Rava Idli Recipe with Eno - Instant Rava Idli Recipe with Curd

Making your own idlis at home is a beautiful thing. In fact, I dream of always having homemade idli dosa batter in the refrigerator all the time but that's sadly not the case. I do buy and stock MTR rava idli mixes but it's not something I default to often. While I love rava dosa and the ease of making instant rava dosa at home, there's something to be said about being able to pour ladles of batter into a mould and just letting it steam away while you settle down with a book or just unwind from the day. Oh, I should probably mention that I almost always make these instant rava idlis for dinner rather than breakfast.

I have actually shared a recipe for rava idli before but this is a new and improved version that works so well that I actually make them about about once a month now for a weeknight dinner. If you make a large batch, you can even refrigerate the cooked idlis and lightly steam them the next day for breakfast (the batter can be stored before adding eno too, but I haven't tried this myself). Total win!

Just for the cuteness factor, I used the mini idli mould stand that my mom in law gifted me and made a batch of mini rava idlis. Dunked in a bowl of sambar, they make the easiest and cutest breakfast (or dinner) ever. If you don't own a mini idli mould, I'd urge you to remedy that as soon as possible. My mom used to pack these for my tiffin when in school and making this small batch myself brought back so many memories from years ago.

While sambar and coconut chutney are great combinations for idli and rava idli alike, I love mine with onion tomato chutney. Try it!

Check here if you are looking for how to make soft idlis. I've even included loads of tips and tricks.

RAVA IDLI (WITH ENO & CURD) RECIPE

Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 10 minutes
Makes ~ 12 idlis

INGREDIENTS:
1.5 cups of rava (semolina)
1 cup of curds (plain yogurt)
1/2 tsp of black mustard seeds
1 tsp of chana dal (soaked in water for 10 mins)
1/2 tsp of urad dal (optional)
A few curry leaves
1 tbsp of oil
1.5 tsp of eno salt (plain, unflavoured)
1/2 tsp of salt or as needed
2 tsp of roasted cashew nuts (optional)
1/4 cup of peas (fresh or frozen, optional)

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Heat oil and add the mustard seeds. When they pop, add the chana dal, urad dal, and curry leaves. Fry until dals turn golden.

2. Add the rava to this along with the peas, if using. Add salt and mix well.

3. Now turn off the flame and add the curds and 1 cup water.

Mix well to form a thick batter.

Get your idli moulds ready and lightly rub or spray with oil. Keep some water ready for steaming in whatever container you are using (pressure cooker, idli cooker, etc) and make sure it's hot before proceeding with the batter.

4. When you are ready to steam, add the eno salt to the rava idli batter.

5. The eno salt will bubble and fizz a bit when added to the batter. This is good. This is what will aerate your rava idlis and make them soft and spongy.

6. Mix lightly and immediately pour in the idli moulds. If you are steaming the idlis in batches, add eno only to the batch you are going to steam and then add the rest before the next batch goes on for steaming.

Steaming time will vary depending on your idli mould and size. I usually require about 10 mins. If you want, you can add a roasted cashew nut to the bottom of each idli mould dent before pouring the batter.

Serve hot with  Kerala sambar, green coconut chutney, and tomato onion chutney.

Note: you can replace eno salt with baking soda for similar results.

Mysore Rasam Recipe - South Indian Recipe for Rasam with Coconut

Mysore Rasam is a delicious rasam recipe with coconut in the fresh rasam powder. I had been meaning to try my mom in law's Mysore rasam for a while and she had even passed on the recipe to me long back but I never ended up doing it so I did what any self-respecting food blogger would do. I made her cook Mysore rasam and stood around taking pictures!

My mom in law makes amazing rasam so it's no surprise that the Mysore rasam was really amazing. She used freshly roasted rasam powder for it so the flavours were great and it was just the right amount of spicy vs sour. I really shouldn't have waited this long to get on board the Mysore rasam fan club.

Other rasam recipes I love - Pepper Rasam, Instant Tomato Rasam, Coconut Milk Rasam, and of course, Lemon Rasam.

MYSORE RASAM RECIPE

Preparation time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 25 minutes
Serves 4
Recipe Source: Mom-in-Law

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 lime-sized ball of tamarind
• 1/2 cup of chopped tomato
• 1/2 tsp of turmeric powder
• 1/4 tsp of hing or asafoetida
• A few curry leaves
• 2 tsp of ghee or oil
• 1/2 tsp of black mustard seeds
• 1/2 cup of cooked and mashed toor dal

To Roast and Grind:

• 1 tbsp of coriander seeds
• 2 tbsp of channa dal or kadala paruppu
• 2-3 dry red chillies
• 1 tsp of jeera or cumin seeds
• 1/2 tsp of whole black pepper
• 1/3 cup of grated coconut
• 1/2 tsp of oil

INSTRUCTIONS:

0. Soak the tamarind in 1 cup warm water for 10 mins. Extract juice by adding 1 more cup as you go and discard the seeds and pulp.

1. Heat oil in a pan and roast the ingredients listed under "to roast and grind". Make sure the dal turns a golden brown.

2. Turn off flame and add the coconut, stirring well to make sure it mixes uniformly with the rest of the roasted spices. Set aside to cool.

3. Meanwhile, add 1 more cup of water to the 2 cups tamarind juice and let it come to boil. To this, add the chopped tomato, turmeric, some salt, and the hing.

4. Once it has come to a boil, simmer for about 10-15 mins until the mixture is almost half its quantity and the tomatoes are soft.

5. Meanwhile, grind the roasted spices + coconut mixture using no water. This is the base of Mysore rasam or Mysore rasam powder.

6. Add about 4-5 tbsp of the Mysore rasam powder to the simmering tamarind water.

7. Let it come to boil and immediately add the cooked and mashed toor dal. Mix well and adjust salt or rasam powder if required.

8. Add the curry leaves and simmer for another minute but not for too long, otherwise the flavour or the rasam will go down.

9. For tempering, heat the ghee in a small pan and add the mustard seeds. Whey they pop, dunk into the prepared Mysore rasam.

Serve Mysore Rasam hot with rice and any side dish like simple potato roast, beans mezhukkupuratti, vazhakka podimas, etc.