Dosa ( South Indian Recipe)

1. If you have made dosa batter in large quantity then always take required amount of batter in a separate bowl and adjust the consistency of batter.
2. If using leftover batter from the fridge then bring it to room temperature and then make dosa. This is very important or else you won’t get brown crispy dosa.
3. If it gets too hot then sprinkle some water to bring down the temperature of the tava. By doing so the  dosa |  South Indian dosa | how to make dosa |  will not stick to the pan. The ideal temperature of tava is very important to make the perfectly crisp dosa.
4. If using cast iron tawa, please pre-season it well ahead of time.
5. If using non-stick pan then do not sprinkle water very often otherwise the coating will get weaken and starts to wear out.
6. The consistency of the batter is also the crucial part. If it is too thin or not fermented well, it will surely stick to the pan. The consistency should be flowy and not thick or runny.

1. For making the South-Indian batter dosa at home, gather all the ingredients and measure them.
2. For the batter of dosa firstly, in a large bowl, take urad dal and methi seeds. Fenugreek seeds aid in the fermentation procedure of the dosa batter.
   
3. Soak it in enough water for 4 hours. Do not over soak the urad dal as they start smelling.
   
4. Cover with a lid and keep aside.
   
5. In another bowl, take rice. Here we have used raw variety of rice.
   
6. Add the parboiled rice. This rice is specially used by south Indians, even in their daily meals.
7. Also, add the thick rice flakes. Adding poha makes the dosa soft.
   
8. Combine and soak it in enough water for 4 hours.
   
9. Cover with a lid and keep aside.
   

1. After 4 hours, drain the urad dal and fenugreek seeds using a strainer. You can reserve the drained water and use it while blending if required. Urad dal soaked water helps to fasten the fermentation process of the dosa batter.
   
2. Transfer the drained dal into a mixer jar. Add approx. 1 cup of water.  You can even make use of a wet grinder if you have. 
   
3. Blend in a mixer to a smooth paste.
   
4. Transfer the mixture into a deep bowl and keep aside. The container should have enough room for the batter to rise and ferment.
5. Drain the rice, parboiled rice and thick rice flakes.
   
6. Transfer into the same mixer jar. There is no need to wash it.
   
7. Blend in a mixer to a smooth paste using approx. 1 cup of water. Sometimes the mixer grinder may get heated up, if that happens wait for some time, let it cool down and then start grinding again. Check feel the texture between your finger and grind accordingly till you get a smooth paste.
   
8. Transfer the mixture into the same bowl. Add the salt and mix well. 
   

1. Cover and ferment the dosa batter in a warm place for 12 hours. The time required for fermentation may vary depending on the climatic conditions. In winter it may require longer time and in summer it may require less time to ferment the dosa batter. We will place a thali below so, if the batter over ferments it will not spoil the kitchen.
   
2. After fermentation, the batter will increase in volume.
   
3. Mix the dosa batter gently so that the air bubbles do not escape. Add water if required and start making the dosa. If you are not making the dosa immediately then refrigerate the batter but, ensure that whenever you wish to make the dosa, the batter has been removed at least half an hour prior and brought to room temperature.

1. For making the plain dosa, heat a non-stick tava (griddle). Sprinkle a little water on the tava (griddle). The temperature of the tawa should not be too hot or too low for making the perfect dosa.
   
2. Wipe it off gently using a cloth or kitchen towel.
   
3. Spread it in a circular motion to make a 225 mm. (9”) diameter thin circle. If you wish to make uttapam, then make small thick uttapa from the same batter.
   
4. Smear a little ghee over it and along the edges. You can also use butter or oil to roast the dosa.
   
5. Cook on a high flame till the dosa turns brown in colour and crisp. No need to flip and cook on the other side.
   
6. Fold over to make a semi-circle or a roll.
   
7. Repeat with the remaining batter to make more dosas. Serve the South-Indian dosai immediately with coconut chutney and sambhar.
   
8. This is the most basic variety of  dosa recipe | South Indian dosa |  but you can make dosa using semolina, oats, ragi, moong dal, etc. Check our section of Different Types of Dosa recipes to learn how to make these unique delights.
9. Bread dosa, Onion tomato uttapam and instant oats dosa are few of my personal favorite dosa recipes from this dosa recipe section.