Spiced Idli (Kanchipuram Idli, version 2)

Spiced Idli (Kanchipuram Idli, version 2)

A tamil channel has been telecasting a program in which Revathy Sankaran cooks traditional recipes along with her grand daughter. She says the intent is to help pass on the knowledge of those days to the future generation. She also shows some special utensils that were in use few decades back and I recall my grandmother mentioning them. So far, I must say the recipes have not been particularly new to me because all of them were cooked by my grandmother and mother. It does make me feel proud that way because I have been sticking to my intent of capturing as many traditional recipes as I have been exposed to through my previous generations. Anyway, there was one show in which she showed kanchipuram idli recipe and for all those who have read my post on this dish probably know how I have my complaint against leading chef who just add some mustard seeds, turmeric powder and curry leaves to normal idli dough and call it kanchipuram idli. So I was curious to find how she made it and most of it except one basic ingredient was the same. However, to me that difference was important because this recipe used a pulse instead of raw rice. I was obviously curious to try this recipe and found the results to be good. Honestly I was very unsure of how it would be and even thought I will bin the batter but it was a day that I thought something is better than nothing. The whole family liked the idlis. Some difference between my original kanchipuram idli and this is in the texture as the original is meant to be slightly coarse batter while this one is a fine batter. The softness and flavours are compatible. For those who like more pulses in their diet, you could try this recipe. Next time I would add some grated carrot just to get more veggies in. Here it is…

1 cup par boiled rice
½ cup urd dal
½ cup mung beans
1 teaspoon fenugreek seeds
Salt to taste
1 tablespoon gingelly oil or any oil
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 sprig curry leaves
½ teaspoon dry ginger powder (chukku podi)
1 teaspoon black peppercorns
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
1 teaspoon channa dal
few cashews, optional

Soak the beans, urd, rice and fenugreek together overnight. Grind to fine batter and add required salt. Allow batter to ferment well

Heat some oil and temper mustard seeds and channa dal. Once seeds crackles and dal browns, add to batter. Also add coarsely crushed pepper and cumin, curry leaves, dry ginger powder and oil. Mix well

Pour into idli moulds and steam for 15 minutes (until done)

Serve hot!

Wholewheat Idlis (Wheat Rava Idlis)

Wholewheat Idlis (Wheat Rava Idlis)


My husband was not going to join for dinner one of the days this week and that meant I will have to think of a recipe for just me and maybe for my wee one to have a bite. I wanted to experiment wholewheat idlis as I had not written down how I made it the last time I did. This idli is not quite similar to the regular idli and I fancied an idli slightly spiced so that I could get away without making a chutney or any other side dish. For this reason, I decided to keep the batter a bit coarse, similar to kanchipuram idli and also use freshly grated ginger and green chillies to spice up. The curry leaves add a wonderful flavourful in these steamed idlis. I ended up eating it with egg curry (am yet to post this recipe, will do so shortly) and it was great. Idlis make such a wonderful breakfast although I have almost given up making cooked breakfast.

¼ cup urd dal
¾ cup wheat rava (broken wheat)
1 teapsoon fenugreek seeds
1 inch ginger, grated
1 sprig curry leaves
1-2 green chillies, finely chopped
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
1 teaspoon channa dal
Salt to taste
Less than a teaspoon cooking oil

Wash and soak urd dal and fenugreek seeds for atleast 3 hours. It would be even better if you soak them overnight

Grind the urd dal and fenugreek seeds to smooth consistency. In the meantime, rinse the wheat rava, then add it to ground urd dal and add required salt and pulse the ‘mixie’. If you rather that the batter be smooth like regular idli, you could grind the wheat rava dry and then add it to the ground urd. Allow this to ferment overnight.

Heat some oil and add mustard seeds and channa dal, once the seeds crackle, add it to the batter along with ginger and curry leaves

Pour the batter in the idli mould and ensure you leave some room for the idli to rise. Steam for about 15 minutes and serve with a chutney!

I could not take many pictures as I was in real hurry, maybe next time. You could also add grated carrot to enhance the nutritional value.

This would be the first time I would be sending an entry to an event and this goes to wholewheat breakfast even  http://litebite.in/event-wwc/ hosted by Sanjeeta.

Kanchipuram Idli

Kanchipuram Idli


Despite being a south Indian, that too a ‘Tambram’, I was never a big fan of idlis. That was mainly because I find them just too bland and I love dishes full of flavour. Ofcourse, I have grown up and so has my liking to idlis and make it more exciting with sambar and variety of chutneys. There is one idli that has been an absolute all time favourite. It is Kanchipuram idli and I simply love the flavours in it. What a wonderful dish have our ancestors created! Unfortunately I have very often come across recipes that call it Kanchipuram idli but they are just nowhere near it. I remember being served an idli in this name in my canteen and it was basically normal idli with turmeric powder, curry leaves and mustard seeds in it. I went on to ask the staff in the canteen whether Kanchipuram actually knows that this is what is their idli. Many popular chefs unfortunately have specified such recipes which are far from the authentic dish. My grandmother is from Kanchipuram and she is best at making these idlis. For those of you who do not know, Kanchipuram is a beautiful town which is popular for its temples and the silk sarees. So here is the traditional recipe

1/3 cup raw rice
1/3 cup par boiled rice (idli rice)
1/3 cup urd dal
1 teaspoons black peppercorns
1 inch piece dried ginger (called chukku in tamil)
1-2 sprigs curry leaves
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 tablespoon gingely oil or groundnut/sunflower oil
Salt to taste

Wash and soak the two rice and urd dal together overnight. Grind them to a consistency where they are neither fine nor very coarse (this idli batter should be slightly coarse but you may want to decide how coarse you will like), add salt and allow to ferment overnight or a day

Make a coarse powder of the peppercorns, cumin seeds and dried ginger. I usually use my mortar and pestle as ‘mixie’ may make it too fine. Add this to the batter and add oil and mix

Pour a ladleful in each idli mould and steam for 10-15 minutes. insert a tooth pick or fork and if it comes out almost clean, idli is done.

Serve hot with gun powder (idli milagai podi)

This idli tends to become a bit dry when kept for a day. What mom and grandmom usually do is if there is any leftover (which is seldom), they would crumble it, mix it with gun powder and oil. They will soak up the oil and flavours from the gun powder only to get so much more yummy!

Couscous Idli (Couscous Steamed Savoury Cake)

Couscous Idli


One of the perils of moving out of my home country is that I cannot find many ingredients that I grew up eating. However, there is also a perk and that is access to a variety of other ingredients which I am fairly new to. Having been used to a certain way of cooking I should admit I struggle a bit to embrace the western diet though I do have my own favourites like a vegetable tartlet. I was also told by a doctor that it is better not to completely westernise our diet and continue with what we are used to else the body will struggle to cope and adapt. This may lead to some health issues mainly because the flora and fauna of the gut depends heavily on what we eat. So I tend to make a more Indian dish out of these western ingredients. In this recipe I have made a steamed savoury cake – idli out of the couscous. According to Wikipedia ‘Couscous granules are made by rolling and shaping moistened semolina wheat and then coating them with finely ground wheat flour. The finished granules are roughly spherical shape and about one millimeter in diameter before cooking.’ If you do not have the ‘idli plate’ to make idlis, just put the batter in ramekins and steam. Here is how I did it and this yielded 7-8 idlis. Keep the proportion same and increase or decrease quantity as desired.

1/3 cup rava (semolina)
1/3 cup couscous
1 grated carrot
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
2/3 cups yoghurt
1 teaspoon channa dal (optional)
Turmeric powder (optional)
1 Chopped green chilly (optional)
Salt as required
Cooking oil

Roast the rava in little oil or ghee until a nice aroma comes

In less than a teaspoon hot oil, allow the mustard seeds to crackle and add the channa dal and fry until they just begin to change colour.

Combine all other ingredients with roasted rava and mustard seeds and channa dal.

Add yoghurt and required amount of water (which could be around 1/3 cup) and mix well.

Pour the batter in idli plates or ramekins and steam for 10-15 minutes.

Serve with a nice chutney!

This is a healthy and neat finger food for your toddler and great tiffin for a light meal for us.

Barley Idli

Barley Idli


Idlis are classic south Indian steamed rice cakes. Following the success of barley dosa, I thought there was no reason why I cannot make lovely idlis with barley. Considering all the goodness in barley, which I have talked about in my barley dosa post, I was keen on making nice fluffy idlis with them. I must say I was surprised with the results and ofcourse pleased. I try to make a variety of instant idlis but somehow I seem to favour the fermented type more. It is possibly because it seems to have lentils in it and also the fact that fermented food is good for our body. I did not get to take many pictures as it was fairly straightforward. Just make sure you grind the batter just like usual idli batter. Here is more info on how to make it...

¼ cup urd dal
¼ cup idli rice
½ cup barley
1 teaspoon fenugreek
Salt to taste

Above quantity yields about 8-10 idlis.
Rinse and soak urd dal and fenugreek seeds together. Rinse and soak idli rice and barley separately. Try to soak overnight or about 6-8 hours.

In a wet grinder or a food processor/mixie first grind the urd dal to a fine paste and then add the rice and barley. Grind to a marginally coarse paste. Add required amount of salt. Ferment overnight. If you live in a cold place, keep the batter in the oven and if need be, warm the oven slightly and then turn it off and put the batter in.

Make the idlis in an idli pot just like usual idlis. You need not apply oil before spooning the batter on the idli plate, but that is upto you.

Steam the idlis for about 10-15 minutes. Pierce a skewer and if it returns without much sticking to it, then idli is done.

If you do not have idli pot, I would think you can even make this in ramekins and steam.

Serve hot with a nice chutney and maybe sambar as well.

The batter should start to flow freely when dropped from a spoon but do not make it too watery. I find it helpful to wait for the batter to ferment and add any more water if needed. Make sure you place the batter in a big container as the batter could double in volume if it ferments well.

Wheat and Oats Instant Idli

Wheat and Oats Instant Idli


Idlis are usually associated with the really soft white steamed delicacy and I think that is for a good reason. They are supposed to be quite harmless because they are steamed and make a low fat filling breakfast especially in South India. When I heard, saw and tasted Rava idli, I was quite surprised there could even be a nice idli other than the conventional idli. Years after that, I now have my own kitchen and am trying to make many different kinds of idlis. This is probably the first post of one such success story. This dish has many positives like it can be made instantly without much preparation and also it can include vegetables so you do not have to miss out on them. As always, I have tried to combine grains and in this recipe it is wheat and oats so it is more nutritive and fibre rich as well. I would pre-empt that almost all non-conventional idlis are not as soft as its traditional counterpart. My guess the reason is because traditional idli batter is ground fine and fermented. Having said that, some people add cooking soda to both traditional and other idlis to make them softer. You could try that but I avoid cooking soda as they tend to give a bloated feeling and also reduce the nutritive value of the food.

1 cup grated carrot
1/3 cup rava, roast in a drop of ghee/oil
1/3 cup wheat rava
1/3 cup oats, roast and pound
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
1 teaspoon channa dal
1 tablespoon chopped cashew nuts, 1 sprig curry leaves, teaspoon chopped coriander, teaspoon grated ginger, some turmeric powder (optional)
2/3 cup curd/yogurt
Little more than 1/3 cup water
Salt to taste
Less than a teaspoon oil
Asafoetida

Roast rava in a little ghee or oil until a nice aroma comes. Keep aside.

Roast oats until it becomes aromatic and allow to cool. Pound it to a coarse powder using mortar and pestle or food processor

Mix rava, powdered oats and wheat rava. Add salt, asafoetida.

In a skillet, add less than a teaspoon oil and add mustard seeds and once they crackle add to the mix. Also roast channa dal and add to mix.

Add the carrots to the mix and mix the yogurt and add required amount of water to achieve a thick batter consistency (the batter should drop freely from a spoon). While doing so, add any of the optional ingredients you may wish to use.

Pour into idli moulds and steam for 10-15 minutes.

Serve with tangy chutney.