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South Indian Comfort

Back when I first wrote about my "favorite food moments", I forgot to mention my passion for idlis. Growing up far from Idli eating Southern India, I didn’t taste the while fluffy balls until my late teens. But idlis are easy to get hooked on.

Now, the traditional recipe of lentils and rice takes about a year to make at home (fine, two days but it seems like a year when you are cooking!). But the recipe here is an adaptation that takes less than half an hour. Not only is this a huge improvement on time, I’ve grown to like the flavor much more than the traditional idlis.




To make quick rawa idlis featured above, take 1 cup semolina in a large mixing bowl. Add salt, ½ cup yogurt and ½ cup milk. Mix thoroughly. The batter should be runny – add some more milk if it isn’t. Keep aside for 10 minutes. Then just before cooking, add ½ tsp of Eno. Mix well and steam in an idli maker for 15 minutes.



I usually like them plain just off the stove, but this time I indulged myself and made the sambar that goes so well with idlis. So serve on their own, with a dip or dunked in sambar – they work well all ways.

Comments

Vani said…
Hey, I love these super-simple idlis! I love idlies too but never can get the batter to ferment here. This is so do-able. Will try it soon & let you know. And you don't need water at all for the batter, right?

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