Mysore Masala Dosa

Does dosa really need any introduction?? In the earlier days , dosas were an important part of breakfast menu in Southern India but slowly and steadily this delicious recipe found a place on the Global menu map and there will be hardly anyone who would hate dosas . 

The thin crunchy crepes drizzled with right amount of oil and cooked to a perfect golden brown color is a heavenly treat to our taste buds and is  generally  served with variety of chutney , sambar and Molagapudi (gun powder) mixed in gingelly oil .

We are more of dosa loving family than idlis .Though I grind batter for idli , I end up making dosas most of the time.  We love it with mildly spiced  Coconut Chutney  and spicy tomato Chutney more than sambar . Molgapudi of course always has a special place without a mention.

This week's Foodie Monday Bloghop theme was a choice between dosa varieties and fusion cooking.  Needless to say Dosa emerged victorious and here we are enjoying week #257 DosaDen as suggested by Priya Iyer . Priya has yummy recipes on her blog "the world through my eyes" and her latest recipe is my favorite  melt in mouth home made Chocolate Truffles

When it comes to making dosas , main thing that is required is the perfect Dosa batter , which is the key ingredient .  One  can either use dosa batter made at home or the store bought ones that are readily available these days . Ensure that the batter is not sour . Do check the FAQs regarding the batter and grinding techniques at the end of this post.

Coming to today's recipe, as the name suggests mysore masala dosa has it roots in the city of Mysore . What makes it different from the regular masala dosa is a spicy red chutney that is smeared on the dosa before placing the aloo masala inside the dosa .

Mysore masala dosa involves 3 components.

• The dosa 
• Aloo masala 
• Fiery red chutney

Please excuse  me for the not very great presentation as we all like to eat our dosas piping hot and continuing a prolonged photosoot would make the dosa soggy and lose the crunch :-( 

You can serve this with sambar and chutney but I like mine with molgapudi and coconut chutney , so that is what you are seeing in the picture. 

Preparation time - 45mins 

**considering dosa batter is ready on hand

Cooking Time - 30 mins

**inclusive of preparing the aloo masala 

Complexity - medium 

Serves - 3 to 4 

Ingredients

Aloo Masala 

4 to 5 medium sized potatoes

1 medium onion chopped 

1 tsp finely chopped ginger 

2 green chillies finely chopped 

1 tsp mustard seeds 

1 tsp channa dal

1 tsp udad dhall

1/2 tsp turmeric 

Asafoetida as needed

Salt as needed 

Freshly chopped corriander 

Red chutney

8 to 10 byadgi chillies 

Small piece of tamarind 

2 tsp chutney dhall 

Salt as needed

1 tsp jaggery 

Dosa 

Dosa batter as needed 

Oil to make dosas 

Method 

Red chutney

• Soak the red chillies and tamarind in warm water for about 20 mins.
• Slightly squeeze out the water and blend the chillies , tamarind, chutney dal(fried gram) , salt and jaggery to a fine paste .
• Donot add too much water while grinding as the chutney  has to be of flowing consistency so as to spread easily on the dosa .
• Those who like garlic can add one or two cloves of garlic while grinding. 
• Keep this chutney aside or refrigerate it incase you are going to prepare the dosas later during the day.

Aloo Masala / Aloo gadde palya

• Wash the potatoes nicely, cut them into half and pressure cook with enough water .
• Cool the potatoes ,peel and crumble it roughly.
• In a pan , heat some oil and crackle mustard seeds followed by channa dhall and udad dhall until they turn golden brown. 
• Fry the green chillies and ginger with asafoetida .
• If using onions, saute them until they turn pink else skip this step. 
• Add turmeric, salt and the crumbled potatoes and mix it well .
• Add about 2 tbsp of water , pinch of sugar and cook for another 3 to 4 mins . 
• Garnish with coriander leaves and keep it ready .

Preparation of Mysore Masala dosa

Heat a tawa and spread the dosa batter on it such a way that the center is slightly thick .

Drizzle some oil around the dosa and let it cook for a minute. 

Now smear the chutney over the dosa as much as you like.

Place some aloo masala in the center and spread it slightly. By now, the dosa would have cooked nice and crisp from the underside . It is now time to roll the dosa and serve hot .

Using a spatula , run it around the edges of the dosa and lightly lift it. 

With the help of your hands and spatula for support,start rolling the dosa from one end and proceed till the end .

Serve it hot with chutney, sambar , molagapudi and a dollop of butter if you want to have butter mysore masala dosa. 

FAQs on Dosa batter 

Can we use idli batter to make dosa?

Yes ..no problem . I generally grind a common batter and use it for both idli and dosa .

Can dosa be made from freshly ground batter ?

You can prepare, but the taste will  differ when the batter is fermented well . The mild sourness after fermentation will make the dosa taste yummy and also come out crunchy and crisp. 

How to prepare Dosa Batter at home ?

You can grind the batter either in the Mixer/Mixi/blender or using the wet grinder. There is a mild difference in the proportion of ingredients used when you are using the mixie to grind the batter as against the wet grinder.  When the batter is ground in a wet grinder, the udad dhall gets ground very well to a bouncy texture and yields a good amount where as when we grind it in a mixie the udad dhall tends to yield a lesser quantity as the mixie tends to get heated up due to heat.

How to grind batter in mixie ?

You can refer to this recipe of mine which is a tried and tested recipe and gives soft idlis, crispy dosas and fluffy paniyarams.

 Recipe here

How to grind batter in a wet grinder ?

Different tried and tested proportions for getting a perfect idli/dosa batter

Proportion 1 

2.5 cups idli rice

1.5 cups regular rice (except  basmati)

1 cup whole udad dhall (udad dhall gota)

1 tsp methi seeds 

 

Proportion 2 

3 cups idli rice

1 cup regular rice (except basmati)

1 cup whole udad dhall (udad dhall gota)

1 tsp methi seeds 

Proportion 3 

3 cups idli rice 

1 cup udad dhall (udad dhall gota)

1 tsp methi seeds .

Video recipe to grind in a wet grinder.

** If you don't find full udad dhall , you can use split udad dhall . 

** Proportion to use 1 cup and  a handful of split udad dhall.

** if idli rice is not available you can use idli rava in the same Proportion. 

**never use basmati rixe or any rice that has a natural fragrance as it will spoil the taste of the dosa or idli 

Accompaniments for the dosa. 

Coconut chutney    

Tomato Chutney  

Idli Molagapudi