself enjoyed it with spicy coconut chutney and idli podi. Personally I love instant idli recipes with tangy tomato chutney or tomato thokku. You can make the side dish as per your preference.
You can make this instant quinoa idli in the next 15 minutes if you have quinoa, semolina and some curd in hand. Friends, do try this healthy, yummy quinoa idli and share your feedback with me. Ok, lets see how to make quinoa idli without fermentation with step by step pictures and video.
Instant quinoa idli recipe - Quinoa recipes Indian
How to make quinoa idli instantly with semolina and curd for breakfast and dinner
Salt & water - as needed ( I used nearly 3/4 cup water)
Baking soda - 1/2 tsp
HOW TO MAKE INSTANT QUINOA IDLI
Take Quinoa and grind to a fine powder.
Heat oil in a kadai. Splutter mustard seeds, urad dal, chana dal.
Saute green chillies, ginger, curry leaves, coriander leaves.
Add semolina and roast for 2 minutes. Then add quinoa powder and roast for 2 more minutes.
Let it cool down. Then add salt, curd and mix well.
Add water to make thick spoon able batter. Add baking soda,mix well.Rest for 5 minutes.
Pour in greased idli plate and steam it for 10 minutes.
Remove after one minute and enjoy Instant quinoa idli with chutney or sambar !
METHOD - STEP BY STEP PICTURE
Grind Quinoa to a fine powder in a big mixie jar. Keep aside.
Heat oil in a kadai and splutter mustard seeds, urad dal, chana dal and cumin seeds. Saute till dals turn golden. Add finely chopped green chillies, ginger, curry leaves and coriander leaves. Saute for a minute.
Add rava and roast in medium flame for 2 minutes. Add ground quinoa and roast for 2 more minutes till nice aroma arises. Remove the kadai, transfer the roasted items to a bowl and let it cool down.
Add curd, required salt and mix well. Add water gradually and make thick batter. I used 3/4 cup of water approximately. Batter should be thick and spoonable. Add baking soda, mix well and keep the batter aside for 5 minutes.
Grease idli plate with oil and pour the batter till 1/2 of the mould. Steam for 10 minutes.Check with a toothpick or back of spoon. If it comes out clean, idli is done.
Remove the idli plate and rest for 2 minutes. Take the idli using a spoon. Serve hot with coconut chutney or tomato chutney for best taste ! You cannot make dosa with this batter. Enjoy !
Note
For variations you can add oats too.
Sour curd is better.
Adding soda helps to make the idli soft and spongy. You can also add ENO instead of soda.
Do not add more water to the batter. Idli becomes flat and sticky.
If you wish, you can skip the tempering part and make plain idli.
Try this healthy, instant quinoa idli for breakfast/ dinner and enjoy !
Pearl millet idli, dosa recipe without rice ( Kambu idli dosai in Tamil, Bajra Idli dosa in Hindi, Sajjalu Idli dosa in Telugu, Sajje idli dosa in Kannada, Kambam Idli in Malayalam) with step by step pictures and video. After a long time, I am happy to share a millet recipe in my website.I love to consume millets in the form of idli, dosa, adai or upma at least once in week either for breakfast or dinner. But I haven’t blogged many of the recipes I make in my kitchen. So I thought of sharing them one by one from this week.
This is not going to be a millet series. I will try to post the Indian style millet recipes whenever I can. To begin with here is a healthy, super soft pearl millet idli without using rice. Pearl millet is one of the wonder grain millets that helps to control diabetes, reduces cholesterol and aids for weight loss. I adapted my Mixie idli,dosa batter recipe and prepared this idli using bajra/kambu. We can grind this kambu idli batter easily using Indian mixie. It came out very well and I am completely satisfied with the results. I made soft idli on the first day with the fermented batter and crispy dosa for the next day dinner. Both were good in taste when consumed hot. But idli looks grey in color and smells like millet as it has no rice. Tomato chutney or coconut chutney is a good side dish for this Kambu idli and dosai. Do try this healthy bajra idli at home and share your feedback with me. Ok, lets check how to make Kambu idli/ Pearl millet idli with step by step pictures and video !
Wash and soak pearl millet, methi seeds and poha together for 5 hours.
Wash and soak urad dal separately in another bowl for 2 hours.
Grind urad dal to a smooth paste adding the soaked water.
Collect in a bowl and then grind millet + Poha mixture to a smooth paste adding enough water.
Mix both the batter with hands and let it ferment overnight. The next day, mix the batter well and make idli.
Enjoy with tomato chutney or coconut chutney !
METHOD - STEP BY STEP PICTURES
Wash the pearl millet twice to remove the debris , add poha, methi seeds, wash again and soak it in enough water for 5 to 6 hours. Wash and soak urad dal separately in another bowl for 2 hours.
First grind urad dal in a mixie to a thick, smooth batter adding enough water. I used the soaked water for grinding. You can also use ice cold water. Then grind the soaked pearl millet + Poha to a smooth batter adding required water. Do not make the batter watery.
Mix both the batter well with your hands and allow it to ferment overnight or 12 hours based on the weather in your place. The next morning, batter would have raised well. Its consistency should be like regular idli batter.
Mix well and make idli in a greased idli plate. Steam it for 10 to 15 minutes. Remove after it becomes warm. It tastes super soft when hot with the flavor of pearl millet. Serve hot to enjoy its best taste !
Enjoy !
Note
Do not grind the batter too watery. Add only the required water.
Urad dal should be soaked and grind separately to get soft idli.
If you soak them together, you need to add more urad dal and poha. You may have to use 3:1 ratio of millet and dal if soaking them together.
You can also use Kuthiravali/ barnyard millet or Thinai/Foxtail millet instead of pearl millet.
Try this healthy Kambu idli & dosai with your favorite chutney or sambar !
Raw rice idli ( Pacharisi idli in Tamil) is one of the important festival recipes of Tamilnadu and Andhra. My friend Shalini told me about this idli using raw rice and pappu unta( Paruppu urundai) when I was asking for Varalakshmi Pooja recipes. Many people (especially Tamil brahmins) prepare this pacharisi idli for Varalakshmi vratham and Ganesh Chaturthi neivedyam. Basically steamed rice or boiled rice idli (Puzhungal arisi) is not offered to God. So people make idli with good quality raw rice / ponni rice ( sona masoori) and offer to God on festival days. I followed my mixie idli,dosa batter recipe, altered the quantity of ingredients and tried it. To make a perfectly soft raw rice idli, we should add more urad dal and give more time for fermentation. Ratio of rice and dal should be 2:1. Its always better to use grinder for making idli. But I used mixie to grind the batter as I made very less quantity. I used ice cold water to prevent the heating of jar. So if you are using mixie like me, use ice cold water to get soft and spongy idli else idli may come out hard.
Raw Rice Idli - Pacharisi Idli Recipe
Its taste and texture reminded Kanchipuram idli to me. I tried making dosa with this batter but it was not so great in taste. It tasted like varagu dosa. I will try to upload a dosa picture soon. Tomorrow I will share pappu unta recipe. Friends, do try this idli recipe for varalakshmi viratham, offer God and get her blessings. Now lets see how to make raw rice idli recipe with step by step photos !
Raw rice – 1 cup (Use good quality sona masoori/Ponni rice)
Urad dal - 1/2 cup
Methi seeds - 1/4 tsp
Poha / Thick Aval - 1.5 tbsp (optional)
Salt - as needed
Water - as required ( I used 1.25 cups)
Gingely oil - to grease idli plate
How to make the recipe
Wash and soak raw rice, urad dal, poha and methi seeds for 3 to 4 hours.
Grind to a smooth paste adding ice cold water.
Collect the batter in a bowl. Ferment for 12 to 15 hours.
This batter won't double in quantity but rise slightly.
The next morning,mix the batter well and make idli.
Steam for 10 minutes till done, remove after 5 minutes.Serve with chutney,sambar.Enjoy !
Raw Rice idli - Step by step pictures
Wash and soak rice, urad dal, aval and methi seeds together for 3 to 4 hours.
Grind in a mixie jar adding ice cold water. I used approx 1.25 cups of water. Grind to a smooth paste.
Collect the batter in a bowl. Ferment it for 12 to 15 hours or overnight based on the weather. This batter won't double in quantity but rise slightly.
The next morning, mix well with a ladle.Grease idli plate with sesame oil and pour the batter.
Steam in an idli pot for 10 minutes. Remove after its done. Rest for 5 minutes and then remove the idli. For offering God, drizzle a tsp of ghee over the idli as shown in the picture. Finish the pooja, serve with sambar & chutney!
Notes
Adding poha is optional. You can skip it.
You can grind the batter in a grinder. Idli comes out even more soft.
For variations, you can soak the urad dal separately. Grind to a smooth paste, remove in a bowl.Then grind the soaked rice+ poha + methi seeds to a smooth batter. Mix both the batter and ferment it.
Masala idli fry is an easy, kids friendly recipe that can be made using leftover idli.We can prepare this idli fry with fresh mini idli too. It can be served as breakfast, dinner or as an evening snack for kids. Usually I make South Indian, Tamilnadu style masala idli fry. This time I prepared it in North Indian style adding Pav bhaji masala powder.Actually speaking, recipe of masala idli varies from place to place.It can also be prepared in a simple way adding garam masala powder or fennel powder.
As this is my first attempt in North Indian style, I followed this recipe from Spice up the curry & Red Chilly and tried for our breakfast. I adjusted the spice level as per my family’s taste. It came out really well. Sendhil & myself loved it a lot. I hope Raksha will like it too. If making for kids, you can try the same with deep fried idli pieces. This recipe is a great way to use the leftover idli. You can also add vegetables like finely chopped carrot, cooked peas along with capsicum to make this dish more healthy and colorful ! Now lets see how to make Indian style masala idli at home using leftover idli with step by step photos & video.
Heat oil in a kadai. Temper cumin seeds. Saute onion, ginger, garlic and tomato.
Add all the spice powders, salt and mix well.
Add 1/4 cup of water to the masala and boil for a minute.
Lastly add the idli cubes, mix gently to coat the masala.
Garnish with coriander leaves. Sprinkle ghee & lemon juice if needed.Serve hot !
Masala idli recipe - How to make masala idli fry - Step by step pictures
Take the leftover idli and chop into big cubes. You can chop each idli into 8 or 9 pieces.Set aside.
Heat oil in a kadai. Splutter cumin seeds. Saute onion, capsicum, garlic and ginger pieces. After onion becomes transparent,add tomato and saute for a minute.
Add turmeric powder, red chilli powder, pav bhaji masala powder, sugar and mix well. Saute till tomato becomes mushy. Add 1/4 cup of water and boil for 2 minutes till masala becomes semi dry.
Lastly add the idli cubes, mix gently without breaking.Coat the idli with masala. If masala has more water content, idli will break. So make sure masala is almost dry. Mix idli & cook for a minute.Switch off the flame. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves, few tsp of ghee and sprinkle some lemon juice. Mix well and serve hot!
Mash few banana pieces and cook for 2 minutes in low flame. Switch off the flame, sprinkle lemon juice and garnish with coriander leaves if desired.I did not add it.Remove and serve with rice.
Note:
Adjust the quantity of pav bhaji masala powder as per your spice level.
Make sure the tomato masala mixture is semi dry before adding idli pieces.
