Udupi Style Idli Recipe (Idlis made using rice rava)

Udupi idlis have a grainy texture yet are soft due to rice rava used. While the rest of South India grinds rice to add to the urad dal batter, idlis in Udupi, Mangalore are made by adding rice rava to the urad dal batter. The idlis then have a nice bite to them, have a nice texture as opposed to the sticky, pasty texture due to ground rice in idli batter. I may be biased here as I've grown up eating idlis with rice rava in them. I find them better in taste & texture when compared to idlis with no rice rava in them.

Brief recipe:

Idli batter with urad dal: rice rava in the ratio 1:2 is made.
Grind urad dal to make soft, fluffy, smooth, thick batter. 
Mix rice rava, ferment for 8-9 hours.
Steam to get idlis.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of urad dal 

• 2 cups of rice rava
• 
Salt to taste

Prep Time: 25-35 minutes

Cooking time: 12-15 minutes


Serves: 2

Preparation Method:

1. Wash urad dal well, soak for a minimum of 30 minutes.

2. Grind urad dal into a smooth, fluffy, thick batter using a grinder.
 None of the mixers till date have given me the fluffy batter I got from a wet grinder, not even Hamilton beach.

Adjust the amount of water you use while grinding, we want a medium thick batter in the end.

3. Remove the batter into a vessel.

4. Wash rice rava with water, strain out all the water. Mix it with urad dal batter.

5. Add salt to taste & mix well. We want a medium thick batter.

6. Allow it to ferment for 7-9 hours depending on the room temperature.

7. Pour in batter once the steamer is rolling hot into idli moulds, idli cups or idli plates.

8. Steam on medium heat for 12-15 minutes.

9. Serve idlis steaming hot with coconut oil on top, coconut chutney or Udupi sambar on the side.

Important tips:

If your batter is too thick or has too much rice rava in it, you'll have dense idlis.

If your batter is too thin or has too little rice rava in it, you'll have pichkoo idlis.

If your batter is medium thick, with just enough rice rava in it, you'll have a great idli that's soft, with great texture.