Dosa – A thin and crispy indian crepe made from fermented rice and lentils.
For thin and crispy Dosa use more rice then lentils 2:1. If you prefer a chewy dosa use equal parts lentils and rice 1:1.
Soaked rice and lentils are ground individually into smooth batter and then the mixture is allowed to ferment overnight or 8-20 hours depending how warm is your home's temperature. I let my sit in the yogurt maker for 16 hours for perfect fermentation.
Preparation Time: 16 hours
Cooking Time: 25 minutes
Serves: 6-8 servings
Ingredients:
2 cups of white rice
1 cup of lentils (without skin for crispier crepes) with skin for chewy delicious and nutricious crepes.
1/4 teaspoon Fenugreek Seeds (optional, helps with fermentation time and adds to flavor)
Water, as needed to make the recipe more liquid which helps with spreading a thin layer and adds crispness.
Salt and/or sugar to taste (I added 1pinch of salt and 1 tablespoon of brown sugar) sugar also helps with fermentation.
Oil for shallow frying
Directions:
1.
Take all the ingredients to prepare the dosa batter. Rice, lentils, sugar and/or salt and fenugreek seeds are the main ingredients.
2.
Rinse the rice and lentils in water 3-4 times and soak them in 3 cups of water for 1-2 hours (separately).
3.
Rinse the rice again after the 2 hours soaking time have passed and blend it with some additional (new water) until forms a homogeneous paste.
4.
Blend the lentils (without discarding the soaking water from the lentils) plus the fenugreek seeds until they form a homogeneous paste.
5.
Mix blended ingredients together and add (optional) 1 pinch of salt and 1 tablespoon of brow sugar to the mix.
6.
Let the mixture ferment for 8-20 hours depending on the temperature of your home. It will be ready when the batter volume increase or when it forms lots of bubbles.
The batter should be fluffy and not very thick.
During cold weather, keep the batter in warm place (or inside the oven with oven light on) for better fermentation.
If it looks too thick, add few tablespoons water and mix well until it has attained pouring consistency.
7.
Heat a non-stick pan or an iron skillet or griddle over medium flame. Sprinkle few drops of oil on the surface. Take a ladle full of batter, pour it over the surface swirl it as thin as possible in a spiral motion by rotating ladle and make it into round shape of approx. 7-8-inch diameter circle.
8.
(Optional) Apply 1-teaspoon oil (or ghee / butter for crispy dosa) around the edges.
9.
Cook until the bottom surface turns light brown and the edges start to come upward, it will take around 1-2 minutes.
10.
Flip it and cook for a extra minute. If you are making very thin dosa you do not need to cook the other side. Transfer it to a plate and repeat the process. Hot and crispy plain dosa is ready. Serve and eat immediately with your choice of sweet or savory filling.
I served mine today with eggs and cheese for breakfast today.
11. Enjoy