THUNI IDLY

Thuni idli is nothing but Idlies made on a cloth.

It seems to be a funny question ' who Invented Idly?' but relevant now. The World Health Organization listed Idli as one of the most hygienic and nutritious food. It is the favorite breakfast of Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Karnataka. Along with Sambar, Idli nourishes us.

Then how it originated? Very interesting to note that, “Idli” is the modified form of “Kedli” of Indonesia. The story goes like this… Fermented food especially Kedli is the most favorite food of Indonesia. Once a Hindu King of Indonesia visited South India during 8th century looking for Bride. The cooks accompanied the King prepared Kedli to serve him. The Indian cooks studied the preparation of Kedli and modified according to their imagination.

Originally, the Idli was a preparation of fermented Blackgram pulp but later rice also added to fasten the fermentation process.

In India, Idli originated in Karnataka according to the writing Vaddaradhane of Sivakoty Acharya of 920 AD. It describes Idli as one of the 18 items served to a Brahmachari visited in homes.

In Tamil Nadu, the” Ittali” originated around 17th century AD. 

Whether imported from Indonesia or invented in India, it’s worth noting that Idli full fills the needs of a fasting stomach.

An interesting thing is that a person consuming Idli daily will not have headache because the black gram has the property to inhibit headache. The side dish Sambar is one of the nutritious vegetable soup that contains many vegetables, spices, tamarind, Asafoetida etc which keeps the stomach healthy and prevents acidity and indigestion.

For the last three years, March 30 has been celebrated as World Idli Day.

INGREDIENTS:

Idly rice - 4 cup
Urad dal - 1 cup
Fenugreek seeds - 1 tsp
Salt

METHOD:

1. Soak idli rice, urad dal, and fenugreek seeds separately for 4 to 5 hours.

2. Grind the urad dal and fenugreek seeds to a smooth and fluffy batter.

3. Grind the rice after removing urad dal batter in a bowl.

4. Mix both the batters together in a bowl with adding salt.

5. Ferment the batter for 8 hours.

6. Once the time is up, the batter should have increased in volume. Take a ladle and mix it well. Your batter is ready.

7. To make Idlis: Pour some water in an idly vessel and put it on medium flame. Just line a wet cloth on top of the idli plates and ladle out the idli batter on the plates. Put it inside the idly vessel and let it steam for 10 minutes. Remove the idly plate and sprinkle some water over the cooked idlis. Slowly separate the cloth from the idlis. Soft fluffy Idlis are ready to serve. Serve hot with your favorite chutney or sambar.