Ragi idli is healthy and nutritious finger millet idli is made with fermented batter. The batter is made without rice. Idli is soft and pillowy steamed savoury cakes made with fermented rice and black gram (urad dal) batter. This healthy dish is a breakfast staple in south India and is widely popular not just all over India, but also outside India. The rice used to make idli is called idli rava. It is coarsely ground rice that has a texture similar to rava (suji/semolina).
Ingredients
1½ cups ragi (finger millet)
½ cup urad dal (skinned black gram)
1 teaspoon methi (fenugreek seeds)
¼ cup thick poha (flattened rice)
Method
Soaking
- Take ragi in a bowl and rinse it well (2-3 times). Add fresh water and let it soak for 4-5 hours
- In another bowl, take urad dal and methi, and rinse it well (2-3 times). Add fresh water and let it soak for 4-5 hours
- One hour before grinding, take poha in a bowl and rinse it well. Soak for one hour
Grinding
- Once everything is soaked, we can begin the grinding process
- Drain all the water from dal, ragi, and poha
- Start with grinding the urad dal first. Add it to a mixie jar and add very little water. Grind into a very smooth batter
- The urad dal should be thick and frothy (see step by step pictures above)
- To this add poha and ragi. Grind into a slightly coarse batter with little water
- Take a small portion between your thumb and finger, and rub it. You should be able to feel slight coarseness - like idli rava (see tips above)
Fermentation- Pour the batter in a thick-bottom vessel making sure there is enough room for it to rise. Let it ferment 8-10 hours (Read more on fermenting the batter in tips section above)
Making Ragi Idli- Pour water in idli steamer and bring to boil
- Lightly grease the idli plates with some oil
- Spoon in the batter about ¾ of the mould
- Place in the steamer and steam for 15 minutes on low heat (see tips above)
- Turn off the heat and let it stand for one minute
- Use a spoon to demould the idlis
- Serve hot with chutney of your choice