Bella Methe Dosey

You Need:

• 1 cup raw rice (Kolam/Surai/Belthige)
• 1 cup jaggery, powdered
• 1 cup fresh grated coconut
• 1 fistful (a little less than 1/4 cup) urad dal (black gram dal)
• 1-1/2 - 2 tbsp methi seeds (fenugreek seeds)
• 1 fistfull (approx 1/4 cup) cooked rice (preferably brown/red rice or boiled rice) or poha (beaten rice)
• 1 level tsp dry yeast
• sugar to taste (approx 1 teaspoon)
• salt to taste (approx 3/4th teaspoon)

Method:

1. Wash and soak the raw rice, urad dal and methi seeds for at least 6-7 hours. Drain and grind it along with the jaggery, grated coconut and cooked rice to a fine thick paste. The consistency of the batter should be slightly thinner than dosa batter.

2. Transfer the batter into a large and deep container that accommodates fermented batter. Add salt and sugar to taste - it should have a sweet & salty taste. Adjust sweetness of sugar or jaggery as required.

3. To prepare the yeast solution, take yeast in a small bowl and add 2-3 tablespoons of lukewarm water and 1 teaspoon sugar to help activate the yeast. Keep aside for 10 minutes till the yeast solution turns frothy. Add this to the prepared batter, stir well so everything is mixed properly. Cover the mouth of the vessel with a muslin cloth or a lid that is not airtight but has an outlet for air to pass. Keep the pan undisturbed, in a warm spot of your kitchen to aid fermentation. In good (warm) weather and when good quality yeast is used the batter takes anywhere between 1-1/2 - 3 hours to ferment. * see notes.

4. Heat a non stick tawa/griddle on a medium high and grease it with a little oil. Take a ladleful of batter and pour in the centre of the pan, let it spread on its own or just help spread it a bit using the back of your ladle. Cover and cook for about half a minute, add a few drops of oil before you flip it over. Cook on both sides till golden brown.

5. Serve hot with chutney or eat them plain when completely cool - they are irressitible even when cold!

Notes:

1. You may leave the batter overnight for fermentation if you live in a slightly colder weather or have central AC at home. Make sure that you place a large plate underneath the pan just incase the batter spills over.

2. When the batter has fermented completely it will double or triple in quantity and turn frothy/fluffy. If you wish you can stir the batter a bit but it will kill the fermentation. However, many people stir it once and keep the batter again for fermentation. If you don't wish to fry  dosas at this stage you may even pour the batter into ramekins or a steel plate with sides and steam it for 15-20 minutes for a fluffy steamed cake. 

3. In the picture above I have prepared thick dosa by frying them on a flat tawa. If you are using a large dosa tawa which is slightly concave in the middle then use a ladle to spread the batter in which case you may get slightly thinner dosa.

4. If the tawa is too hot the dosa will burn outside and remain uncooked inside. If it is not hot enough the batter will stick and refuse to spread even with the help of a ladle. Maintain the heat on a medium high.