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Adai

Adai is a type of South Indian dosa made with toor dal, channa dal and rice. It is a thick lentils pancake with a soft centre and crispy edges. It is generously topped with shallots and moringa leaves. You can have them for breakfast or as an afternoon light meal. They are quite filling and protein rich. Unlike the regular dosa, adai will be thick and it has a hole in the centre. It can be made instantaneously and no fermentation is required.

Course Main Course
Cuisine Indian, Tamil Nadu
Keyword Adai dosai, lentils pancake, Protien rich pancakes
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Soaking time 3 hours
Total Time 45 minutes
Servings 10 to 12 medium sized pancakes
Calories per serving 185 kcal

Ingredients

For the Batter

  • ½ Cup raw rice (pachai arisi)
  • ½ Cup parboiled rice ( puzhungal arisi ) Idly rice
  • ½ Cup channa dal
  • ¼ cup toor dal
  • 5-6 red chillies

Making Dosa

  • 10-12 shallots roughly chopped
  • 1 curry leaves
  • Salt to taste

Instructions

For the Batter

  1. Soak the dal and rice separately for minimum 3 hour. Rinse and drain the water. Grind the chillies first. Once it is coarsely grounded, add the rice. Grind it to an almost smooth batter by adding water. Then add the dal and pulse. It should be coarse and not smoothly ground. 

  2. The batter will be in very thick consistency. Add little water to it. 

  3. Mix both, add salt, shallots, curry leaves and drumstick leaves (if using).

Making Dosa

  1. Take the required amount for that meal and keep the rest in refrigerator.  (1)
  2. Heat the tawa | griddle. Once it is hot, apply some oil and spread it. Ladle the dosa in the centre and spread it. The dosa will be very thick and heavy.

  3. With the back end of the spatula, make a small hole in the centre.  Keep it on medium flame. Drizzle oil on the outer edges and in the middle. The hole in the centre is created to evenly cook the adai. 

  4. Once the bottom side becomes brown, flip and cook on the other side. Repeat the same for the rest of the dosas.

Recipe Notes

  1. The batter can be refrigerated for about two days.
  2. Shallots and drum stick leaves are the highlight ingredients in this recipe. Try not to avoid them. 
  3. Unlike the regular dosa, this takes time to get cooked. Also keep the flame in medium, since these are thick, it needs time to cook through and the bottom should not be burned.
  4. This is best served with Avial.