I guess there are likely many readers who do not have my interest in Indian cuisine, and if so, I apologize. I, however, believe I could exist happily on Indian foods almost exclusively. And so, I continue happily experimenting almost weekly.
For a long time, I had been reading about idli. Idli are little steamed dumplings that are made with (usually) rice and urad dal / black gram, skinned and split. They can be made including other things, such as millet and likely other things that I am not aware of. Yet. The rice should be a parboiled type of rice, preferably a short grain but other parboiled rice is fine. Additional rice often used is either "poha," a parboiled and flattened rice (there are white and red rice varieties - I have the red rice type, hence the color of my Idli), or leftover cooked rice. The urad dal is often soaked with fenugreek seeds said to aid in the fermentation process.
 |
| Idli - Coconut Chutney - Idli Podi |
The process for making idli is a little complicated, due to the need for a long pre-soak of the dal and rice, then grinding them and mixing together to ferment overnight, then using this resultant batter to make the idli, which requires an idli steamer or at the very least some rounded small bowls and a rack for a skillet large enough to hold them with a lid on. This last is part of why I hadn't made them sooner, and as now I am the proud owner of an Idli steamer - problem solved.
I was highly curious about these little dumplings, and intrigued about the flavor profile. Intrigued also about the fermentation process (which, to date, has not actually happened for me - more about that later). Curious about whether they would actually come out? And even with all that, I went years and years with idli on my "to-do" list, yet only first tried them last year. I was also intrigued by the fact that these are considered breakfast food in south India.
When I first tried to make idli, and after having read about them extensively, I set about the soaking, the grinding, and then waiting for the fermentation, which supposedly has the batter growing to about twice its volume. This last did not happen. In this case, I have read, one simply adds baking soda to the mixture before pouring into the steamer molds. But, why didn't my batter ferment? I thought maybe I needed better rice? Maybe I needed fresher dal? So I ordered both, and set about trying again. Still no fermentation. It has been very cold up here in the north, and cold can certainly inhibit or significantly slow fermentation. We are planning to move out to Arizona soon, and I will have to try once out there. It will certainly be warmer!
I had made Sambar (a soup-like dish consisting of a pureed lentil base with tamarind and vegetables and also a breakfast dish) previously, to see what those flavors were all about, and absolutely love, love, loved it! Once I made the idli, despite the lack of fermentation, I truly loved eating them with the sambar. And, if you have batter left over, you can add a little water to it and use it to make Dosa, which are large crepes that are cooked golden on one side. These crepes can be eaten with the same things that idli are eaten with: any chutney of choice, but commonly coconut chutney, idli podi, sambar.
Often one sees photos online and in blogs of lovely white idli. Mine have so far been this light tan color, likely because of using red poha rice and possibly a higher than usual amount of fenugreek seeds. This in no way changes the flavor, though I might try making them with leftover rice some time, just to see how they come out.
 |
| Idli |
Idli
Makes about 24 small (3-inch) dumplings
½ cup Poha rice or leftover cooked rice
1 cup parboiled rice or idli rice
⅓ cup urad dal
1½ teaspoons fenugreek seed
¾ teaspoon salt
(½ teaspoon baking soda, if needed)
Early in the day: In one mixing bowl, place the Poha or leftover cooked rice and short grain rice and cover with water by at least an inch. In a separate bowl, place the urad dal and fenugreek seeds and cover these with water by at least an inch. Set the bowls aside for at least 5 hours.
Drain the rice, reserving the water aside. Place rice into a blender container and blend, adding only the minimum amount of the soaking liquid needed to make a cake-batter-like texture. Pour this batter into a large bowl and set aside.
Drain the urad dal mixture, again reserving the soaking water. Place the soaked dal into the blender container and blend, only adding in enough of the soaking water needed to make a cake-batter-like consistency, then pour this into the bowl with the rice batter. Cover the bowl lightly and let set on the counter to ferment overnight (to date, my batter has not risen), or at least 8 hours.
If the batter has not risen, add in ½ teaspoon baking soda before making the idli. Stir in the salt, mixing well to combine.
Grease 3½-inch idli molds lightly. Spoon in the mixture just barely filling the molds. Stack the molds and set the rack into a pot large enough to accommodate the idli rack with simmering water that does not reach to the bottom of the lowest idli. Cover and steam the idli for about 8 or 9 minutes, or until they are puffed and spring back when pressed. Or, check as for cake, inserting a toothpick in the center; they are done when the toothpick comes out clean.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
In all the restaurants I have been to try Indian foods, coconut chutney is always there. To date, it has not impressed me at all. Still, it is so often mentioned as an accompaniment to idli, dosa and so many other Indian foods, I had to try it. Still, fresh coconut is not always available this far north, so I did use desiccated coconut shreds. Coconut is called Nariyal, in Hindi and has lots of other names in the many other Indian languages and dialects. I made my own version of coconut chutney and it tastes good. Not great, at least to me - though I truly love coconut. I have been eating it, and enjoying it with idli, dosa and with another pancake-like bread called Adai, recipe coming soon. It is very nice. But I just can't get truly excited with it. It has been the same, no matter where I have tasted it, so it isn't just my recipe. I thought, all things considered, that my recipe was really good, in comparison to some I have tasted in restaurants.
My coconut chutney was green-tinged, due to using a fresh green jalapeno pepper in the mixture. This can be avoided by adding a thinner skinned hot pepper such as Thai chilies or Serrano peppers.
Coconut Chutney - Nariyal Chatni
 |
| Coconut Chutney or Nariyal Chatni |
Made 1¾ cups
1 cup desiccated, unsweetened coconut
½ cup water for soaking
1 teaspoon coconut oil
2 teaspoons channa dal / desi chickpeas
2 thin slices fresh ginger
1 green hot chili, more optional
¾ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon tamarind paste
TEMPERING:
1 tablespoon coconut oil
1 dried red chili
8 - 10 curry leaves, lightly chopped
1 teaspoon brown mustard seeds
1 pinch asafetida
Soak the desiccated coconut in the half-cup of water in the blender container while assembling the remaining ingredients. Heat a skillet to medium and add the 1 teaspoon coconut oil, then the channa dal. Stir constantly until the dal has turned a deep golden color. Add this to the blender container, along with the slices of ginger, the green chili (remove seeds for less heat), salt and tamarind paste. Blend finely and check for liquid. It should be slightly runny. Pour into a bowl. (For a whiter chutney, skip the green chili and add another 1 or two red chilies to the tempering mixture below.)
"Tempering" is nothing more than frying together some ingredients that will add lots of flavor, then pouring them into the dish. Heat a skillet and add in the tablespoon of coconut oil. Add in the asafetida, dried chili, curry leaves and mustard seeds and cook, stirring until the seeds begin to pop, then immediately pour this over the chutney in the bowl and serve.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Another accompaniment for idli is called Idli Podi ("podi" meaning powder, as far as I can ascertain). It is also called Milagai Podi ("milagai" means red chilies), if adding plenty of red chilies to the mixture. This powdered spice is used with oil. dipping the idli or other kind of bread-like item into the oil, then the powder and this acts as a replacement for a liquid chutney, especially if using these for lunch boxes. Or the powder can be used alongside other chutneys and condiments. It is quite delicious and really jazzes up the idli dumplings.
Making this powder requires toasting a lot of different seeds, lentils and other items to a nice toasty color. The amount of chili to add is completely up to the individual making it.
Idli Podi or Milagai Podi
Makes about ¾ cup
 |
| Idli Podi or Milagai Podi |
¼ cup urad/urid dal
¼ cup channa dal/bengal gram
¼ cup dried, unsweetened coconut
¼ cup packed curry leaves
2 tablespoons white sesame seeds
2 tablespoons coriander seeds
2 - 10 dried red chilies, to taste
½ teaspoon asafetida
1 - 1½ teaspoons salt, to taste
2 teaspoons palm sugar, optional
Heat a dry skillet over medium to medium low heat. Add in the urad dal and roast them, stirring constantly, until they are a deep golden color. Turn out onto a plate to cool. Repeat this same process with the channa dal and roast until golden brown; this may take a little longer. Turn out to cool with the urad dal. Repeat the process with the coconut, stirring constantly till golden, not burnt (this will happen quickly - be alert), then turn out to cool. Add the curry leaves and stir until they are crisp, then turn out to cool. Add in the sesame seeds and cook, stirring until lightly golden. Add to the plate of cooling spices. Repeat with the coriander seeds until very fragrant and add these to the plate to cool. If you want the extra heat, keep the seeds with the chili peppers, otherwise, crack them open and discard seeds. Toast the chilies until they start to change color, then turn out to cool. Briefly toast the asafetida until it smells of onions, then add to the plate.
Place the spices and dals by batches, as needed, into a spice grinder and grind to preference, from quite coarse to very fine, then add in the salt and sugar and mix well.
My passion is teaching people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and passing along my love and joy of food, both simple or exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, continuing my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Join me also at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook, and Pinterest.
