Idly exotica - Rava Shavige idly

Ingredients:

1. Rava or Semolina - 2 cups
2. Vermicelli/Shavige )MTR brand or Bambino) - 3 cups
3. Yogurt – 1.5 cups
4. Buttermilk – 1cup
5. Water – 1 cup
6. Oil - 2 large aldle
7. Ghee or melted butter – 5-6 tbsp
8. Mustard seeds – 1 tbsp
9. Channa dhal – 2tsp
10. Cilantro – 15-20 sprigs chopped finely
11. Karipatta or curry leaves – 1 sprig chopped finely
12. Green chilles – 4 05 5 chopped finely (Optional)
13. Roasted cashews – 3-4 tbsp
14. A pinch of bacling soda 9optional)

Method

• Heat 2 tbsp in a pan and roast the Vermicelli. Make sure that it does not turn brown

• Put the vermicelli aside

• Dry roast the rava/semolina and keep it aside

• In the same pan heat the oil and add mustard sees first and let them sputter. Turn off the heat

• Then add the channa dhal, cashews, cilantro and karipatta leaves.
• Add the roasted Rava and Vermicelli and mix well

• Transfer this mixture into a mixing bowl. Let is cool down.
• First add the ghee/butter and mix it with a spatula or hand
• Then add the yogurt, buttermilk and water little by little and mix well.
• The batter should not be too thick or watery. You should be able to scoop it out with a ladle or in your hand
• Pour the batter into the idli plates and steam for 15-20 minutes.

Tips : For the calorie conscious the amount of oil, ghee and butter can be reduced by half. To make it healthy you can grate carrots or boil some peas and add it to the batter.