Thatte idli/Plate idli is a very popular variety of idli from Karnataka cuisine. It originated from the small town of Bidadi which lies between Mysore and Bangalore and is one of the most sought-after dishes here.
Though idlis were regular in our house, I was never fascinated by them. It was always a kind of ‘good for health’ feel which made me consume them without complaining 😀 .
But of late, some idli bug had bitten me and I have been crazily trying out a lot of varieties. You must have seen the multigrain, rajma, and soybean idlis already posted on my site.
This thatte idli has been on my to-do list for long. I have been trying all sorts of ratios with the ingredients but there always seemed to be room for improvement.
Finally, I should say I got it right accidentally. I fell short of raw rice, but still went ahead and used the quantity I had. The idlis came out so soft, like never before.
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There are a whole lot of recipes online and everyone has their own ratios. This is what worked for me after umpteen trials.
I have used the thatte idli plates that I had. If you do not have one, you can use any regular small plates with you. Each plate can hold around 2-3 ladles of batter, so these idlis are bigger than the regular idlis.
Most people use sabudana or sago pearls. Some people use a bit of baking soda too. I have not used any of these.
I am not sure if there is something called authentic thatte idli, but I can guarantee that this recipe will give you one of the best thatte idlis you ever had.
It can be made with regular idli batter too, but then there will be no difference between the two. Hence give this a try and do come back to let me know how it turned out for you.
In restaurants, they serve these idlis with a dollop of butter and a red coconut chutney. I will post that recipe soon. But any chutney or sambar works fine.
O’er to the recipe…
Thatte idli/Plate idli
Ingredients
- 1 cup idli rice
- ⅛ cup raw rice(pacharisi)
- ¼ cup urad dal
- ¼ cup aval/poha(beaten rice)
- a pinch of methi
- salt as needed
- water as needed for grinding
- oil for greasing
- few banana leaves(optional)
Instructions
- Get the ingredients ready. Wash and soak both the rice together, the urad dal with the methi and the poha separately for at least 2 hours.
- First, grind the urad dal for some time till it gets ground. Then add the poha and grind for a few minutes.
- Next, add the rice to the urad and grind to a smooth batter. Add salt as needed, transfer the batter to a container and let it ferment for 6-8 hours or overnight.
- The next day, gently mix the fermented batter and check for salt. Heat up the steamer and grease the idli plates. You can place banana leaf as I have done or spread a cloth too if you want.
- Pour 2 - 2.5 ladles of batter into the plates and steam them for around 12-15 minutes till they are done.
Hema’s P.S
- You can soak everything together and grind too, but grinding the urad dal separately for some time and then adding the rest of the ingredients as mentioned above gives softer idlis.
- You can use the mixer if you do not have a wet grinder.
- I have used red poha here as I did not have the white ones. Any poha will work.
- Fermentation time will depend on the climactic conditions at your place.
- The batter should be medium thick, like the consistency of curd or yogurt- neither runny nor thick.
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Looks yummy. Will definitely try
Do try Raji. Am sure you will love it.