Idly & Mint Chutney

Idly, chutney and sambar - My entry for Breakfast Blogging 2 and Green Blog Project

Breakfast is the most important yet most neglected meal of the day!! Whoever told "Breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince, and dine like a pauper" never knew the 1001 things we have to do just when we are supposed to have a sitdown breakfast!!

Breakfast is ofcourse is a fad at my home. Mostly oats or a slice of bread for me and coffee for ravi. I think Breakfast Blogging event is such a nice opportunity to treat(atleast on weekends) breakfast as a meal and not just a snack or a drink.

So here is my entry to her wonderful event, The Breakfast Blogging 2, the queen of breakfasts ( Yes ofcourse idly is a she in my mind ), IDLY

I make two types of idlies:

Idly made at my mom's - Tamilnadu

1. Ratio of idly rice : ural dal is 3:1.
2. Add a teaspoon of fenugreek to ural dal
3. Soak rice and dal separately for 4 to 6 hours.
4. Grind first the rice smoothly.
5. Then grind the dal and fenugreek.
6. Mix together thoroughly and keep closed in a dark, dry place for 8 hours and let it ferment

Idly made at my mil's - Andhra

1. Ratio of idlirawa :ural dal is 2:1
2. Wash the idlirawa 3 to 4 times and soak to just cover the rice. The lesser the better
3. Soak the ural dal separately. Allow the rawa and dal to soak for 4 to 6 hours
4. Grind the dal
5. Drain any excess water in the rawa and mix in the ground dal
6. Ferment in a dry dark place for 8 hours

Making of the idly

• Lightly mix the fluffed up batter gently. Take care not to release all the bubbles
• Add salt and mix.
• Grease idli mould with some oil spray
• Pour the batter in the moulds and steam in idli cooker for 10 minutes on medium-high.
• Leave them alone for another 10 minutes.
• Dip a spoon in cold water, run it around the idlies in the mould and carefully flip them out using the spoon

Tips for good idly

• Add water little by little when grinding ural dal and let it fluff
• The consistency of the ground dal should be like soft butter
• Mix the batter thoroughly with your hands. The yeast in the hands helps in fermenting
• Fenugreek is said make the idly more fluffier. It also gives color when you make dosais.
• Dont overmix the fermented batter. If all the bubbles are released the idlies will not be very fluffy
• Altitudes does vary the ratio of rice and ural dal. At higher altitudes make the ratio of rice and ural dal 3:1 or sometimes 4:1. It comes by trial and error only

Mint Chutney

Sometime in May or June I planted a few mint.. I buy mint every week, I stripped the leaves and cut the stems on an angle and planted it in a pot. I did not have much hope because I had tried it a couple of summers without much success. Surprisingly this time it was a success !!! Also I did not know that mint can be a creeper !!! I thought it was a shrub !!

My entry to the Green Blog Project by Guardian of Tropical Plantation - LG of Ingimanga. Every time I water the plants I remember her. I have Tulasi, Mint, Green chillies and Samandhi (Chrysanthemum) in my patio. I have planted some coriander too. Its just struggling in the heat.

I made chutney with my pudina leaves ( and added to the store bought bunch ). Just sauted the leaves in little oil along with coconut, tamarind and redchillies. I also added a fistful of cilantro. And ground up in the mixie :)