Idli podi is dry spice powder that can be served as a side dish for idli, dosa or upma. It is blend of 3 different dried legumes, dry red chilli, asafoetida and curry leaves. It is easy to make and can be stored for a couple of months (if stored in an airtight container). It’s always good to have idli podi at home as it comes in handy when you are in a hurry and there is no time to prepare any side dish for idli, dosa or upma.

PREP TIME: 2 Mins

COOKING TIME: 10 Mins

Ingredients

Toor Dal – ½ cup

Urad Dal – ½ cup

Channa Dal – ½ cup

Dry red chilli – 25

Asafoetida – ½ teaspoon

Curry Leaves – ½ cup

Oil – ¼ teaspoon

Salt – to taste

Procedure

STEP 1: Measure the toor dal, urad dal and channa dal. Dry roast all the 3 dals until golden brown.

STEP 2: Heat oil in a pan, add asafoetida and the dry red chillies and cook for 2 minutes on low heat. Transfer the contents to a bowl when the color of the chilli is still red.

STEP 3: In the same pan, add the washed curry leaves and roast till the leaves turn brittle

STEP 4: Add the roasted dal, red chilli, asafoetida, roasted curry leaves and the required salt to a blender jar and make a coarse powder. (You can also make a fine powder if you wish)

STEP 5: Store the idli podi in a dry, air tight container to retain the freshness and aroma.

TIP: Idli podi mixed with sesame oil tastes delicious. Idli podi mixed with sesame oil or olive oil can be served as a side dish for idli and dosa. It can be served as a dry podi (without oil) for upma, wheat dosa and adai.