Ragi (Finger Millet) Idli:

Below recipe by Sandhya Riyaz

Ingredients

• Kambu/ Pearl millet / Bajra – 1 ½ cups

• Idli rice – ½ cup

• Whole urad dal (white) – ½ cup

• Poha/ Aval – 1 tbsp

• Water – Required amount for grinding and soaking

Instructions

• In a bowl add urad dal and poha together. Wash 3 to 4 times until you see clear water. Soak it in enough water for 5 to 6 hours.

• In another bowl add kambu/ pearl millet and idli rice. Wash 3 to 4 times until you see clear water. Soak it in enough water for 5 to 6 hours.

• After 6 hours, in a wet grinder add little quantity of the soaked urad dal and poha.. Switch on the grinder, when it starts grinding gradually add little by little of all the soaked urad dal and poha. Grind the mixture into a thick. When the batter increases in quantity and fluffs up add soaked kambu/ pearl millet and idli rice gradually. Add water in regular intervals when needed. Also scrap the inner sides of the grinder often to get rid of coarse rice mixture using the scrapper provided along with grinder. When batter is thick and fluffy transfer the mixture to a bowl, add required amount of salt and mix well

• Allow the batter to ferment for 8 hours if living in cold country and it should take very less hours if living in other places. After the batter has fermented and has increased in quantity refrigerate it.

• Heat water in idli pot. Grease idli plates with few drops of oil. Pour ladle of batter in each idli mold and place the batter filled idli plates in the idli steamer and steam it for 10 to 12 minutes.

• When done remove the idli plate from the steamer and keep it aside for a minute wet a spoon with little water (wetting the spoon with water helps in and scoop idli from the idli plate and serve it hot with any spicy chutney of your choice!