The most loved South Indian breakfast at my home is soft fluffy idlis with piping hot sambar and delicate coconut chutney.
I will give full credit of this recipe to my dear friend Lata Singh who was my neighbor when I was residing in UAE.
Before that I never got the proportion right🙈🙈 Addition of soaked poha was totally new for me, i tell u what excellent results.
Ingredients:
1 cup rice
1/2 cup urad dal
2 tbsp poha soaked
1/2 tsp fenugreek seeds
Salt to taste
Method:
Wash dal and rice separately 3-4 times, add fenugreek seeds, to the urad dal and soak them water at least overnight.
Wash and soak poha for about 2 hours.
In morning drain the water from rice and dal, and put it in mixie jar along with salt and enough cold water, put poha and fenugreek seeds.
Grind it all until smooth and you can add additional water if required for grinding.
Transfer the batter to a big bowl.
With your hand mix the batter so it becomes homogeneous mixture. Keep this in warm and dark place to ferment at least for 8-10 hrs ( it depends on the climate of the place as well)
The sign of good fermentation is that the batter will get all bubbly and double in volume.
The batter is ready to become soft idlis😊
Place the idli steamer with water over a high flame.
Grease the idli stand with little oil, add salt to the batter and mix well.
Pour the batter in the molds. When the water begins to steam up, place it in the steamer.
Steam for 10-12 minutes on a medium heat. Once slightly cooled remove the plates and keep them aside for few minutes, then remove the idlis with help of knife.
Serve hot idlis with hot spicy sambar.
SAMBAR
Recipe of Sambar is from my dear friend Sandhya Saravanan.
Ingredients:
Drum stick 2
Turdal 1 cup
Onion -1
Tomato 1
Tamarind small ball
Sambar powder 1 tsp
turmeric powder 1/2 tsp
For tadka:
Oil 3 tbsp
Mustard seeds 1 tsp
Jeera 1/2 tsp
Fenugreek seeds 4-5
curry leaves, 8-9
coriander leaves 3 tsp
Method
In pressure cooker, cook dal and mash it well and keep it side for further use.
Soak the tamarind in a water( (squeeze and filter the juice,discard the pulp)
Cut the drumsticks into 3 inch long pieces, finely chop the onion and tomato in a small pieces and keep it aside.
Take the kadai heat 3 tsp oil add Mustard seeds when it splutters add cumin and fenugreek seeds then add chopped onion saute for 2 minutes then add drumsticks saute for another minute,add for chopped tomato saute for 2 minutes add curry leaves saute it.
Add cooked mashed dal, sambar powder,salt , turmeric powder,add cup of water cook for 15 min then add 2 tsp tamarind juice.
Cook the Sambar until the raw smell of tamarind goes ,add coriander leaves the consistency of the sambar should neither be thick or runny.
Serve hot sambar with soft idlis.
