Main courses

Idli and sambar – steamed rice cakes with lentil soup

Name: Idli and sambar – steamed rice cakes with lentil soup
Total time: 840 min
Yield: 4
Ingredients: 250 g idli rice or porridge rice; 100 g urad dal lentils peeled and split; 1 tsp salt; 200 g red lentils; 1 piece carrot diced; 1 piece tomato diced; 1 piece onion cut into wedges; 1 tbsp tamarind paste; 1 tbsp of the sambar spice mix; 1 tsp mustard seeds; 10 g fresh curry leaves optional; 2 tbsp oil; 5 dl water to add with the vegetables; water as needed for rinsing, soaking and grinding; the amount depends on the rice and grinder; also for cooking the red lentils, in addition to the 5 dl water for the vegetables

The South Indian classic serves fermented, steamed rice cakes with a tangy lentil vegetable soup.

Jump to recipe

840 minDifficulty: medium

Soft idli rice cakes with sambar lentil soup and coconut chutney

Servings in this printout: 4

Ingredients

Servings4

250 g idli rice or porridge rice
100 g urad dal lentilspeeled and split
1 tsp salt
200 g red lentils
1 piece carrotdiced
1 piece tomatodiced
1 piece onioncut into wedges
1 tbsp tamarind paste
1 tbsp of the sambar spice mix
1 tsp mustard seeds
10 g fresh curry leavesoptional
2 tbsp oil
5 dl water to add with the vegetables
wateras needed for rinsing, soaking and grinding; the amount depends on the rice and grinder; also for cooking the red lentils, in addition to the 5 dl water for the vegetables

Method

Rinse the rice and urad dal separately. Soak in plenty of water for 4 hours, then drain. The red lentils are used for the sambar in step 3.
Grind the urad dal until smooth and fluffy and the rice until finely grainy, adding water a little at a time, just enough for grinding. Combine into a thick, spoonable but pourable batter; it must not be watery. Cover and ferment in a warm place for 8–12 hours. Add the salt.
Rinse the red lentils and cover with water in a saucepan. Cook until soft, about 20 minutes, adding water as needed to keep the lentils covered. Add the carrot, tomato, onion and the 5 dl water listed in the ingredients.
Mix the tamarind and sambar spices into the soup. Simmer until the vegetables are soft.
Heat the oil in a small pan. Add mustard seeds and curry leaves. Pour the spice oil into the sambar soup.
Spoon the idli batter into greased idli moulds or silicone muffin moulds. Steam for 10–12 minutes; a skewer inserted into a cooked idli should come out without raw batter.
Let the idlis rest for a while, remove from the pan and serve with warm sambar soup.

Nutrition per serving

Nutrition values have not been calculated for this recipe.

A reliable glycemic load estimate is not available.

Some ingredient data or calculation inputs could not be verified, so there is no reliable estimate for the whole serving.

Why is the estimate missing?

urad dal lentils · Suitable nutrition data was unavailable for this ingredient or product.
tamarind paste · A suitable GI value was unavailable for this ingredient.
of the sambar spice mix · Suitable nutrition data was unavailable for this ingredient or product.
mustard seeds · Suitable nutrition data was unavailable for this ingredient or product.
fresh curry leaves · Suitable nutrition data was unavailable for this ingredient or product.
water · Suitable nutrition data was unavailable for this ingredient or product.

Notes

Fermentation requires a warm place and can last longer in a cool place.