I still remember how my friends from school & colleagues at work would eagerly wait for lunch break just to gorge on these super delicious Idlis with Aai’s special stew and coconut chutney, that she would pack for my lunch. After I got married, she had given me this recipe and I’m so grateful for that. So here I am, sharing her recipe to make the softest and the fluffiest Idlis at home from scratch. Though it takes a days preparation, the effort is worth every single bite! So much better than store bought batter!
INGREDIENTS
1 Cup Urad Dal
2 Cups Idli Rava (Rice Rava)
Water
Salt to taste
Oil
METHOD
- Soak Urad Dal for 5 hours. So if I need to make this for breakfast, I soak this the previous day at 11 am.
- At around 4 pm or once the urad dal is well soaked, grind this in a big mixer jar with little water into a smooth but thick batter. Do this in batches depending on the quantity of dal and the size of your grinder.
- Add the Idli Rava to this and mix well. The ratio of Urad Dal : Idli Rava is 1:2
- Mix well. Add little water if the batter seems very thick. Rava will soak up the water and the batter will thicken further in an hour. Very thick or thin batter won’t ferment well and will result in idlis with a harder texture.
- Cover and keep this overnight for fermenting. Make sure the container is big and spacious enough because the batter will fluff up and expand.
- Before sleeping you can check the batter if it is too thick. Add little water mix and let it rest for the night.
- Next morning, with the help of a spatula, air the batter by picking the batter up and mixing it slowly.
- You will notice how fluffy and light the batter feels compared to the previous night.
- Add salt and mix well.
- Pour water in your idli cooker or steamer so that the the bottom most idli stand doesn’t touch the water. There has to be a gap of 2 inches at least but enough water to last the cooking process. Switch on gas and let it come to a boil.
- Now grease you Idli Moulds with a little oil. Coconut oil is preferable any day.
- Pour the batter in the moulds only 3/4th way so that it has some space to rise up while cooking and doesn’t touch the stand placed above.
- Do this with all the idli racks and place one above the other.
- Cover the lid tightly.
- On a medium-high flame, steam the idlis for 12-15 minutes.
- Open to check if they are done. Switch off flame.
- Place all the racks on the counter and let them cool down a little and dry out a bit. Around 2-3 minutes.
- With the help if a sharp round spoon, separate the idlis from the mould.
- Transfer these idlis into a big container.
- Cover and keep until use. Don’t leave the container open. They will lose the moisture and softness.
- If you need to eat them after a few hours, you can steam them again by placing them in a pressure cooker on a stand over a little water for a few minutes without the whistle. Or you can sprinkle some water over your idlis and reheat in the microwave oven for a minute or 2.
- Serve these steaming hot delicious idlis as a healthy breakfast option served with Sambar Stew and Coconut Chutney.
- My husband & I love to dunk these idlis after cutting them into small pieces in a big bowl filled with the stew. The stew recipe is not your usual sambar and so you must try it out sometime. Tastes really good!
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