My sambar today would make my Mom say ‘Way to go’!
And I’ve got Idlis perfecto tenth time in a row!!!
I have loved idlis for as long as I can remember. It has been the tale of a Rajasthani’s love affair with Idlis – Persistent perusal, failure, heartbreak and then sweet success. After failing multiple times I finally have worked out the to-dos and the not to-dos!

Here is my go-to recipe from Sujatha’s blog with some additional ‘gyaan’ gained from experience – my learning down the months.

Idli rice/ponni rice – 3 cups
Whole urad dal (washed)- 1 cup
Fenugreek seeds(methi daana)- 1 tsp
Salt- 1 ½ tsp (adjust as per taste)

Soak the rice and urad separately for 5-7 hours. Add fenugreek seeds to the urad  dal when soaking.
Place in the refrigerator for an hour and grind them separately in the mixer, using chilled water to grind the urad
Mix both the ground mixtures very well  and add salt (I use my hand to give it a nice whip and mix)
Leave to ferment overnight or 7-8 hours till the mixture doubles up
Gently scoop batter off the top and transfer to greased moulds. Do NOT stir and mix the batter.
Steam for 10-12 minutes. Stick a toothpick in to check. If it comes out reasonably clean, the idlis are done.
Let cool for a couple of minutes and serve hot with Sambar.

Here are the lessons I learned over the past few months-

-Use idli rice ( I used to use any at hand in the past)
-Use whole urad ( I always used split dal)
-Ratio for mixie grinding 3:1 or 21/2 :1
-Soak overnight and cool in the fridge before grinding to counter the heat. Grind using chilled water.
-Mix thoroughly before you put it for fermentation (read, ghoto/whip and mix with hands like a ‘halwaai’)
-When it is all fluffed up in the morning, scoop batter gently off the top and steam ( I used to mix the fermented mix with all my vigour with a ladle..I realize it’s a No-No totally!)