Fluffy mounds of comfort. Any time meal or snack.

Ingredients:
To grind:
Boiled rice (Ukhda chawal) – 3 cups
Raw rice – 1 cup
Urad dal – 1 cup
Methi seeds – 2 tsps

To add to batter:
Salt – As required

While making:
Oil to grease the idli mould (I prefer sesame oil)

Method:
Soak the ingredients for at least 6 hrs (overnight is fine too). Soak the last 3 ingredients together and the boiled rice separately. Grind all the ingredients to make a smooth batter. Add enough water while grinding. Do not dilute too much. Transfer to a large vessel that is large enough for the batter to ferment and double in quantity. Do not refrigerate. Keep the vessel in a warm and dry place to ferment the batter for at least 8 hrs (at least 12 hrs during winter. A well-fermented batter will raise to become double the original quantity of the batter. Add salt and mix well. You will notice that the batter settles down. Now the batter is ready to be used right away or refrigerate it for later use.

Grease the idli moulds with oil and pour the batter in the moulds. In a pressure cooker, steam the idlis for about 10-15 minutes. Turn off and take the idli mould/stand out from the pressure cooker and let the idlis cool down a bit for around 2-3 minutes.

With a spoon, gently take out the idlis. Soft and fluffy idlis are ready. Serve with chutney, sambhar, or milaga podi.