instant dosa mix recipe with step by step photos – homemade instant dosa mix made with idli rava, urad dal flour, besan and methi seeds.
as i had mentioned in the instant idli mix recipe post, that i will be sharing an instant dosa mix recipe. so here is the recipe.
it’s very easy to prepare this instant dosa mix at home. whenever you want to make instant dosa, just take the required amount of flour. add some curd (or lemon juice), water and eno (fruit salt). mix very well and prepare the dosas.
you can even mix the flour with just water or fresh curd and let the batter ferment for 4 to 5 hours or overnight. so no soaking and grinding of rice and lentils here. with curd, the dosas taste much better and have a sour taste than with lemon juice.
the taste and texture of this instant dosa cannot be compared with dosa made from ground and fermented rice-lentil batter, but for an instant version, these dosa are good. you can also check this post on how to prepare dosa and dosa batter.
as mentioned above, i have used idli rava to make dosa. idli rava is coarsely ground idli rice and is available in most supermarkets and shops in india. its also available online. in andhra cuisine, idli rava is used to prepare idli. below is a pic of idli rava.
i have used idli rava as it gives a good crisp texture in the dosa. i also tried preparing dosa mix with rice flour. however, with rice flour, the dosas do not become soft and are less crisp. i have not added poha (flattened rice) to the mix. but you can add them. if using poha, then add ½ cup thick poha.
do note that the batter made with an instant dosa mix is not viscous like the batter made with ground lentils. so it is slightly tricky while spreading the dosa batter. the flame has to be a on low or sim when you spread the batter. or else the dosa breaks when spreading the batter. this also happens as the batter gets cooked faster than the regular ground & fermented dosa batter. you can cook these dosas on a medium flame, but when spreading dosa batter, do bring the temperature of the pan down.
- so if using a cast iron pan, sprinkle some water and wipe the pan.
- if using non-stick pan, remove the pan from the flame for some seconds.
in this recipe post, i will explain the step by step method of preparing dosa flour and also mention in short on how to prepare dosas. in another post, i will mention in detail on how to make dosas from this instant mix.
the total yield of the dosa mix is 720 grams. i made dosa 4 times with this mix and when preparing them it was so easy for me. twice i fermented the batter overnight and twice i made instant dosa with this mix.
if you are looking for some dosa varieties then do check:
instant dosa mix recipe
INGREDIENTS
- 200 grams urad dal OR 1 cup urad dal (split and husked black gram)
- ¼ teaspoon methi seeds (fenugreek seeds)
- 500 grams rice rava OR 3 cups rice rava
- 20 grams besan OR ¼ cup besan (gram flour)
- 1 teaspoon salt or add as required
INSTRUCTIONS
making instant dosa mix
- heat a pan on a low to medium flame. then lower the flame, add the urad dal. i have used organic unpolished urad dal. if using regular urad dal from the market, then rinse it a couple of times. then spread the lentils on a plate or tray and let them dry naturally or in the sun. if keeping in the sun for a few hours, then you don't need to roast urad dal.
- roast urad dal on a low flame for about 2 minutes, stirring often. urad dal is roasted just to get rid of some moisture from them.
- switch off the flame and then add ¼ teaspoon methi seeds. mix well.
- keep the pan down. also let this mixture cool completely. you can also cool this mixture on a separate plate.
- in a mixing bowl take 3 cups idli rava. keep aside.
- in a grinder jar add the urad dal and methi seeds.
- grind to a fine flour.
- using a sieve, sift the flour directly in the rice rava bowl. some urad dal grits will be there on the sieve. you can add them to your dals or discard.
- add ¼ cup besan.
- next add 1 teaspoon salt. you can add more salt if required. i have added less salt.
- mix very well with a spoon or a wired whisk.
- then spoon the dosa mix in a jar. seal tightly with its lid. keep in a dry and cool place.
- use the dosa mix to make crisp dosas when required.
to make instant dosa from 1 cup of dosa mix
- take 1 cup of dosa mix in a mixing bowl.
- add 1 tablespoon lemon juice or ¼ cup sour curd. then add 1.25 to 1.3 cups water or add as required. mix very well.
- then add ½ teaspoon fruit salt or eno evenly all over the batter. again mix very well.
- then make dosas on a tawa. keep the flame to a low, so that you can easily spread the dosa batter. on a medium to high flame, it become difficult to spread the dosa batter. batter consistency is medium thick and flowing like dosa batter consistency.
- cover with a lid and let the dosa cook.
- spread some oil or ghee or butter as required while cooking dosas. when the base becomes golden and crisp, remove and serve the dosa.
how to make instant dosa mix
1. heat a pan on a low to medium flame. then lower the flame, add the urad dal. i have used organic unpolished urad dal. if using regular urad dal from the market, then rinse it a couple of times. then spread the lentils on a plate or tray and let them dry naturally or in the sun. if keeping in the sun for a few hours, then you don’t need to roast urad dal.
2. roast urad dal on a low flame for about 2 minutes, stirring often. urad dal is roasted just to get rid of some moisture from them.
3. switch off the flame and then add ¼ teaspoon methi seeds. keep the pan down. also let this mixture cool completely. you can also cool this mixture on a separate plate.
4. in a mixing bowl, take 3 cups idli rava. keep aside.
5. in a grinder jar add the urad dal and methi seeds.
6. grind to a fine flour.
7. using a sieve, sift the flour directly in the rice rava bowl. some urad dal grits will be there on the sieve. you can add them to your dals or discard.
8. the below picture is of the sifted urad dal flour.
9. add ¼ cup besan.
10. next add 1 teaspoon salt. you can add more salt if required. i have added less salt.
11. mix very well with a spoon or a wired whisk.
12. then spoon the dosa mix in a jar. seal tightly with its lid. keep in a dry and cool place.
use the instant dosa mix to make crisp dosa when required.
to prepare instant dosa from 1 cup of dosa mix
use the following proportions:
- 1 cup of dosa mix
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice or ¼ cup sour curd
- 1.25 to 1.3 cups water or add as required
- ½ teaspoon fruit salt or eno
7. when the base becomes golden and crisp, remove and serve the instant dosa. do serve this instant dosa when they are hot as on cooling the crispness goes away.
Hi Dassana,
What’s the shelf life of instant idli/dosa mix
Thanks
hi preethi, this instant dosa mix stays good for about 3 to 4 months at room temperature. to keep for 6 months or more, you can keep in the fridge.
Hi. Amit
I am running my small biz of Batter. I like to hv a small practicle workshop training for it. Will u pls guide.
Nilesh, May I know what you want to know. I will try to answer your query.
Hi Dassana, just curious can I use buttermilk to make the batter? Now, by buttermilk I mean milk + vinegar solution. It happens sometime that I run out of curd/lemon but milk is always available. Any thoughts on this? Thanks 🙂
you can use this method in baking recipes. in an instant dosa recipe or idli recipe, i am not sure how the taste will be as vinegar can have a really strong after taste.
Hi dassana
Can we use baking soda instead of eno fruit salt…
How can we use instant mix using the rice
Thanks
Amritha
you can use baking soda. but for 1 cup of dosa mix 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda will be too much. it will give a strong aroma in the dosa. so you can add 1/4th to 1/3rd teaspoon of baking soda. if using rice, then add 2.75 cups rice. rinse rice a couple of times. then spread it on a large plate or tray or a kitchen napkin and let the rice grains dry. there should be no moisture in them. once dried then grind in a mixer-grinder till you get fine rava like grains in the rice. you can use both idli rice or regular rice or half-half of both.
Is it compulsory to put methi seeds?
Hamida, not compulsory. but it gives a good taste.
Hi dassana,
Which salt do you generally use? In this recipe as well as many of your other recipe pics the salt doesn’t look like the usual free-flow grainy table salt..
ruchi, i use rock salt or sendha namak.