Monday, November 19, 2007

Adai



This is a wonderful recipe I learned from my fil. I keep making it so often these days that I am sure to hear the words "Stop" soon from my hubby who is very well aware of my repetitive cooking when something comes out well:)) .......But iam trying to avoid it by making some variation when I make the adai. When I first heard about adai from my father-in-law I used to think its something we make using coconut and jagerry filling and a rice paste covering in plantain leaf. But I was wrong. It was then I realized the differences in the meaning of words used in different parts of kerala. Towards the north (Ernakulam-from where I am) adai is meant to be a sweet similar to kozhukatta, but different in shape and the way it is cooked (its covered in a plantain leaf for cooking). Towards the south (Trivandrum- from where my husband is), it is a dosa made from lentils and rice and the wonderful thing about it is , it doesnt require fermentation. It just requires the lentils and rice to be soaked in water overnight. So I am very glad that I can make it in US during winter too!

Here is the recipe:

To soak overnight (Update: One of the readers pointed out that it is enough to soak for an hour, which might also work, I would give it maybe 2 - 3 hours just to ensure that all the lentils and grains have absorbed water well) :

Thuvar dal - 1/2 cup
Channa dal - 1/2 cup
Urad dal - 2 tablespoons
Raw rice - 1/2 cup
Boiled rice or Idli rawa - 1/2 cup
Red Chilli - 7 nos or according to taste
Turmeric - a pinch
Methi seeds - one teaspoon
Grind these together the next day together with enough water to make a very smooth batter (just like dosa batter). Usually adai is not prepared like dosa (its thick and the contents are not ground to a smooth paste), but this is my fil's version and I liked this one better :) . Add salt to taste and some asafoetida powder to enhance the taste. Mix well. You may let it sit for like 15 -30 minutes or more so that the batter turns a little bit sour. Start making dosas or you can store this batter in fridge for upto a week (though in my house it doesnt last that long as it gets over long before that ;)) . I make the dosa very thin and crisp , coz thats how we like it. I also made masala dosa with this batter and it was lovely. Usually adai is served with aviyal, but I made a chutney with garlic and onion. You can serve it with any other side dish also like sambhar, chutney, pickle, dosa podi.

22 comments:

Kribha said...

I did not know that adai is a sweet item in your place. I make it like your FIL only. That golden colored adai is too tempting. My mom would give me some fresh butter and sugar when I was little. Looks super good.

remya said...

delicious n crispy adai...hy by the way..i'm also my tvm,i do hav confused like u with ada...actually adai is not a kerala dish..we peoples in tvm has taken it from TN...he he...both adai's are very tasty aren't they??

Unknown said...

@kribha
Yes I too liked the recipe and wanted to try it in my kitchen from the time I saw my fil make it :) thanks for commenting!

@Remya
Thanks for commenting ! Its nice to know that someone also got confused like me hehe:) yeah fil was telling that its a dish from TN, i guess there is a lot of influence of TN in tvm cookery:) I agree with you both adai are equally good:)

FH said...

I love Adai too, made it last week, easy, nutrtious and no fermenting!! Looks great rv, enjoy!:)

Ramya's Mane Adige said...

hey!! Was wondering where u had disappeared all these days!!! nice to see some action here :)
Adai looks wonderful!!

Vanamala Hebbar said...

Hi
First time in your blog. I liked adai too. In my blog i have posted both the sweet adai and lentils dosa.
in iynegars we used to call it purpdosa (lentils dosa)

nice collection in ur blog :)

Rina said...

rv, I love adai. Used to make it when I was in Chennai.Mostly with the ready made mix. Now I will try the reall one. Thx for the recipe. I always, accompany it with spicy onion chutney.

vimmi said...

Hi RV,

Want to try this. it looks so tempting. By boiled rice do u mean the cooked rice or the parboiled one u get??

Tee said...

I just love adai! I used to have it just with a dollop of fresh home made butter....yummmm!!

EC said...

We too make adai this way only, not the sweet version

Anonymous said...

"I keep making it so often these days that I am sure to hear the words "Stop" soon from my hubby who is very well aware of my repetitive cooking when something comes out well:))"

Me too! I loved making eggless chocolate cake (ofcourse using Pilsbury cake mix ;) ), that my hubby would make me stop :D Now's the same with mangalore buns ;) Ofcourse, nowadays i've tried stopping repitition.. :D

The dish looks delicious! I've got so many dishes to try from your blog!

TBC said...

I love adas. Just made some last week. Yours look so brown & crisp.

Unknown said...

@Asha
Thats right asha:) The main thing is it comes out well as it doesnt require any extra effort for fermentation:) and added to it, it is full of nutrients:)

@ramya
Hi remya:) yes i was on vacation for a long time, ....its also nice to have you back in the blogging secion, checked out your blog, its loaded with goodies:)

@vanamala
Hello vanamala! Thanks a lot for visiting my blog and posting a comment, I visited your blog and saw the recipe of the sweet version of adai you mentioned, have to try to sometime, looks very tasty:)

@rina
Hi rina! Its really easy to make adai and you get more of the batter when you make it at home:) , you too have a wonderful collection of recipes in your blog with lots of beautiful snaps:)
Thanks for visiting my blog!

@Vimmi
Hi Vimmi! By boiled rice, I meant the one we get in stores, not the cooked rice. It was nice you asked that question , becoz many readers might confuse it with cooked rice, I have updated my blog now. Thanks a lot for visiting my blog!

@Tee
You bet tee, I love adai too! They taste so savory and nice and crispy, even when they have cooled down after taking off the stove, they taste sooo good:) Thanks for visiting by and commenting!

@easycraft
Hi easycraft!
Now even I make this type of adai:) The sweet one is called adai in northern kerala from where iam, its ingredients and shape are completly different:) and its also one of the prasadams you get in temple. Thanks for visiting dear!

@ashu

Hi ashu! I will now have to definitly try the mangalore buns recipe Thanks for the recipe :)

@tbc
Thanks for commenting tbc, yes both me and husband like it crispy and brown:) , and with some pickle it just makes our morning breakfast complete:)

amna said...

hi.. i have never seen adai look so crispy.. love it :)

Unknown said...

@Nags
Thanks a lot nags, this is my fil's version of making Adai:) iam sure u too wud like it when u make:)

Shivapriya said...

We also make similar kind of dosa.Nice one.

Vanamala Hebbar said...

Hi rv

Thank you for visiting my blog. Yes I take photos soon after I finish cooking. Well usually
in the pomegranate season, my mom will do this type of salad (kosambari). Yeah you can try chanadal payasam very tasty
I have never tried with the sugar. I am sure it gives different taste. Try it and let me know :) So that I can also give a try adding sugar.

Cheers
Mala

Freya said...

Your blog is a wealth of information and delicious recipes! Thanks so much for sharing!

Unknown said...

@shivapriya
Yes shivapriya, this dosa is very popular and easy to make too thats the best part:)

@Mala
I will try it with jaggery itself:) i bought some recently will let u know dear:)

@freya and paul
I am glad you found it informative:) when u get a chance to visit kerala, you can definitly explore the difference in each part pf the state:)

Unknown said...

I too like ADAI. I mix drumstick leaves/sliced carrots/radish with it. Tastes very good. You can have it hot with butter/ghee.

meera said...

hey...a small suggestion...the lentils neednot get soaked overnite...even if we soak them for an hour, its enuf...c u..

Unknown said...

you are right meera, maybe a little more than an hour, just to ensure, everything is properly absorbed water :), I too do that nowadays, forgot to update it in this post :) ....will do that now. thanks for the suggestion.

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