My 47th recipe, "Adai", a healthy and filling South Indian breakfast. A dish similar to dosa, but little bit thicker and heavy on dal, maybe it is apt to term it as a savory Indian version of pan cake. A perfect concoction of rice, dals and Indian spices to start your day right. And here goes the popular saying "Breakfast Like a King, Lunch Like a Prince, and Dinner Like a Pauper". This is one breakfast that abides by the rule. The carbohydrates from the rice and protein from the dals, provide you with a filling and balanced breakfast, and keeps you charged up throughout the day. With everything said, I was never too fond of having adai in my childhood. But now-a-days I make avial (my next post) as an accompaniment along with adai and it is sure a breakfast fit for my king 🙂
Adai
Adai
Adai is a healthy and filling breakfast similar to a traditional dosa made with a combination of lentils. It is more of an Indian version of savory pancake.
Ingredients
- ½ Cup Idli rice
- ¼ Cup Raw rice
- ⅓ Cup Toor dal
- ⅓ Cup Chana dal
- 1 Tbsp Urad dal
- 1 tsp Fenugreek seeds
- 1 ½ tsp Jeera
- 6 Dry Red chilli
- 1 large Onion (Finely Chopped)
- 1 small Green Chilli (Finely Chopped)
- 1 sprig Curry leaves
- ¼ Cup Coriander leaves
- 1 tsp Asafoetida
- 1 ½ tsp Salt (adjust per taste)
Instructions
- Take a bowl, add the rice (idli and raw), dal (toor, chana and urad). Wash them nicely. Add sufficient water, almost till the rim of the bowl. Add the fenugreek seeds, jeera and red chilli to the bowl and leave to soak for a minimum of 3 hrs. I left them overnight.
<br><br><img src="//revi.b-cdn.net/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/ad-batter1.jpg" alt="adai" width="48%"> <img src="//revi.b-cdn.net/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/ad-batter2.jpg" alt="adai" width="48%"> - Now we need to grind the batter. First take only the soaked red chilli (remove the stems if they are still on), add to the mixie and grind it roughly. Add a handful of the soaked rice and dal along with red chilli and grind till you get a smooth paste. Add required water while grinding. Transfer to a mixing bowl. Now, add the remaining soaked rice and dal to the mixie and grind it to a very coarse paste. Add required water while grinding. You can grind them in batches according to the capacity of the mixie. I ground them in 2 batches. Transfer to the mixing bowl.
<br><br><img src="//revi.b-cdn.net/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/ad-batter3.jpg" alt="adai" width="48%"> <img src="//revi.b-cdn.net/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/ad-batter4.jpg" alt="adai" width="48%"><br><br><img src="//revi.b-cdn.net/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/ad-batter5.jpg" alt="adai" width="48%"> <img src="//revi.b-cdn.net/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/ad-batter6.jpg" alt="adai" width="48%"><br><br><img src="//revi.b-cdn.net/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/ad-batter7.jpg" alt="adai" width="48%"> <img src="//revi.b-cdn.net/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/ad-batter8.jpg" alt="adai" width="48%"><br><br><img src="//revi.b-cdn.net/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/ad-batter9.jpg" alt="adai" width="48%"> <img src="//revi.b-cdn.net/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/ad-batter10.jpg" alt="adai" width="48%"> - To the ground batter, add the chopped onion, green chilli, curry leaves, coriander leaves, salt, asafoetida and mix them thoroughly. You have the adai batter ready now.
<br><br><img src="//revi.b-cdn.net/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/ad-batter11.jpg" alt="adai" width="48%"> <img src="//revi.b-cdn.net/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/ad-batter12.jpg" alt="adai" width="48%"> - Now heat a tawa, take a ladle full of batter and spread evenly over the tawa. Do not spread it thin. Adai should be little thick. Crispy on the edges and soft inside. Refer to my video here. Turn the flame to medium, add oil to the sides of the adai to get crispy corners.
<br><br><center><img src="//revi.b-cdn.net/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/adai-gif.gif" alt=“adar” width="50%"></center><br><br><img src="//revi.b-cdn.net/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/ad-done1.jpg" alt="adai" width="48%"> <img src="//revi.b-cdn.net/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/ad-done2.jpg" alt="adai" width="48%"> - Once the sides turns golden brown, flip the adai and let the other side get cooked in low-medium flame. Once done transfer to a serving plate. For me it took about 4 minutes to cook both sides of the adai. Time may vary according to the size and thickness of the adai.
<br><br><img src="//revi.b-cdn.net/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/ad-done3.jpg" alt="adai" width="48%"> <img src="//revi.b-cdn.net/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/ad-done4.jpg" alt="adai" width="48%"> - Enjoy hot with avial or chutney.
<br><br><img src="//revi.b-cdn.net/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/adai-1.jpg" alt="adai" width="100%"> <img src="//revi.b-cdn.net/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/adai-2.jpg" alt="adai" width="100%"> <img src="//revi.b-cdn.net/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/adai-3.jpg" alt="adai" width="100%">
Notes | FAQ
- Adding green chilli is optional. While I loved the extra spiciness, RK was not very appreciative.
- Adai batter should be very coarse and not like paste.
- You can add about ½ cup grated coconut or drumstick leaves to the batter. These would enhance the taste of the adai further.
Submitted this recipe to the event Come, join us for Breakfast, hosted by Cooking4AllSeasons.
Anjali Rai says
Wow, such beautiful picture and delicious recipe. It really looks very delicious.
revifood says
Thanks Anjali...
April says
Hi Revi - this looks wonderful and I want to make it; can you tell me what sort of grinder you use? Or, can I use either a food processor or blender for the grinding? I can't really tell from the photos what you used. Thank you in advance!
revifood says
Hi April, thanks for stopping by. I use the following Preeti brand mixie / dry grinder. However any dry grinder or blender would do.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004A2ECZI/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B004A2ECZI&linkCode=as2&tag=revisfood-20&linkId=NOVM5R6Q5M7DBC3H
srivallijetti says
Thanks for the lovely entry!..I love adais
revifood says
Thanks srivalli.