South Indian Idli Recipe
South Indian Idli recipe is a steamed breakfast or snack recipe. It is easy to make. Idli is healthy as it is a steamed preparation. The addition of urad dal(white lentils) adds to the protein content.
Equipment
- Kitchen utensils you need for steaming idli
- Idli plates/moulds or small bowls
- 1 Steamer / pressure cooker without weight / any big pot which will hold your idli plates.
Ingredients
Ingredients for making idli
- 1 cup Parboiled rice
- ½ cup Raw rice
- ½ cup Urad dal/ white lentils
- ½ tsp Methi / fenugreek seeds
- Water to wash, soak and grind
Instructions
Washing and Soaking Rice and urad dal
- Take parboiled rice and raw rice in a bowl. Add water and rub rice with your fingers. Pour out the water. Wash 2-3 times till water runs clean.
- Add enough water to cover the rice and let soak for 5-6 hours.
- Take urad dal in another bowl. Wash 2-3 times till water runs clear.
- Add methi/fenugreeek seeds to washed urad dal. Add 1 1/2 cup water and let soak for 5-6 hours. Water quantity should be above urad dal level. Urad dal will absorb more water and soften compared to rice.
Grinding rice and dal to make batter
- After soaking for about 6 hours, first grind urad dal and methi/fenugreek seeds in the blender/mixer jar or the wet grinder till it is soft and fine and fluffy. Add a little water as and when needed. Do not add too much water.
- Remove ground urad dal batter into a large bowl/pot/vessel in which you are going to ferment batter. Keep in mind that the batter is likely to double after fermentation.
- Next, grind rice by adding little water as needed. Grind as fine or a little coarse as you like. Depending on the size of your jar, you may need to grind rice in two or three batches.
- Add the ground rice paste to the urad dal paste and mix well with your hand or a large spoon.
- Add salt and mix well. If the batter seems too thick, add just a little water. We want thick pouring consistency.
Fermenting idli batter
- Keep the container in a warm place to ferment. In warm weather, the batter will ferment in 5-6 hours.
- In cold weather, it may take longer. You may wrap some warm cloths/shawl/woolen sweater etc. around the fermenting pot to hasten the fermenting.
- You can see the fermented idli batter, ready to steam.
Steaming Idli
- For steaming idlies:
- If you have a large steaming pot, use that.
- You may also use a pressure cooker that will hold your steaming idli stand without the weight for steaming idlis.
- Or you may use any large pot that will hold your steaming idli stand and that you can cover.
- If you have a idli stand, use it or you may use small stainless steel bowls or small deep plates to put the batter in for steaming.
- Heat the steaming pot with about 1 1/2 cups water.
- Add a ladleful of batter into a idli plates/moulds as shown below in the image.
- Place the plates on the stand and the stand in the steaming pot where the water is already boiling.
- Cover the steamer/cooker with a lid. If you are using pressure cooker, do not use the weight.
- Steam for 15 minutes.
- Switch off the flame and let sit for 5 minutes.
- Remove pot/cooker cover. Remove the plates. Let cool for 2-3 minutes.
- steamed idli
- ready to eat idli
- Remove each idli with a flat spoon. Dip the flat spoon in a cup of cold water before removing idli. This will help in getting each idli off the plate easily.
Tips and variations for South Indian Idli recipe
- If any batter is left over, keep it in the fridge and use within next two days to make idlis again.
- You may use the same batter to make dosa, uttappam or spicy appam/paddu within the next week.
- You may add vegetables such as green peas, grated carrots, green beans etc. to the batter to make vegetable masala idli.
- If the batter is fermented properly, you will get soft, fluffy idlis.
- If batter is not fermented properly, the idlis will be hard.
- Remember, grind urad dal very fine, till it is fluffy/foamy. Rice may be ground fine or coarse as you like in your idli.