Ragi Masala Dosa

This is another diabetic friendly dosa recipe using (ragi) finger millets. It is vegan, gluten free and nut free. I have not added rice to this recipe.

South Indian cuisine is most favourite of my husband and me. So what a better way to make it healthier than using millets.

I started adding different types of millet in my daily diet. Did you see soft ragi idli. crispy jowar dosa and bajri oats dosa recipe I posted few weeks back? I have seen people making instant millet dosa but I personally prefer fermenting the batter. Fermentation improves the digestibility and increases the nutritional value of the millet. It also acts as a natural probiotic by providing live microorganisms that benefit your health.

The health benefits of millet include its ability to protect the heart, improve the digestive system, can detoxify the body, improve respiratory health, boost the immune system, increase energy levels, and improve the muscle and nerve health. I have used ragi (finger millet) flour in this recipe but if you have whole ragi then soak it with urad dal and grind together. While making ragi idli using whole ragi, I noticed that ragi don’t grind smooth even after soaking so you will get slight crunch while eating dosa.

This recipe serves around 3 people.

Start the preparation at least 24 hours in advance. Soak urad dal, chana dal, methi and ragi (if using whole millet) at least 8 hours and then grind and ferment the dosa batter for 12-15 hours.

Recommended Product:
Cast iron dosa tawa (pan)

Preparation time: 30 minutes

Cooking Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

Dosa Batter
1/3 cup gota urad (whole skinned urad) or urad dal
1 tbsp chana dal
1 tbsp methi (fenugreek seeds)
2 cup ragi (finger millet) flour
Salt to taste

Masala (Stuffing)
2 potato boiled, skinned and mashed
2-3 onion sliced thinly
1 tsp each urad dal, cumin seeds and mustard seeds
7-8 curry leaves
Small pinch of asafoetida
1/2 tsp red chili powder
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1/2 tsp coriander powder
1 tbsp butter
Salt to taste
Oil for cooking

Procedure

1. Wash and soak gota urad, chana dal and methi for 8 hours. Also soak ragi, if you are using whole ragi. It will double in size.

2. In mixer jar, add soaked dal, methi ( and ragi) and some water. Grind to smooth paste. Then add ragi flour to the batter and some water if it’s too dry. Grind little more so everything blends properly and batter is still slightly thick. You don’t want runny batter or it will not ferment properly. Remove the batter in a big container, cover the lid. Keep this in a warm place for 12-15 hours or more in winter until batter almost doubled in size.

3. Before you start preparing dosa, prepare stuffing. Boil 2 potato. Once cooked remove skin and slightly mash. Slice 2-3 onion.

4. Heat a pan, add 1-2 tbsp of oil. Add 1 tsp of each urad dal, cumin seeds and mustard seeds. When mustard seeds starts to pop, add curry leaves and small pinch of asafoetida. Sauté for few seconds and add chopped onion. Sauté on low to medium for 3-4 minutes. When onion are translucent and slightly soft, add mashed potato, chili powder, turmeric powder, coriander powder and salt. Mix well and cook for another 2-3 minutes until everything blends together. You can also add tomato in this stuffing while onion are cooking. Remove from the heat.

5. Once the batter is fermented, add salt to taste and mix well.

6. Heat nonstick or cast iron flat pan. Grease the pan with oil and heat on high until you see the smoke. Turn the heat to medium and spread dosa batter to make very small thick dosa.
Tip: Always make first dosa small and thick , cook on one side, flip and cook on another side. When ready rub mini dosa on the pan, it will make pan non stick. Now pan is ready to make dosa.

7. Keep the heat low to medium, Wipe the pan with wet paper towel or cloth. Now spread batter like thin crepes using ladle, spread some oil. When it start to change colour, you can add little butter which will enhance the flavour and make it crispier. Remove side using flat laddle. You can either serve plain dosa or with masala. Spread some masala on top and fold the dosa before serving. You can also spread red chutney to add extra flavour and spice.

** See below video on how to spread dosa, shot during making of bajri oats dosa. .

8. Serve finger millet (ragi) dosa with chana-urad dal chutney. You can also serve tomato chutney and coconut chutney. I also served dal rasam with it. It taste best when it is served straight from pan to plate. Dosa turned out crispy and super delicious.