I might have died and gone to heaven. Our ancestors were really geniuses. How can such a "simple" meal be so satisfying? How could I have taken Idlis for granted for all my life? This meal was sublime, and made from scratch, and so worth it. Of course, there is no ways I could have done it without a plethora of gadgets and frozen and jarred stuff in my American-Indian kitchen. How did women accomplish this meal without them?
Ok, enough drama. I got inspirations from too many internet sources (and a lifetime of exposure to south indian food), so won't list them, but here's exactly what I did:
Friday afternoon (around 4 pm):
- Wash and soak 1 cup of udad daal.
- In another bowl, wash and soak 2 cups of khichdi rice + 1 tsp whole methi daana.
Friday night (around midnight):
- Wash and soak 2 cups thick poha(it needs about 10 mins to soften)
- Drain most of the water from the daal and grind in vitamix (around 4-5 level) until the daal is very smooth.
- Remove the batter and transfer to the instant pot inner container.
- Save about a cup of the soaking water from the rice for grinding and set aside. Now drain most of the rest of the water and transfer to vitamix. Also add the drained poha. Grind (again around 4-5 level) until the rice has a slightly coarse texture (like idli rava). You might need to use the tamper thing. Use as little water as possible.
- Transfer the rice batter into instant pot container.
- Add the saved water to Vitamix, and run it to clean up the batter, and add it to the instant pot container.
- Slowly mix everything (there is some air in the mixture already that you don't want to remove). The mixture should be thick, but pouring consistency.
- Now set the instant pot on "venting" and set it on yoghurt mode for overnight fermentation.
- Clean out the Vitamix as usual.
Saturday morning:
- Open the instant pot, and transfer about 1 container worth of batter (to save for later in the week)
- Transfer the remaining batter to a large bowl, add salt and mix carefully (don't want to deflate it too much)
- Pull out a container of regular coconut chutney from the freezer.
- Clean out the instant pot, and using pot-in-pot method, cook about 3/4 cup of toor daal with salt, turmeric, 4-5 drumstick pieces (I use frozen ones), and one diced carrot. 20 mins high pressure.
- Malaga podi: In a shallow pan, add about 1/2 small steel vati (so say about 1/6 or 1/8 cup) of sesame seeds. roast on a medium flame till they start popping and transfer to a plate. Add a few drops of oil, add the same amount of udad daal. Roast it till it's deep golden brown, and transfer to the same plate. Add about 1/4 of the vati chana daal, and repeat. Finally, roast about 3-4 kashmiri chillies and about 1/2 resham patti red chilli with a pinch of hing and transfer to the plate. Let everything cool before grinding (I used magic bullet wet grinding blade and small container). Store in an air tight container.
- Sambar masala: In the same pan, heat a bit more oil, add small handful of chana daal, 1 big handful of coriander seeds, 1 big pinch of whole methi seeds, another 3 kashmiri chillis, and the remaining half spicy chilli, a big handful of grated coconut (I used frozen), and a few curry leaves. Keep roasting the masala while you do other things. Also grind into a coarse powder, and add water to make a thick paste.
- In a stainless steel pot, heat oil, add about half of large dices of red onions and one tomato. Let it saute for a bit. Add about 4 tbsp of tamarind pulp (from a jar, or make your own). Now add the sambar paste and let it cook for a bit.
- Add the drumsticks and carrots to this mix, roughly blend the boiled daal, and add that with some more water and salt. Bring the sambar to a boil and simmer on a low flame.
- Tomato chutney: In the masala pan, heat some ghee, add three cloves of garlic, and saute for a few seconds. Add two roughly diced tomatoes, salt, a pinch of hing, and a few curry leaves and cook until tomatoes are mushy. Let it cool a bit. Blend it in the same magic bullet jar (Notice the order in which the jar is used, so you don't need to wash/dry it at any point?). Add a little big of coconut (about 1 tbsp), about 1 tbsp of the malaga podi, and blend again. Heat a tsp of ghee in a tadka pot, and add 1/2 tsp mustard seeds and add to the chutney once they crackle. Save the chutney in another container.
-Steaming idlis: It's time. Set the instant pot on a saute mode with sufficient water. While the water boils, grease idli plates (I used both regular and the mini). Slowly fill them with the better, and put the plate contraption inside instant pot. Put it on venting, and steam mode. Set another timer for 9 minutes (IP timer won't work with venting in steam mode). Once the time goes off, turn off IP, let the steam reduce until you can open it easily. and serve.
Serving: Sambar in a bowl, malaga podi with a big chunk of ghee, tomato chutney, and coconut chutney with the steaming hot, super soft idlis.
What could be better?
Dosa Batter:
1/2 cup Urad dal + 2 tbsp chana dal + 1/2 tsp methi seeds
3/4 cup khichdi rice + 3/4 cup parboiled idli rice
Wash and soak separately.
I blended the daal a bit first, and then added the rice and blended everything together in a Vitamix. Fermented it in a small bowl inside the IP. Enough better for about four servings.
Also made this chutney:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zpJIHO4fIxc
Heat oil, add peanuts, onion ( Is kipped it) , garlic, chana daal, urad daal, kashmiri chillies, curry leaves. roast everything and grind with some salt and water.
Ok, enough drama. I got inspirations from too many internet sources (and a lifetime of exposure to south indian food), so won't list them, but here's exactly what I did:
Friday afternoon (around 4 pm):
- Wash and soak 1 cup of udad daal.
- In another bowl, wash and soak 2 cups of khichdi rice + 1 tsp whole methi daana.
Friday night (around midnight):
- Wash and soak 2 cups thick poha(it needs about 10 mins to soften)
- Drain most of the water from the daal and grind in vitamix (around 4-5 level) until the daal is very smooth.
- Remove the batter and transfer to the instant pot inner container.
- Save about a cup of the soaking water from the rice for grinding and set aside. Now drain most of the rest of the water and transfer to vitamix. Also add the drained poha. Grind (again around 4-5 level) until the rice has a slightly coarse texture (like idli rava). You might need to use the tamper thing. Use as little water as possible.
- Transfer the rice batter into instant pot container.
- Add the saved water to Vitamix, and run it to clean up the batter, and add it to the instant pot container.
- Slowly mix everything (there is some air in the mixture already that you don't want to remove). The mixture should be thick, but pouring consistency.
- Now set the instant pot on "venting" and set it on yoghurt mode for overnight fermentation.
- Clean out the Vitamix as usual.
Saturday morning:
- Open the instant pot, and transfer about 1 container worth of batter (to save for later in the week)
- Transfer the remaining batter to a large bowl, add salt and mix carefully (don't want to deflate it too much)
- Pull out a container of regular coconut chutney from the freezer.
- Clean out the instant pot, and using pot-in-pot method, cook about 3/4 cup of toor daal with salt, turmeric, 4-5 drumstick pieces (I use frozen ones), and one diced carrot. 20 mins high pressure.
- Malaga podi: In a shallow pan, add about 1/2 small steel vati (so say about 1/6 or 1/8 cup) of sesame seeds. roast on a medium flame till they start popping and transfer to a plate. Add a few drops of oil, add the same amount of udad daal. Roast it till it's deep golden brown, and transfer to the same plate. Add about 1/4 of the vati chana daal, and repeat. Finally, roast about 3-4 kashmiri chillies and about 1/2 resham patti red chilli with a pinch of hing and transfer to the plate. Let everything cool before grinding (I used magic bullet wet grinding blade and small container). Store in an air tight container.
- Sambar masala: In the same pan, heat a bit more oil, add small handful of chana daal, 1 big handful of coriander seeds, 1 big pinch of whole methi seeds, another 3 kashmiri chillis, and the remaining half spicy chilli, a big handful of grated coconut (I used frozen), and a few curry leaves. Keep roasting the masala while you do other things. Also grind into a coarse powder, and add water to make a thick paste.
- In a stainless steel pot, heat oil, add about half of large dices of red onions and one tomato. Let it saute for a bit. Add about 4 tbsp of tamarind pulp (from a jar, or make your own). Now add the sambar paste and let it cook for a bit.
- Add the drumsticks and carrots to this mix, roughly blend the boiled daal, and add that with some more water and salt. Bring the sambar to a boil and simmer on a low flame.
- Tomato chutney: In the masala pan, heat some ghee, add three cloves of garlic, and saute for a few seconds. Add two roughly diced tomatoes, salt, a pinch of hing, and a few curry leaves and cook until tomatoes are mushy. Let it cool a bit. Blend it in the same magic bullet jar (Notice the order in which the jar is used, so you don't need to wash/dry it at any point?). Add a little big of coconut (about 1 tbsp), about 1 tbsp of the malaga podi, and blend again. Heat a tsp of ghee in a tadka pot, and add 1/2 tsp mustard seeds and add to the chutney once they crackle. Save the chutney in another container.
-Steaming idlis: It's time. Set the instant pot on a saute mode with sufficient water. While the water boils, grease idli plates (I used both regular and the mini). Slowly fill them with the better, and put the plate contraption inside instant pot. Put it on venting, and steam mode. Set another timer for 9 minutes (IP timer won't work with venting in steam mode). Once the time goes off, turn off IP, let the steam reduce until you can open it easily. and serve.
Serving: Sambar in a bowl, malaga podi with a big chunk of ghee, tomato chutney, and coconut chutney with the steaming hot, super soft idlis.
What could be better?
Dosa Batter:
1/2 cup Urad dal + 2 tbsp chana dal + 1/2 tsp methi seeds
3/4 cup khichdi rice + 3/4 cup parboiled idli rice
Wash and soak separately.
I blended the daal a bit first, and then added the rice and blended everything together in a Vitamix. Fermented it in a small bowl inside the IP. Enough better for about four servings.
Also made this chutney:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zpJIHO4fIxc
Heat oil, add peanuts, onion ( Is kipped it) , garlic, chana daal, urad daal, kashmiri chillies, curry leaves. roast everything and grind with some salt and water.
Comments