From Idlis to Dosais and more…
Last week’s post on idlis seems to have triggered a few memories... One reader wrote in about her love affair with the aatukallu – the stone grinder that is not too distant a memory. The best “no gym arm workout”, she says, the benefits of which she is still reaping. Very true! While I’ve not tried it myself, I’ve seen my aunts in action at Ayah’s ancestral home. And if I’m not mistaken, apart from the no gym workout, the maavu aatra (batter grinding) sessions, which were two-person affairs, also doubled as gossip fests for the women who were on duty.
Clockwise, starting from top left - the rather bereft aatukallu in our backyard; the mechanised version found in grinding mills; the heavy duty electric wet grinders invented in the 1950s; the tilting wet grinders invented in the late 1970s; and, the most recent avatar, invented in the mid-1990s - the portable tabletop grinder
The progression of the aatukallu to today’s tabletop wet grinder is a story in itself, and a rather romantic one at that, set in Coimbatore. The city may be best known as the textile capital of the south, hence named the Manchester of South India, but the wet grinder is also Kovaiyin Seethanam (Coimbatore’s dowry, a title bestowed by historian CR Elangovan). It was here that a young and considerate man, in the mid-1950s, invented the wet grinder because he did not wish his bride-to-be to spend hours on intense arm workouts (or should I say informative sessions) ... Aawww!!! From the bulky fixed wet grinder to the tilting grinder to today’s portable tabletop version, the mainstay of every South Indian kitchen has come far...
As I mentioned in my last post, every South Indian home has a ready stock of idli batter in their refrigerator, either fermented or ready to be fermented. Ours was no different. While Ayah treasured her idlis for breakfast, Aiyah and the two darling daughters, pampered lot that we were, ran a mile from it... Thankfully the batter had other uses – regular dosais for the girls and paper dosais for Aiyah, and, as the batter got older and sourer, the dosais progressed to chinna dosais or mini uthappams (small, pancake-like dosais tempered with mustard seeds, chillis and onions) and kuzhi paniyarams too (shallow fried ball shaped dumplings). Theoretically, the proportions for idli and dosai batter are different as are the proportions for kuzhi paniyarams, however, Ayah never ever made a specific dosai batter. She did make a separate kuzhi paniyaram batter which we will share in a later post, but, in a pinch, the ubiquitous idli batter would do.
Somehow, stuffed / filled dosais, like the much-loved (potato) masala dosai and kheema (minced mutton) dosai, which are popular with the rest of the world (including a recently nominated vice-presidential candidate) were not big hits in the Muthiah household. While cheese filled butter dosais entered my kitchen at the behest of the children, I’m yet to reconcile myself with the newer inventions like noodles filled dosais and taco dosais, not to mention chocolate dosais. Apparently, there are some restaurants that serve over 100 varieties – after a rather unsatisfactory visit to one a few years ago, I avoid them like the plague.
Another reader, a fellow idli connoisseur like Ayah, wrote in to say that the grinding of the idli batter was an art that every South Indian should be proud of. Arguably, pouring a perfectly ringed dosai is as much of an art, one that it took me many tries to master and one that the apprentice has only partially mastered, but his mother assures me he’s on his way there... And then there is the texture. While Ayah liked her dosais soft enough to mop up her sambhar with, Aiyah liked his paper dosais crisp enough to hear the crunch while breaking off a piece, and no sambhar for him, just thuvaiyal please. When the children were younger (than they are now), I’ve been known to resort to a squeezy sauce bottle to sign their names in dosai batter and to make various shapes – Mickey and Minnie featured quite prominently. The things we do in the name of love!
So, fellow dosai lovers, whether you call it dosa or thosai or dhosai, this post is dedicated to all of you who would like to master the art of making that perfect dosai and its many variations.
Dosai Recipes and more...
Seasoning the dosaikallu
While the secret to the perfect idlis may be in the grinding of the batter, the art of dosai pouring though starts with the dosaikallu or dosa tawa – a cast iron griddle that has to be perfectly seasoned to make sure the dosai does not stick to the pan. While many have graduated to non-stick pans, I have stuck to my 20-something year old kallu which has not been washed even once in that time for fear I’d lose the seasoning. Mine was seasoned by my mother-in-law, who tells me her secret to seasoning or re-seasoning a cast iron dosaikallu is:
Heat a tablespoon of gingelly oil (nallennai) on the kallu.
Add a teaspoon of mustard seeds and allow them to pop.
Cut an onion in half, no need to peel.
Spread the oil and the mustard seeds on the kallu using the onion. Continue this till the face of the onion is charred.
Discard the onion and wipe the kallu with a piece of muslin cloth or a paper towel.
Your kallu is ready for use – the first couple of dosais may still stick but you will be good to go after the first few.
NEVER EVER scrub the kallu – a light rinse with some dishwashing liquid and water is sufficient. Or alternatively, just wipe off the oil with a muslin cloth or a paper towel after every use.
Tempting as it may be, NEVER EVER use the dosaikallu for chappatis.
If for some reason the dosais start sticking again, rinse the kallu with a bit of dishwashing soap, dry and restart the seasoning process.
Ingredients for dosais of any kind: Fermented idli batter to be mixed with some water (or dosai batter), oil to cook the dosais (gingelly oil or any other cooking oil)
Equipment: A dosaikallu or tawa, a cover for the kallu, a ladle and a flat spatula.
Dosai varieties in this post: Regular dosai, Paper dosai, Egg dosai, Dosais with fillings, Chinna dosai / Mini uthappam, Kuzhi paniyaram
Making Dosais
1. Ladle as much fermented idli batter as you need in a container. Mix it to reduce the air bubbles. The batter will be fairly thick at this stage.
2. Add some water and mix to bring the batter back to a pouring consistency. I usually start with about half a tablespoon of water per ladle of batter and then add more if needed.
3. Heat the dosai pan on low heat.
4. Drizzle a few drops of oil on the griddle and wipe off with a piece of muslin cloth or a paper towel.
5. Once the griddle is hot, turn the flame to very low (if you can’t control it, turn off the flame) and pour a ladle of batter on the griddle from about half inch above.
6. Position the back of the ladle at the centre of the batter on the griddle. Press down gently and with the same pressure start making concentric circles. If you press too hard, the batter will stick to the ladle and leave holes in your dosai. If you don’t press hard enough, you will spread the batter without making the circles. See video.
7. Pour some oil, about ½ teaspoon, around the edges and centre of the dosai.
8. Cover with a lid and cook for about 30 seconds.
9. Open and check if the dosai is cooked (no uncooked batter) – if you like your dosais soft, take it off the griddle at this stage. If you like it crisper, keep it on the griddle for a bit longer until the edges start lifting off and there is some browning of the dosai.
Note: If you’re serving soft dosais, do not fold or roll them as they tend to stick.
10. Roll up the dosai and remove from the griddle.
11. Serve hot with sambhar / chutney / thuvaiyal or accompaniment of choice.
Paper Dosai
1. Mix the idli batter with water as above to make dosai batter.
2. Heat the dosai griddle on low heat, drizzle a few drops of oil on it and wipe off with a piece of muslin cloth or a paper towel.
3. Once the griddle is hot, turn the flame to very low (if you can’t control it, turn off the flame) and pour a ladle of batter on the griddle from about half inch above.
4. Position the back of the ladle at the centre of the batter on the griddle. Press down gently and with the same pressure and start making concentric circles. If you press too hard, the batter will stick to the ladle and leave holes in your dosai. If you don’t press hard enough, you will spread the batter without making the circles. See video.
5. Pour some oil, about ½ teaspoon, around the edges and centre of the dosai.
6. Cover with a lid and cook for about 15-20 seconds.
7. Open the lid – the dosai will only be ½ cooked – there will be uncooked bits of batter showing.
8. Use the dosai spoon to scrape off the excess batter – you will be left with a thin crepe on the griddle.
9. Add another ½-1 teaspoon of oil / melted butter / ghee and allow the dosai to crisp up some more.
10. Roll up the dosai into any shape you want and remove from the griddle.
11. Serve hot with sambhar / chutney / thuvaiyal or accompaniment of choice.
Egg Dosai
Additional Ingredients: Eggs, as many as needed; salt and pepper to season the eggs
1. Heat the dosai griddle on low heat.
2. Drizzle a few drops of oil on the griddle and wipe off with a piece of muslin cloth or a paper towel.
3. Once the griddle is hot, turn the flame to very low (if you can’t control it, turn off the flame) and pour a ladle of batter on the griddle from about half inch above.
4. Position the back of the ladle at the centre of the batter on the griddle. Press down gently and with the same pressure and start making concentric circles. If you press too hard, the batter will stick to the ladle and leave holes in your dosai. If you don’t press hard enough, you will spread the batter without making the circles. See video.
5. Pour some oil, about ½ teaspoon, around the edges and centre of the dosai.
6. Cover with a lid and cook for about 15-20 seconds.
7. Open the lid – the dosai will only be ½ cooked – there will be uncooked bits of batter showing.
8. Break an egg onto the centre of the dosai. Add a pinch of salt and pepper. Optional: break up the yolk if you don’t want a bull’s eye.
9. Add another ½-1 teaspoon of oil around the egg, cover and let it cook for another 20 seconds.
10. Remove the lid and flip the dosai over to cook on the other side. This should take another 20-30 seconds.
11. Remove and serve hot with sambhar / chutney / thuvaiyal or accompaniment of choice.
Dosais with fillings (including podi and masala dosais)
Additional ingredients: Choice of filling like podi, spicy chutney, potato masala, mutton kheema etc
1. Repeat steps 1-7 above.
2. Spread filling of choice on the dosai while it still semi-cooked. This could be idli podi or spicy chutney or potato masala or kheema or basically any mixture of your choice.
3. Add another ½-1 teaspoon of oil over the filling, fold over and let it cook for another 20-30 seconds until golden brown. Do not cover.
4. Flip the folded dosai and cook again for another 10 seconds until golden brown on the other side.
5. Remove and serve hot with accompaniment of choice.
Chinna dosai / Mini uthappam
Additional ingredients: 1 onion, 1 fresh green / red chilli, 5-6 curry leaves, all minced; a teaspoon of mustard seeds
1. Mince an onion, 1 fresh green / red chilli, and 5-6 curry leaves.
2. Heat a tablespoon of oil in a pan and add a teaspoon of mustard seeds.
3. Once the mustard seeds pop, add the curry leaves, onions and chillis. Sauté for a few seconds and then turn off the flame.
4. Add the sautéed onions to the dosai batter and mix in.
5. Heat the dosai pan on low heat.
6. Drizzle a few drops of oil on the griddle and wipe off with a piece of muslin cloth or a paper towel.
7. Once the griddle is hot, pour about half a ladle of batter to make a small pancake sized dosai. Depending on the size of the griddle, you should be able to get at least 3 chinna dosais on.
8. Pour some oil, about ½ teaspoon, around the sides and centre of the dosais.
9. Cover with a lid and cook for about 30 seconds.
10. Open the lid – the dosais should be cooked (no raw bits showing) and the bottom should be golden brown.
11. Flip the dosais over, add another ½-1 teaspoon of oil and allow the other side to turn golden brown too.
12. Remove and serve hot with sambhar / chutney / thuvaiyal or accompaniment of choice.
Note: Instead of onions, you could add vegetables of choice like grated carrot or minced boiled beans or peas.
Kuzhi paniyaram with dosai batter
1. Use the same batter as for the chinna dosais above.
5. Heat the kuzhi paniyaram pan. Add ¼ teaspoon of oil in each hole of the pan.
6. Fill each hole up to ¾ with the tempered batter.
7. Cover with a lid and cook for about 30-45 seconds.
8. Open the lid – the kuzhi paniyarams should be cooked (no raw bits showing) and the bottom should be golden brown.
9. Flip the paniayarams over, add a few more drops of oil to each hole and allow the other side to turn golden brown too.
10. Remove and serve hot with sambhar / chutney / thuvaiyal or accompaniment of choice.
Apprentice Rating: Hard, making the perfect dosai is a skill yet to be fully mastered…
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