Indian · Tamil Nadu · bread

Idli with Thengai Chutney

Name: Idli with Thengai Chutney
Prep time: 37 min
Total time: 15 h 38 min
Cuisine: Indian · Tamil Nadu
Ingredients: short-grain rice — 300 g; urad dal — 100 g; fenugreek seeds — 3 g; water — 500 g; salt — 7 g; sesame oil — 5 g; coconut — 150 g; green chilies — 200 g; chana dal — 15 g; fresh ginger — 5 g; salt — 3 g; coconut oil — 14 g; brown mustard seeds — 5 g; dried red chilli — 5 g; curry leaves — 2 g

Idli with Thengai Chutney reads salinity 4.4, richness 4.2 and sweetness 3.6 on Palate's 0–10 flavor X-ray — a Indian · Tamil Nadu bread, about 15 hr 38 min. Measured from the recipe itself: ingredients and technique.

The flavor X-ray — six axes, 0–10

Umami & Savory — 4.7 / 10
Sweet & Fruity — 4.5 / 10
Sour & Bright — 1.5 / 10
Bitter & Earthy — 2.6 / 10
Rich & Fat — 5.2 / 10
Aromatic & Spice — 4.2 / 10

The measured notes (of 18)

Salinity 4.4 · Richness 4.2 · Sweetness 3.6 · Nutty 3.5 · Heat 3.5 · Fruity 3.0 · Allium 2.8 · Herbaceous 2.4 · Warm Spice 2.4 · Earthy 2.4 · Umami 2.3 · Bitterness 1.3 · Floral 1.3 · Citrus 1.2 · Sourness 1.1

What's in it (15)

short-grain rice — 300 g
urad dal — 100 g
fenugreek seeds — 3 g
water — 500 g
salt — 7 g
sesame oil — 5 g
coconut — 150 g
green chilies — 200 g
chana dal — 15 g
fresh ginger — 5 g
salt — 3 g
coconut oil — 14 g
brown mustard seeds — 5 g
dried red chilli — 5 g
curry leaves — 2 g

Time & effort: about 15 hr 38 min (37 min active) · effort: involved

Nutrition (per 100 g, engine-estimated): 169.5 kcal, 4.2 g protein, 5.4 g fat, 26.2 g carbs

Dietary: Vegan — engine-derived; double-check anything allergy-critical.

How it's cooked (7 steps)

Soak the rice in one bowl and the urad dal with the fenugreek in another, each in plenty of the water, for 5 hours.
Grind the dal first with about 150 ml of its soaking water until it is white, light and holds soft peaks, then grind the rice to a slightly grainy paste like fine semolina. Fold the two together with your hand.
Cover loosely and leave to ferment 8 to 12 hours at warm room temperature, until the batter has risen by half and smells pleasantly sour. The rise comes from wild lactic bacteria and yeasts carried on the dal, which is why the dal is ground first and never over-washed.
Fold in the salt gently, without knocking the air out.
Grease the idli moulds with the gingelly oil, fill each two-thirds full and steam over rapidly boiling water for 10 to 12 minutes, until a skewer comes out clean and the idlis have pulled slightly from the sides. Rest 3 minutes before unmoulding or they tear.
For the chutney, grind the coconut, green chillies, roasted gram, ginger and chutney salt with 100 ml water to a soft, spoonable paste.
Heat the coconut oil in a small pan, pop the mustard seeds for 40 seconds, add the dried chilli and curry leaves for 10 seconds, and pour this tempering over the chutney. Serve with the hot idlis.

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Keep reading: what salinity, richness, sweetness mean in the flavor lexicon · the world's cuisines, by flavor.

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Every number above is Palate's engine-measured estimate, computed from this recipe's ingredients and techniques — not human-tasted ratings or reviews.