Steamy Soft Dosa: The Perfect Recipe For Beginners

Steamed dosa, also known as Kal Dosa, is a soft and spongy variation of the traditional South Indian dosa. It is made with idli rice, urad dal, and poha, and is generally thicker than a regular dosa. The name 'Kal Dosa' comes from the stone or stone-look-alike cast iron tawa on which it is cooked. The batter is poured onto the tawa and gently spread to maintain its thickness, then covered and cooked in steam.

Soak the rice and lentils

Soaking the rice and lentils is the first step in making dosa batter. This softens the rice and plumps up the lentils, making them easier to grind into a batter. The rice and lentils should be soaked separately, as soaking them together can result in a gritty batter. The lentils will also begin to ferment immediately during the soaking stage, so it is important to reserve the lentil-soaking liquid to blend into the batter later, which will speed up the fermentation process.

For the rice, use a bowl that is large enough to accommodate the rice and enough water to cover it completely. Cover the rice with water and let it soak for at least four hours or overnight. You can use either idli rice, parboiled rice, or regular rice.

For the lentils, combine urad dal (split husked black gram) with fenugreek seeds in a separate bowl and cover with water. Soak the lentils for at least four hours or overnight. The fenugreek seeds are added to speed up fermentation and add flavour.

Grind the ingredients

To make the dosa batter, you will need to grind the ingredients. The ingredients include:

• Rice (idli rice, parboiled rice, or regular rice)
• Urad dal (husked whole or split black gram)
• Fenugreek seeds (optional)
• Chana dal (bengal gram)
• Poha (flattened rice)
• Water for soaking and grinding
• Salt

Firstly, soak the rice and lentils separately in large bowls for 4 to 8 hours. You can add fenugreek seeds to the lentils. The soaking time depends on the climate; in colder regions, the ingredients may need to be soaked for longer.

Next, drain the water from the lentils and transfer them to a blender. Add water as needed and blend until you get a smooth, fluffy, and frothy batter. Transfer the lentil batter to a large bowl.

Then, transfer the soaked rice to the blender and blend until you get a slightly coarse batter. You can add the fenugreek seeds here if you didn't soak them with the lentils. Transfer the rice batter to the same bowl as the lentil batter.

Now, mix the lentil and rice batters together, ensuring they are well combined. You can use your hands to mix, as the warmth is said to aid fermentation. The mixture should have the consistency of a thick pancake batter; add more water if needed.

Cover the bowl and let the batter ferment in a warm place for 8 to 24 hours. The fermentation time will depend on the temperature and climate; in colder regions, it may take longer. You can tell the batter is ready when it has doubled in volume, has a light and fluffy texture, and has a slightly tangy smell.

Finally, stir the batter gently and add salt to taste. The batter is now ready to be cooked into delicious dosas!

Ferment the batter

To make steamed dosa, you will need to ferment the batter. Fermentation is a bigger headache in British kitchens than in Indian ones, so here are some tips to help you along.

Firstly, you will need to soak the rice and lentils in water to make them soft enough to grind into a batter. The lentils and rice should be soaked separately, as the blending time for each is different. Dal finishes faster, while rice takes longer. By grinding them together, you may need to blend for longer, which can put extra load on your blender. However, some people do soak and grind them together, so you may do the same if you want.

After grinding the rice and lentils separately, you can mix them together with salt in a wide bowl or pan. This batter is then allowed to ferment overnight or for 8 to 9 hours. You can add a pinch of sugar to get things going, as this is not traditional but can help in colder temperatures.

After the batter is fermented, it will increase in volume, have a pleasant fermented aroma, and a slightly sour taste. A well-fermented batter makes the best dosa. You will also see many tiny air pockets in the batter.

To ferment the batter in colder climates, you can keep the batter bowl in a warm place, such as near a heater or in a warm place in your kitchen. You can also preheat your oven to a low temperature (80 to 90 degrees Celsius) for about 10 minutes, then switch off the oven and keep the batter bowl inside. Alternatively, if your oven has lights, keep the lights on and place the batter inside.

If you are using an instant pot, place the bowl of dosa batter on a small trivet inside the steel insert. Press the yoghurt button and choose the low mode setting of the yoghurt option. Do not choose the normal mode, as this will cook your batter very slowly. Set the time to 8 to 12 hours, depending on the climate, season, temperature, and altitude of the place you are living in.

Heat the griddle/tawa

Now, heat the griddle/tawa. You can use a non-stick griddle if you are a beginner. In India, a cast-iron tawa is used traditionally. This kind of tawa has low edges like a griddle, which makes spreading the batter easier. A pan with high edges won't let you spread the batter well.

To check if the pan is hot enough, sprinkle a few drops of water over it. If it is ready, the water should sizzle. Reduce the heat to low or medium, stir the batter with a ladle, and take a ladle (1/4 cup) of dosa batter and pour it into the centre of the hot griddle/tawa.

Immediately begin to spread the batter evenly with the base of the ladle, starting from the centre in an outward circular motion in a clockwise direction.

Increase the heat to medium-high or high and drizzle 1 tsp oil/ghee/butter across the edges and on the dosa. The edges of the dosa will begin to leave/come off the pan when done.

Cook until the base turns golden and crisp. Run a thin wooden turner/spatula across the base of the dosa, starting from the edges to the centre.

If you want, you may cook the other side – turn it over and cook for a minute. Turn again and cook the base for 30 seconds to crisp it.

Spread the batter

To spread the batter, heat a dosa griddle/ tawa on a medium heat. When it is slightly hot, add a few drops of oil and spread it with a kitchen paper or a half-cut onion (pierced with a fork/ butter knife on the rounded side to hold). This prevents the dosas from sticking to the pan. It is important to not leave excess oil on the griddle, so wipe down if required.

To check if the pan is hot enough, sprinkle a few drops of water over the pan. If it is ready, it should sizzle. Reduce the heat to low or medium, stir the batter with a ladle and take a ladle (1/4 cup) of dosa batter and pour it in the center of the hot griddle/ tawa.

Immediately begin to spread it evenly with the base of the ladle – starting from the center, in an outward circular motion in a clockwise direction.

Troubleshooting tip: If you are unable to spread the batter because it got stuck to the pan, it means either the pan is too hot or the batter is too thick. Reduce the flame and cool down the pan slightly. If that doesn't work, pour a little more water into your batter to bring it to the right consistency. Also, too much oil on the empty pan won't let you spread the batter well.

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