Vermicelli/Semiya Idli

I've been trying to empty out my kitchen and one thing that I had a lot of stock of was vermicelli. I made a sweet version of it last week and this morning I made vermicelli idli. I'd heard of vermicelli idli as my sister-in-law makes it sometimes. I've not tasted it but my mom has told me about it. The idli is similar to a rava idli and actally has some rava too.

Now this idli is a bit on the heavy side because it is full of curd. It can be served with coconut chutney or some podi.

Ingredients (Makes 6 idlis) :

1. 1 cup vermicelli
2. 1/2 cup rawa/semolina
3. 3/4 cup curd + extra as required
4. salt to taste
5. 1 tsp + 1 tsp oil
6. 1 tsp mustard seeds
7. 1 tsp channa dal
8. 1 tsp urad dal
9. 1 finely chopped green chilly
10. chopped cashew bits - as desired
11. chopped coriander leaves
12. finely grated coconut - skip this if serving with coconut chutney

How I made it :

1. Heat 1 tsp oil.
2. Fry rawa and vermicelli for 5 minutes. Keep stirring to ensure uniform roasting.
3. Once cooled, add curd and leave aside.
4. After 1 hour, add some more curd if too thick. I added 2 tbsp curd extra. I added 2 tbsp of water as well. 
5. In a pan, heat 1 tsp oil
6. Add the mustard seeds.
7. Once the mustard seeds stop spluttering, add the urad dal, channa dal and cashew bits. 
8. Fry for a minute. 
9. Add this seasoning to the batter. 
10. Add green chillies, coriander and coconut. 
11. Adjust salt.
12. Grease idli mould or small ramekins and steam for 10 minutes.

I don't have an idli stand. I make my idlis in katoris/stainless steel kinnams.

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My take on the nippattu

My good friend gave me a sample of her baked nippattu one morning and I flipped. It was just so god damned good. I knew I had to give it a try.
Those of you who do know me very well, I am a sindhi who loves her koki. This dish reminded me so much of the koki. Koki is an onion and green chilli mixed paratha. It is a very famous breakfast across all Sindhi households, eaten with curds, pickle or white butter and sugar.
Now, the nippattu is similarly flavoured and hence the instant liking. The original recipe is here but I added my own twist to it. Instead of 2 cups of plain maida, I used just 1. To substitute the remaining 1 cup, I added 1/4 cup makki atta (cornmeal), 1/4 cup rava, 1/4 cup rice flour and 1/4 cup whole wheat flour. I also skipped the baking soda. I never buy baking soda cause it can be quite harmful for the body I hear. However, I also hear that it is a fabulous household cleaner.

I did follow this recipe and tried baking the nippattu. There were two things that went wrong
1. I lost patience as I was able to bake only two at a time in my oven.
2. Mine were quite crumbly in nature cause of the rava that I had added to the dough.

I left half of the dough back in the fridge and today on this cold rainy afternoon, I fried them as small vadas instead and they were yummy and gone in minutes.

Ingredients :
1 cup maida
1/4 cup makki atta - cornmeal
1/4 cup rice flour
1/4 cup rava/semolina
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
1 large onion finely chopped
4 tsp white sesame seeds
1/3 cup oil
2 tsp sugar
Freshly chopped coriander leaves - as much as you like
1 tsp salt
4 tbsp melted butter - I used salted
3 finely chopped green chillies
1/4 cup warm water

How I made it :

1. Mix all the flours together. Add the salt, white sesame seeds, onion, green chillies, sugar and coriander leaves.
2. Make a well in the center. 
3. Pour in the melted butter and oil. Mix till the mix resembles coarse bread crumbs.
4. Now add the water cautiously. Add little by little until the dough comes together. You may not need to add the entire quantity. As the author of the original recipe suggests, the little water you use, the easier it is to roll out in the baked version.
5. Cover this with a damp cloth or cling film and keep aside for 30 minutes. 
6. Heat oil in a fry pan. 
7. Make small rounds out of the dough and when the oil is hot, drop these rounds in and fry till golden brown on both sides.

Serve hot. 

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Rava Idli Cake with Coconut Chutney

I am an ardent follower of a good friend's blog http://www.fingerlickingfoodblog.com. Namratha and I studied in St. Hilda's together and recently we caught up while she was here in Bangalore. I am always on the lookout for good and easy to make breakfast recipes and I've made this one from Namratha's blog earlier too. This time I captured some good pictures - at least I would like to think so :) The main reason why I religiously follow this blog is because the method and ingredients are so much like what I've grown up eating. So here is the how I made my own version of http://www.fingerlickingfoodblog.com/2007/11/rava-idlis-and-bombay-gojju.html.
My husband won't allow me to buy an idli cooker saying that too many pots and pans in the kitchen make shifting houses/places more difficult. So, I make idli cakes ;)


Ingredients
1 Cup rava dry roasted till fragrant
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp urad dal
1 tsp chana dal
5 whole cashews cut roughly
1/4 cup oil
1 cup sour curd
1 cup fresh curd
Salt to taste
1 sprig of curry leaves
1 medium carrot grated
1/2 cup peas - if not using the frozen variety make sure to boil them separately before use

Method:
1. Heat the oil.
2. Put in the mustard seeds.
3. Once they splutter add the curry leaves, urad dal, channa dal and cashew bits.
4. Once the cashews start to brown, add the rava and salt.
5. Once this mixture cools, add the curd.
6. Oil a vessel. Sprinkle the peas and grated carrot. Pour over the batter.
7. Steam in a cooker for 10-15 minutes till done.

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