"Urad Dal-Rice-Little Millet (sama/samai/shavan) Khotto (Idly in Jackfruit Leaves Baskets)" ... It is said that millets are good for health and it should be included in your diet ... Just tried this khotto adding in little millet in my own measurements ... and guess what ? it turned out real soft and spongy ... You can relish this with sambar/chutney or any dish of your choice, but I am going to relish it for lunch with fish curry today and tomorrow with chutney ... I love eating fish panna upkari (curry) with Idly/khotto/panpolo/ shevai/oondi ... Tastes great; Yummilicious ......
** Khotto as all of you are aware by now if you are following my blog are the same Idly batter prepared in Jackfruit leaves baskets / molds which I have written and posted about umpteen times, So, I will not go much into details of khotto / Idly as by now the whole world knows the benefits of eating idly as a healthy bf. But having said that, it’s the addition of millet that is the difference again in this particular khotto. Though millet were known for their health benefits from a very long time, It’s only recently, that it’s been in news and is getting widely promoted for its vast health benefits. I have begun introducing into my food for about 2-3 years now specially in preparation of Idly or dosa. Combining different ingredients and creating something new always fascinates me, I have written about it many times here too. Some turn out very good, while some are total flop, but that does not stop me from trying out and neither should it stop you. You never graduated directly, did you ? you went about it from Kinder to School to College and then the above levels. Similarly, in cooking too, you need to have patience and not give up, but keep trying them with slightly variation until you strike the right consistency and taste for the curry.
** Here is my recipe for "Urad Dal-Rice-Little Millet (sama/samai/shavan) Khotto (Idly in Jackfruit Leaves Baskets)" … My Style …
** Ingredients :
Urad Dal : 1 cup
Rice Rava (Idly Rava) : 1.5 cups
Little Millet (sama/samai/shavan) : ¾ cup
Green Chillies : 4-5
Ginger / Adrak / Alle’ : 1 inch piece
Salt to taste
** Wash and soak the urad dal and little millet in plenty of water “separately” for 4-5 hours.
** Just before you begin to grind the dal, soak Idly rava in water for 30 mins. And then drain off the excess water on top by slowly tilting the vessel. Keep this ready aside.
** Wash and drain of water from urad dal and grind in wet grinder with 1 cup of water to a smooth batter. Keep mixing often for even grinding of the paste. Do not water much of water.
** Now wash and drain off the water from little millet and put it in a mixer grinder and further grind to a paste. Do not add in much water. Lastly add in the chillies and the ginger cut into small pieces and grind till they are coarsely ground.
** Remove and add both the urad dal and little millet ground batter into a vessel. Add in the soaked and drained Idly rava and mix well. Keep the batter thick. It should be a little thicker than normal Idly batter used in molds for khotto or else it will leak out. Mix well and add in salt to taste and leave it overnight or for 8 hrs tightly covered in a warm place undisturbed to ferment.
** Next morning or after 8-12 hrs mix the batter well. The batter has fermented well it should have risen double in quantity. If not keep it near the stove where cooking is going on for an hour or so further. Now beat the mixture well. Gently pour the batter with the help of a rounded spatula into the prepared jackfruit leaves baskets / moulds. See to it that you fill upto ¾ th level only. You should leave gap on top of the molds as the batter will rise when being steamed.
** Keep the Idly steamer / pedavana with required amount of water to heat on high level. When it reaches full steam, lower the jackfruit molds and gently place in one by one until they are arranged well without titling and cover the lid tightly. Increase the heat and steam for 5-10 minutes or till you see steam passing through the sides of the lid, then lower the heat to medium and steam for 20-25 minutes.
** Remove and cool a bit. Pull out gently with the help of the stem of Jackfruit leaves. The khotto will come out in one go. If using any other molds run a blunt knife through the edges on the inner side of the vati / katori and gently flip over and tap it a bit to bring out the steamed Idly in one go.
** "Urad Dal-Rice-Little Millet (sama/samai/shavan) Khotto (Idly in Jackfruit Leaves Baskets)" is done and ready to be served. Though Khotto / Idlies are a breakfast item in Konkani Saraswats house I serve this sometimes for lunch with any curries that I prepare. Today, I served it for lunch with spicy “Raja Panna Upkari (Spicy Mackerel Curry)” which is my favorite combo. If you are a non-veg eater try this combo it tastes great.
** This was my first try with addition of "Little Millet" to Idly batter and I must say it was very soft and spongy and loved by all at home. Now I am all excited to dish out many more combos of Millet's. So keep watching this space for more dishes. Do try this out and enjoy with your family and friends. If you do not eat non-veg, no worries these taste best with sambar or chutney too. I served it with coriander-coconut chutney the next day for breakfast and it was equally tasty.
** Khotto/Idly is usually served with sambar/dal/chutney or any spicy curry as an accompaniment. It is also served with Hinga (Asafoitida) water though this is almost a forgotten practice nowadays. But this khotto ie Long shaped Idlies in Jackfruit leaves tastes best with coconut oil poured on top of it too along with chutney podi / gun powder. I have served it with non~veg dishes too.
** I have used jackfruit leaf molds the preparation link of which I have shared at the bottom of this recipe. If you have no knowledge of the preparation of the same or it is not available or you are short of time and have the leaves, you can also use long tumblers lined them with fresh Jackfruit leaves from the inner side too.
** You can even use steel vati / katori / gindla here to get evenly small shaped Idly. Remember to apply oil to the molds before adding in the batter. Applying of oil to the moulds ensures that the batter does not stick to it and comes off cleanly without crumbling once the Idly is steamed and cooled a bit.
** Again, the same procedure of steaming is to be followed for Ramdana ie the batter is poured in a large steel plate of large sized bowl to which oil has been applied before adding in the batter. This is called Ramdana in Konkani language, also known as tatte Idly in southern parts of India. The large sized Idly prepared is then cut into pieces before serving. Many people prepare many a times idlies in ramdana style so that it is easier and less time consuming both while preparing that is pouring in individual molds or while cleaning the vessels. It is upto you which way you prepare.
** Important Note: The proportions mentioned above is when using the wet grinder method. If using mixer then you have got to adjust the proportions as the result of grinding urad dal in wet grinder and mixer are not the same. Wet grinder yields in softer and bulkier quantity of urad when ground were as the mixer does not do the same. So you can decrease the amount of Idly Rava by half to one glass if using mixer grinder method. Ie. 1 cup of Urad dal : ¾ cup Idly Rava : ½ cup Little Millet.
** Note : Idly Rava is actually rice ground into a rava texture which is available readily in Indian Market. It saves time and effort of grinding the rice. In case you have no access to Idly Rava in your vicinity, you can add rice also. The quantity remains almost the same. Just wash and soak rice separately in water while soaking urad dal and grind to a grainy coarse texture again separately and mix the two later. There will be no difference at all in the making of Idly. Idly Rava is used just for the sake of convenience in place of rice.
** For the "Method of preparing of the jackfruit leaves baskets/molds" … just check on the link given at the bottom of the recipe. Just click on the link and you will come across a detailed article of the same. Go through the same carefully observing the method. However, if you want to prepare this Khotto and have no access to leaves, there is nothing to worry, just pour them in Idly molds and prepare the same simple. If still in doubt you can check any You Tube or you can even mail me the query. I will be glad to help you.
** I am also sharing a common link to various types of “Idly” prepared and posted in the Blog, you can check out the same and try those that you would love to relish …
** For the "Raja Panna Upkari (Spicy Mackerel Curry)” Recipe, Please follow the link given below …
** An Earnest Request : There are many more recipes of different types in the blog. For all my Recipes, use the search option or the label section in the Blog. If you are still not able to find it or have a query, please leave a message in comment section or mail me the same. I will try my best to get back to you as soon as possible. Do try out various types of dishes included in the Blog and Enjoy them with your family and friends and do give me a feedback if possible.
** I am happy to inform you that I have also started a food group for by the name "KONKANI DELICACIES" which is over and year old, with about 19K strong members. It is a pleasure to inform that you will find in the group many more recipes posted by our expert members and you too can share some of your own. The link to the group is posted on the left side of the blog page. Do join us in our culinary journey. I strongly believe in Sharing and always endorse that "Sharing Is Caring" … Thank You ….
Nice presentation.
ReplyDeleteThanks a lot
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