Idli Podi at Home: Easy Recipe

Idli Podi  is a constant accompaniment to most South Indian Idli and Dosa varieties. There is also the Coconut Chutney and Sambhar, but this powder is a pure delight. The powder offsets the blandness of the idli and dosa and helps spicing up the meal. Not just idli and dosa, my daughter Ragini prefers a generous sprinkling of this powder on her sabzi the day she finds my sabzi bland or less spicy. So, for all spicy requirements – the idly chutney powder is what you should reach for. Curiously, although it spices up the dish a bit, as a standalone it is just roasted lentils (Dal) and red chillies. And since you can control the red chillies, you can control how spicy the mixture turns out to be.

Steps for the Best Idli Podi

Idli Podi is one of the simplest mixes to make. Take two measures each of Chana Dal (Split Bengal Gram ) and Urad Dal (Split Black Gram). If you have whole hing (Asafoetida) – this is typically available in any South Indian Grocery Store or on Amazon India too. Depending on the size of the measure you use for the lentils, add a clutch of red chillies – or more if you want it very spicy. My take: don’t make the idly chutney powder too spicy – just because not everyone is a big fan of very spicy powders. To add flavour to the entire mix, add a generous clutch of freshly plucked curry leaves and salt to taste.

Use the Right Amount of Oil

Once your ingredients are in place, take a kadhai ( a wok), add a tbsp of oil and roast these ingredients together on low flame. You can consider the mixture roasted when you can smell the aroma of the roasted lentils and red chillies. The Urad Dal will also be slightly dark on the sides (make sure they don’t turn black – you can do this by constantly mixing the dals with a dry spoon, and keeping the flame levels to mid).

Easy Hacks for Draining Extra Oil

The first time I made it, I had used a lot more oil than what I should have. If your final mix is oily, then the powder will come out sticky after grinding. What do you do then ? Well, take a large tissue paper, and spread this roasted mixture on it evenly. In a few minutes, the extra oil would be soaked in by the tissue paper. You can now grind it to get the multipurpose Idli Chutney Powder. You may grind it into a fine mixture, or a coarse mixture depending on your taste. I personally prefer the coarse mixture.

Store the powder in an airtight container. There is no need to refrigerate. The powder will remain good for months on end.

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