Idli (Steamed Lentil Cake)

These soft, fluffy lentil wonders are ideal guilt-free snacks/light meal. Idli is one of the first solid-food introduced to the toddlers for they are soft to eat, easy to digest and of course delicious! Remembering my childhood days of eating Idli with ghee (clarified butter) and sugar makes my mouth water ;-)

It takes about 20 minutes time to prepare batter, but the batter stays good for at least 5-6 days if refrigerated and making idlis with batter takes only 10 minutes! Idlis are cooked on steam and are made with urad dal (Split/whole white lentil - it is also sometimes referred as black lentil. White lentil is nothing but black lentil with skin removed) and rice flour. Urad dal is rich in protein, calcium and fiber and hence, my mom always made it a point to make us have Idlis at least 4 times a month. Idlis are so often made at our home in India that I almost got bored of it and used to skip breakfast and grab some junk food. I never thought I would miss Idli until I came to USA. Now I realize what a healthy and delicious option it is! ;-)

Ingredients

Urad dal (split/whole white lentils)                                                     1 cup

Rice Flour (Idli ravva)                                                                      2 cups

(If you don’t have rice flour, soak rice of (any kind) overnight and blend coarsely. The blended rice must be of 2 cups.)

Ghee/clarified butter (for greasing pans)

Salt to taste

We use Idli plates to make Idlis. They come in various sizes. You have microwavable idli plates option too!

Method:

1.       Soak urad dal in enough water overnight. Dal must be soaked for at least 6-8 hours.

2.       Drain water and blend urad dal in a wet grinder/blender into smooth frothy paste. During the process, add only the amount of water that is required for blending/grinding.

3.       Remove batter in a vessel and add ravva/rice flour/coarsely blended rice without any lumps.

4.       Add salt to taste and the batter is ready

5.       For soft, fluffy idlis, batter must be kept covered in a warm and dry place overnight for fermenting. After fermenting, the batter will be almost double in volume.

6.       Check consistency of the batter. It must be of medium consistency. If it is not, add water accordingly.

7.       Grease Idli plates with ghee/clarified butter. If you do not have ghee you can also use regular unsalted butter for greasing.

8.       Pour batter with spoon in the round impressions of the idli plates.

9.       Cook for 10 minutes in microwave. If using pressure cooker, cook for 15-20 minutes.

10.   Remove idlies with a spoon and serve with karapodi/coconut chutney/sambar. Kids love them with sugar and ghee.

Tips:

1.       Add 2-3 soaked fenugreek seeds during grinding/blending batter. They help in quick fermentation.

2.       Fermentation: During winters or in not-so-warm climates as in east coast, pre-heat oven for about 8 minutes.  Turn it off and wait until oven is warm (not too hot). Place batter inside oven, close and leave it in overnight.