Idli

Idli

Written by on in Soft Idli

 

Idli is a South Indian savory cake popular throughout India.The cakes are usually two to three inches in diameter and are made by steaming a batter consistency of fermented black lentils (de-husked) and rice.

There are two aspects to making soft idlis,
1) Consistency of the batter and its ingredients
2) Batter fermentation basically what temperature should we keep the batter to let it ferment.

Factors responsible for hard Idlis.

The most common factor for hard Idlis is due to lack of Urad dal and inadequate water used for grinding. If you find your Idlis are hard, just add more Dal and use more water while grinding the batter. Add enough water while grinding itself. If you add more water at start the batter will not be perfect.Even if you add water while mixing the batter i.e after grinding, it won’t work.

The second reason might be, the Idli batter needs more fermentation. Sometimes if you make Idlis in the morning, it may come out hard. With the same batter, if you make Idlis for dinner, it will come out soft. If it happens so, give more time for fermentation.

Tips and Tricks to make soft idlis.

  1. The ratio of Urad dal and Idli rice should be 1:2.Use the same glass for measuring Urad dal and Rice.
  2. Water used while grinding should be cold or in room temperature.Do not add hot water.
  3. If the mixture gets hot while grinding add cold water to cool it.
  4. For batter fermentation, the best way is to mix the Idli batter using your hands. Mix the Dal and Rice batter thoroughly. Uneven mixing often leads to disaster. So in this case mixing the batter with the hand is the best option.
  5. The most important thing necessary for fermentation is a warm temperature. 25 to 28 °C will be ideal.
  6. If the weather is cold, just immerse the vessel containing the dough in a big bowl of warm water. Maintain the temperature of the warm water bath by cover it with a blanket, or better, use a heating pad or aquarium heater, where the temperature can be regulated. I recommend turning on the light in the oven to keep the batter warm.
  7. If you have an instant pot , add the batter to the instant pot vessel and turn on the yogurt settings.By default the Yogurt setting will be set to 8 hours.Cover the lid and allow it to ferment for 8 hours.After 8 hours, ferment more for another 2 to 3 hours.
  8. When you grind the batter, preheat the oven in 90°C for 10 minutes and then switch it off. Cover the batter inside the oven and don’t forget to turn the oven lights on.
  9. At least 8 to 12 hours is necessary for the fermentation process. The next morning tiny bubbles will appear. Otherwise, the dough will not rise and you have to start from scratch.

The below recipe is from my mom’s cookbook , this is how she makes Idlis. It took me a while to master the skills required to make soft idlis. The Idlis i have tasted at my mothers hands are second to none.

Remember, do not give up on making Idlis if it does not turn out good in first attempt.

Idli

Print Recipe
Prep Time 8 hours
Cook Time 30 minutes
Course Breakfast
Servings 30 idlis

Ingredients
  

How to make Idli batter

  • 2 cup Idli Rice or parboiled rice (sona masuri , ponni or parmal)
  • 1 cup Urad Dal
  • 0.5 cup Cooked rice (you can use the same idli rice , cooked) - avoid basmati
  • 1 tbsp Non iodized salt

Instructions
 

Process of Soaking Rice and Urad Dal

  • Take the Idli Rice and Urad dal in two separate containers.Wash thoroughly until the water runs clear.
    Soak Overnight or at least 8 hours before they are ready to grind.

Preparing the Batter

  • First grind the Urad dal - As you take the Urad dal to the grinder allow little water to seep in along with the dal. Without adding any more water, run the mixer for 30 secs.
    After the first grind ,add little water and grind again.If the batter is getting hot while grinding add little cold water.Grind till the mixture is smooth.Transfer the batter to a vessel.
    2. Now take the Idli rice in the grinder.Do not add water initially.After grinding once add little water and then grind again. If the quantity of rice is more then make sure you grind in two batches(too much batter may affect the consistency). Check the consistency of the rice mixture, it should be fine and smooth.Transfer it to the same bowl which contains the Urad dal batter.
    3. Take the cooked rice to the grinder.Add little water and allow it to grind.Grind till smooth.Transfer to the same bowl.
    Mix the final batter (mixture of Urad dal , Rice and cooked rice) with your hands or a spatula.Add salt.
    Watery batter will not rise and the Idlis will be hard and flat. So use caution while grinding and do not add too much water while grinding.

Fermentation of Batter

  • Immerse the batter container to warm water.Water should cover till the rim of the container.Let it stay till the water cools down.
    Take out the container and allow to ferment for 8 to 9 hours.
    During fermentation the volume of idli batter increases from 1.62 to 3.2 times its original volume.
    If the weather is cold then follow the below tricks for batter fermentation.
    1) Immerse the vessel containing the dough in a big bowl of warm water. Maintain the temperature of the warm water bath by cover it with a blanket, or better, use a heating pad or aquarium heater, where the temperature can be regulated. I recommend turning on the light in the oven to keep the batter warm.
    2) If you have an instant pot , add the batter to the instant pot vessel and turn on the Yogurt settings.By default the Yogurt setting will be set to 8 hours.Cover the lid and allow it to ferment for 8 hours.After 8 hours ferment more for another 2 to 3 hours.
    3) When you grind the batter, preheat the oven in 90°C for 10 minutes and then switch it off. Cover the batter inside the oven and don’t forget to turn the oven lights on.

How to Steam Idlis

  • Take the Idli plates and grease with little oil.
    Start filling the batter to the Idli moulds. Fill only half of each mould as the Idlis would eventually rise.
    If preparing in gas.

    Take 1.5 glass of water in a Idli steamer and allow to boil. When the water begins to bubble and steam up place the Idli stand in the steamer.
    Cover and steam for 10 minutes on a medium high flame.
    After 10 minutes remove the Idli stand and allow it to cool for 2 to 3 mins.
    Take a spoon and dip in water.With the help of the spoon remove the idlis to a plate.

    How to cook Idlis in Instant Pot.

    Put the instant pot in saute mode and heat 1.5 glass of water.Once the water begins to bubble place the Idli stand in the instant pot.Cover the lid and cook it in steam mode in venting position.
    Idlis will take exactly 6 mins to cook.The thing to note is that the time on the instant pot does not work in the venting position, so you have to use a separate timer. After 6 minutes take out the Idli stand and allow to cool for 2 to 3 mins.
    Take a spoon and dip in water.With the help of the spoon remove the Idlis to a plate.

    Serve with Chutney / Sambar / Molagapodi.