One plate of fluffy idlis is never enough. Often served on a banana leaf, these steamed cakes made from rice and lentils, taste best when paired with coconut chutney and tangy sambar. End the meal with a hot cup of filter coffee, and you will have the perfect cure for weekday blues, right?
Today, the comforting dish has a high status for itself in south India – be it at home or in a restaurant. Made using a stacked mould, the batter is fermented for a day before cooking. While we all continue to relish the dish under the banner of ‘south Indian cuisine’, you’d be surprised to know that idli is claimed to be an Indonesian dish, and even has an Arabic connect to it.
A mysterious origin
According to well-known Indian food historian K.T. Achaya, the modern recipe for idli may have originated in present-day Indonesia, which has a long tradition of fermented foods such as tempeh and kecap. This was noted in his book ‘A historical dictionary of Indian food’. Legend has it that the Hindu kings from the Shailendra, Isyana and Sanjaya dynasties, who ruled the south Asian country during the 9th to 11th century, often travelled to India to look for brides. The kings took the royal cooks along with them during the journey, who carried the recipe of making fermented Indonesian rice cakes or kedli with them. However, this theory by Achaya wasn’t explored because a recipe for an Indonesian dish by this name, has never been discovered.
Another theory argued by other food historians like Lizzie Collingham from Britain and Kristen J. Gremillion from America, claim that idli was actually introduced by Arab traders, when they married and settled down in the southern parts of India during the 9th to the 12th century. It is said that these Arab settlers were particular about their diet, and often wanted halal food but couldn’t clarify that too well to the local populace, which led to a lot of confusion.
South Indians used rice as a staple in most of their meals, which were alien to the Arab palate at the time but were familiarized eventually. So in order to put an end to the confusion over halal food among the people, the Arabs started to make rice balls, which would be “flattened and eaten with a coconut paste”, as noted in ‘Encyclopaedia of Food History’, edited by Collingham and Gordon Ramsay of Britain, Oxford University Press, and ‘Seed to Civilisation, The Story of Food’, by Heiser Charles B, Harvard University Press, 1990.
While the world continues to debate over the origins of this dish, mentions of idli have been recorded in Kannada literature as iddalige from the 6th century, long before kings came in search of brides, and definitely before unique dietary requirements. The modern recipe followed today by most, was perfected by the Tamils of south India.
The many forms of idli
Today, idli has grown so popular that there are different versions of it. Some dishes like the Gujarati dhokla and Mangalorean sanna are said to have taken its inspiration from the south Indian meal. However, one can never be too sure of this because Gujarati historians believe that it was Saurashtrian textile merchants who introduced idli to South India during the 10th and 12th centuries.
1. Tulsi idli
Preparation time: 6 to 8 hours
Cooking time: 20 minutes
Serves: 10
Ingredients:
2 cups (500 gms) idli rava
1 cup (250 gms) white urad dal
1 tsp dried fenugreek seeds
50 gms basil leaves
2 tbsp butter
Salt to taste
Method:
1. Soak idli rava and urad dal separately, in water for a minimum of six hours. Make sure the water is placed at room temperature. Soak fenugreek seeds with the soaked urad dal.
2. Strain the water and grind urad dal in a food processor by adding 50 ml of water until you achieve a thick consistency.
3. Blanch the basil leaves and keep it in ice water. This helps to retain the freshness of the leaves and the green colour.
4. Blend two tablespoons of butter and the basil leaves to a smooth paste.
5. Combine the soaked idli rava, lentils and basil in a large bowl.
6. Leave the batter at room temperature for two hours to ferment.
7. Brush the idli mould with butter and pour the batter in carefully and steam the idlis for 10 minutes.
8. Serve hot and enjoy!
2. Purple Idli
Preparation time: 6 to 8 hours
Cooking time: 20 minutes
Serves: 10
Ingredients:
2 cups (500 gms) idli rava
1 cup (250 gms) urad dal white
1 tsp dried fenugreek seeds
250 gms beetroot
2 tbsp butter
Salt to taste
Method:
1. Soak idli rava and urad dal separately in water for a minimum of six hours. Make sure the water is placed at room temperature. Soak fenugreek seeds with the soaked urad dal.
2. Strain the water and grind urad dal in a food processor by adding 50 ml of water until you achieve a thick consistency.
3. Boil the beetroot and blend to a paste, once cooled to room temperature.
4. In a pan, pour the beetroot paste after heating a tablespoon of hot oil. Lightly stir it. Keep aside.
5. Combine the soaked idli rava, lentils and beetroot paste in a large bowl.
6. Leave the batter at room temperature for two hours to ferment.
7. Brush the idli mould with butter and pour the batter in carefully and steam the idlis for 10 minutes.
8. Serve hot and enjoy!
3. Masala Idli
Preparation time: 6 to 8 hours
Cooking time: 20 minutes
Serves: 10
Ingredients:
2 cups (500 gms) idli rava
1 cup (250 gms) urad dal white
1 tsp dried fenugreek seeds
250 gms roughly chopped carrot
1 tsp ginger-garlic paste (a blend made using equal portions of ginger and garlic)
1 tsp roasted channa powder
1 tsp garam masala
2 tbsp butter
Salt to taste
Method:
1. Soak idli rava and urad dal separately in water for a minimum of six hours. Make sure the water is placed at room temperature. Soak fenugreek seeds with the soaked urad dal.
2. Strain the water and grind urad dal in a food processor by adding 50 ml of water until you achieve a thick consistency.
3. Blanch roughly chopped carrot and blend to a paste, once cooled to room temperature.
4. Heat the pan with corn oil, add ginger-garlic paste, garam masala, roasted channa powder and blanched carrot, on a low flame.
5. Combine the soaked idli rava, lentils, spiced carrot paste in a large bowl.
6. Leave the batter at room temperature for two hours to ferment.
7. Brush the idli mould with butter and pour the batter in carefully and steam the idlis for 10 minutes.
8. Serve hot and enjoy!
Recipe courtesy: Executive Chef Amrish Sood, Jehangir's Dubai
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