Dosa – South Indian Breakfast Crepe

When I first found out about the dosa my son was very picky. This was one of the few things he ate, and it was great for him. My friend asked me to get her the recipe for her picky eater, so here it is.

It’s made of lentils, brown rice and a dash of oil. The lentils are in most ethnic grocery stores and are called Urad Dal. They are white looking. We use long grain brown rice. Our oil is safflower oil, but any probably works fine. We mix one cup of each and soak them in a bowl for about 8 hours.

Then we strain them and put them in the blender with this much water added:

When my friend Sujani showed me how much water to add she held up her finger and pointed to the second  bend. This is key and it took me forever to master this.

Blend it on “Grind” for about 3 minutes depending on your blender. We both have cheap Oster blenders, about $30 ones. She replaces hers every year.

It should be about this thick:

Make sure your blender is off before you stick your fingers in.

Then pour it into a cup, cover it, and let it sit out again for another 8 hours. Then put it into the fridge. It will keep for 5 days and gets better tasting as it ages. Sujani says to not give dosas older than 3 days to kids due to the fermentation I think.

When ready, heat up a skillet (if you have a crepe pan that’s best) and grab a flat ladle/spoon. Sujani uses a very flat spoon. Pour a bit on, with no oil first.

Quickly, confidently and gently begin at the center and make a circular motion outwards.

Then drizzle a bit of oil over it. It should sizzle. When it gets a tad browned flip it over for a few more seconds.

Then you have a dosa.

A bit light because it was the first one out of the pan.

My kids eat dosa plain. I LOVE them with this peanut/almond paste that Sujani’s mom makes, but I have failed to master it. It is so good I can’t stand it. The dosa are really meant to be eaten with something.

Making dosa was really hard for me. I still have issues with it not being perfect. But each time they get better. Good stuff.

Here’s Sujani’s family making dosa.

Urad Dal

Another example of a simple dosa recipe.

Great video on making dosas. A must watch if you want to try dosa. I’ve added Fenugreek seeds before and they do taste great. Also, I might try this back of a cup thing if I get a bigger pan.

Excellent video on making dosas in India.