Dosa

Dosa a crispy, savory crepe like from south Indian cuisine. It is popular not only in India but worldwide mainly in Indian restaurants. Dosa is made from a fermented batter of rice and lentils and fried on a griddle and served with spicy potatoes, chutney and sambhar vary according to regional and personal preferences. Dosa in restaurants are served in various shapes, triangle shape, cone shape, and the common shape which is rolled. Dosa is a food for any time of the day. Dosa can be served for breakfast, lunch or sometimes as a main meal. It is also a street food that can be eaten as a snack at various stalls in the cities. While dosa, is the most well-known, there are also many other dosa versions like Masala dosa, potato stuffed dosa, Mysore dosa, Onion dosa and it is versatile in how you serve it.

Ingredients:

1 Cup Rice
½ Cup Urad dal (white skinless urad dal)
¼ cup chana dal
1 Teaspoon Fenugreek seeds (Methi seeds)
½ Cup Plain Yogurt
Salt to taste
2 Cups of water for grinding

Vegetable oil for making Dosa

Cooking measurement conversion
Measurment converter

Rice

Urad Dal

Chana Dal

Fenugreek seeds (Methi)

Yogurt

Salt

Directions to prepare Dosa batter:

1. Mix Rice, Dal and fenugreek seeds together.

In Rice, add Dal's & Fenugreek seeds

Mix Rice, Dal & Fenugreek seeds

2. Wash and soak rice and Dal mix and soak for 6 to 8 hours or until fully soaked.

Wash Rice mix well

Soak Rice mix in water

3. Once the rice and dal are fully soaked, drain all the water out from the rice mix
and wash. After washing drain all the excess water out.

Wash and rinse soaked Rice mix

Soaked Rice mix

4.  In a blender add soaked rice mix and grind to a smooth paste.

5. While grinding drop about  1½ to 2 cups of water or as needed little at a time to
  lubricate the paste for grinding.

6. Grind with switch on and off so that rice mix keep mixing.

7. While grinding in between stop the blender and open the cover and with   spatula mix so that all the Rice and Dal and fenugreek seeds grinds evenly into
a smooth a paste. (Rice does not grind to a fine paste they stay coarse)

Add Rice & Dal mix in the Blender

Grind Rice and Dal mix

5. Transfer the paste in a bowl .

7. Add yogurt in the batter and mix it well.

Transfer paste in a bowl

Add Yogurt and mix

9. Do not add the salt to the mixture this time because salt slow down the
fermentation process.

10. Cover the bowl and keep this mixture in a warm place for 6 to 8 hours or until it ferments. If you live in cold climate then add ½ teaspoon of yeast in the batter and mix and leave it covered to ferment.

Cover the bowl

Bowl is covered

11. Once batter is ready you will see small bubbles.

Fermented Dosa batter

Dosa batter

Directions for making the Dosa:

1. In a bowl take as much batter you are going to use.

2. Gradually add enough water to make batter thin to make it of a pouring
consistency (Keep rest of the batter in the fridge)

3. Add salt to taste and mix.

Add water

Add salt

Dosa batter

4. The consistency of the batter should be such that it thinly coats a spoon
dipped in it.

Dosa batter consistency

5. Heat the flat cast iron griddle (tawah) on medium high heat.

6. Once the griddle become hot test it by sprinkling drops of water on the surface
    when they sizzle and dance it means the griddle is ready. Turn the heat down
     to medium.

7. Greased the griddle with little oil and with spatula spread the oil evenly and
    let it cook for 1 to 2 minutes to season the surface, then wipe cleans with a
     moist towel.

8. Griddle should not be too hot otherwise it will not allow you to spread the
batter well then sprinkle some water on the hot griddle to cool it a little.

Heat a cast Iron griddle

Grease the griddle

9. Fill the ladle or a little bowl up with the dosa batter enough to make 7” to 8"
dosa and gently pour onto the center of the hot surface of the griddle.

10. Now use the back base of ladle quickly spread the batter in a circular motion
from center to outward until you get a thin layer of batter and form an 7” to 8”
circular crepe. If there is gaps with in the dosa than quickly fill in those gaps
with more batter.
If outer edge is not circled then add some batter and with the spatula spread it and blend the edges and try to make to keep Dosa in circle, but do not worry no one
is judging you it will taste the same.

With a ladle drop batter in the middle of the griddle

Spread batter outward

11. Dosa develops tiny holes as you spread the batter, now take some oil and
spread over the surface of dosa. Pour the oil through the holes and with the
spatula spread over Dosa, also drizzle around the edges of Dosa.

Dosa devlop tiny holes

Pour oil over Dosa through holes

Drizzle oil around the edges of Dosa

Bottom of Dosa become brown

12. In about 2 minutes the upper surface of dosa will cook and no longer looks runny, and the edges start to brown then insert the spatula under the edges of the dosa to loosen and gently flip it to other side. The surface that was underneath become light brown.

With the spatula turn Dosa to other side

Dosa become golden brown

13. After turning Dosa cook for 2 minutes or until it become golden brown,
then flip it back to other side.

14. This side seems to be cooked.

Turn Dosa back again

This side of Dosa is cooked

15. Now add potato filling as a strip and with the spatula flatten the potato
stuffing slightly. Using the spatula fold the Dosa over potato filling to make
a cylindrical shape. Serve Dosa immediately with Sambhar and coconut
Chutney as they stay crisp and fresh when eaten.It takes about 4 to 5 minutes
to make the dosa.

Add potato stuffing on one side of Dosa

Fold the Dosa

Dosa is ready

16. If not filling the dosa with potato then once both sides are golden brown or
the desired color and crispiness take it off the griddle and serve it hot with the
potato filling, coconut chutney and sambhar.

17. Before you start making next dosa, griddle should be clean, with the spatula
scratch it if there is any batter sticking from the previous dosa.

18. Take a paper towel and wet it, squeeze all the water out then with the wet towel rub all over the surface of the griddle to clean that will cool the griddle slightly.This ensures that next dosa will spread evenly and will not break because the griddle is too hot.

19. Now proceed to make another dosa and repeat the procedure to make next
dosa.

20. Serve the Dosa hot with sambhar and coconut chutney.

Tips:

1. If the batter is not fermented then dissolve 1 teaspoon of yeast in 2 tablespoons of water and add to the batter and mix it well. Cover the bowl and leave it until batter is fermented.

2. Dosa batter should not be too fermented otherwise it is hard to make Dosa.
     But if it is too fermented then add some rice flour and mix then make dosa

3. If you like crisp Dosa then add more rice, if you like soft dosa then add
     more Dal.

4. Do not add oil and the batter when griddle is not hot.

5. Make sure griddle is not overheated. If the griddle is too hot you will not be able to spread the batter, sprinkle water to cool it. While spreading the batter on the griddle the heat should be low after spreading the batter heat can be raised to medium high.

6. The correct amount to grease the griddle is such that it is barely visible on the
     griddle.

7. Once the griddle is seasoned you do not need much oil to make dosa.

8. First few dosa may not come right, they may break when turning them around, but do not get discourage. To season the griddle try to spray non stick cooking oil then wipe it with paper towel then spread the dosa batter, that will help to make dosa.

9. Mix batter each time before spreading on the griddle.

10.   If you refrigerate the batter then bring the refrigerated batter to a room temperature before preparing the Dosa. Else the refrigerated batter turns Dosa white, dry and brittle.

Please take the time to let me know what you think about my recipe. Your comments would be helpful to me to improve the recipe.

Thank you

Geeta Seth

Other recipes:

Potato stuffing for dosa                                        Idli

Sambhar                                                            Urad dal & rice dokhla

Coconut chutney                                           Moong dal dokhla

Mong dal cheela (Moong dal pancake)     Besan dokhla (Gram flour dokhla)