South Indian

Idli (Steamed Rice and Lentil Cakes)

Name: Idli (Steamed Rice and Lentil Cakes)
Total time: 25 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: South Indian
Ingredients: 4 cups idli batter (rice and urad dal, store-bought or home-fermented); 1 tsp neutral oil; 2 cups water; 1/2 tsp salt

Lakshmi @lakshmi_chennai

Idli (Steamed Rice and Lentil Cakes) is South Indian home cooking, eaten at breakfast and dinner. On the plate it is the dish at the centre. Below is what usually sits beside it, what it does and does not contain, and what else to cook once you have made it.

25 min Easy Heart healthy Low sodium Vegetarian Vegan Halal Gluten free Dairy free Pescatarian

Ingredients

Serves

The quantities follow this count.

4 cups idli batter (rice and urad dal, store-bought or home-fermented)
1 tsp neutral oil
2 cups water
1/2 tsp salt

How to cook it

Most households steam idli straight from batter picked up fresh that morning from the local store; if fermenting at home, mix rice and urad dal batter with the salt and let it sit overnight until doubled and faintly sour.
Grease the cavities of an idli mold lightly with oil and ladle in the batter, filling each about three-quarters full.
Bring the water to a rolling boil in the base of an idli steamer, lower in the stacked molds, cover, and steam over medium-high heat for 12 minutes.
Test with a wet spoon; if it comes out clean the idlis are done, so lift out the stand and let it rest for 2 minutes before unmolding.
Run a wet spoon around the edges to pop out the idlis and serve them hot.

Watch how to cook Idli (Steamed Rice and Lentil Cakes)

Someone making it start to finish, so you can see what the steps look like.

Serve it with

A South Indian dinner is a plate rather than a single dish. These are the courses that normally sit beside Idli (Steamed Rice and Lentil Cakes), read from the same composition Dinejot builds a real meal from.

What it is eaten with
- Bajra Bhakri (Pearl Millet Flatbread)
  
  35 min
The sharp little thing
- Coconut Chutney
  
  15 min
Something cool and fresh
- Fried Vadam
  
  10 min

A course labelled with another kitchen's name comes from a cuisine in the same family, which is where this plate usually borrows it from.

Safe at your table

Dinejot tracks ten allergens and tags every one of them by hand. Idli (Steamed Rice and Lentil Cakes) carries none of them. That is a checked answer rather than an ingredient list nobody read.

Every tracked allergen in Idli (Steamed Rice and Lentil Cakes)
Allergen	In this dish
Peanuts	No
Tree nuts	No
Dairy	No
Gluten	No
Shellfish	No
Eggs	No
Soy	No
Fish	No
Sesame	No
Coconut	No

These tags are set by a person rather than inferred from an ingredient list, and they describe the recipe as written here. Read the labels on whatever you actually buy.

What it brings to the plate

Estimated, per serving

Calories: 170 kcal
Protein: 4 g
Carbs: 34 g
Fat: 2 g
Fiber: 2 g
Sugar: 1 g
Sodium: 290 mg
Saturated fat: 0 g

Estimated values. Actual nutrition varies with ingredients, brands, and how you cook.

When to cook it

Idli (Steamed Rice and Lentil Cakes) takes about 25 minutes from a cold stove to the table, and the cooking itself is easy going. It is eaten at breakfast and dinner. Nothing in the calendar rules it out, so it is a year round dish.