Idly – The Old Fashioned Way!!!
- 05
- January
- 2010
A Primitive Idly
Xuanzang(Popularly known as Hsüan-tsang, 602 – 664 CE) was a famous Chinese traveler, said in one of his book ‘si-yu-ki’ that Indians never owned a steaming vessel! Just for an argument sake…Well, in a primitive society, especially during famine and poverty…commoners might have not owned an exclusive steaming vessel, but that doesn’t mean ‘cooking was/is absolutely impossible’!!! In the olden days, they would have simply loaded their stuff/batter that needs to be steamed in a plantain leaf or clean cloth and mounted it over a wide vessel, which would have been ‘half the way filled with water, to produce steam!
In Anthropology, this is the first lesson, while tracing the history of a primitive culture ‘remember one thing in mind’…tools that are very important like needles and harpoons are found stored with due respect…but tools that are used for regular hammering, grinding, hunting stone implements would have been created on the spot, used and disposed.
Some of the greatest pleasure of food’ doesn’t come from opening the fridge and popping it in the microwave (to me).I believe, the hardship of foraging and hunting is a complete meal! Clearly, it is not possible as a civilized person today:( Hmmm, I tend to complicate things around me…just make my meal the hard way. Yep, weird…but very fulfilling:) I remember my father talking about his childhood…where he ate giant sized idlies, (In those days, clay vessels were used for steaming and banana leaves or jack fruit leaves were used for loading the batter). Just mimicked the methodology to re-create a primitive idly!!!
Ingredients:
Parboiled rice 1/2 cup
Raw rice 1/2 cup
Urad dal 1/2 cup
Fenugreek seeds 1 spoon.
Salt
Soda
Sesame oil
Method:
Both the should be soaked together in water for at least 5 hours.
Urad dal and fenugreek should be soaked separately for half an hour.
Wet grind them separately. Use less water, while grinding.
Later mix them well.
Add salt and soda plus sesame oil.
Allow this to ferment. Roughly overnight.
Once the fermentation part is over, the Idly batter is ready.
Pour them in a Idly laddle/muffin tray/clean cloth/banana leaf.
Steam cook for about 10 mins.
Serve hot with chutney, sambar or korma.
Wow interesting and tempting idli…
great info Malar..and yes the idli is giantess..:P..
i never tried making idli way,looks interesting and looks really soft too
wonderful post and nice pictures..i have seen the traditional idli vesel at my native place..they were used during special occasions like that of weddings..
ooooooooh yumm I love idli but prefer to make the ready made packets from the market.
wow!!wonderful..quite interesting dear!
wow..i didnt know this way…looks so soft and yummy!
Primitive indeed….. looks ovally good….. & tempting too….
Ash…
(http://asha-oceanichope.blogspot.com/)
Never tried adding soda in idli batter, sounds interesting..
Malar…In hotels they do the same way in order to save time & energy for washing vessels….Mind me it tastes yum… U brought the memories bac
hey this is so cool,that too the first picture is a killer!
Oh Yummy ! just yesterday I was telling my mom on the phone That I am missing the yummy idli’s i used to eat back home
You have tempted me more dear, with your lovely looking idli 
Aaaaahhhhh! :O What huge and giant idlis! It’s a volcano about to erupt in the first photo! LOL! Love the egg curry senaking in! Both are fantastic!
Awesome post! I thoroughly enjoyed reading this!
A new way of making iddlies Malar..i never know tis b4..thanks for sharing:)
Dear Malar
Can you believe I still make some Pitha ( rice paste, round ball, stuffed with coconut jagerry) with a cloth mounted on the vessel and steamed, or the pitha encased in banana leave or turmeric leave then steamed.
For a long time we have been planning to buy a steamer..but we dont have much use.
I think time to buy at least an Idly maker, sick of buying Idly and eating
Have a nice day
Thats a lot of new infromation for me …thanks for sharing.Idlys look so spongy…Hats off to u for the effort you took in making this in oldfashioned way. keep rocking!!
My grandmom used to make such idlis, using cloth…they taste really too good and better than the usual ones.
have heard of this…my hubby’s aunt in village will do idiyappam in the same way…..nice post
this looks wonderful…nice explanation..may be now i know why they remove idlis in a white cotton cloth..!
OMG never tried this way,old or modern,idlies r always my fav,Thanx for sharing Malar..
oh dear………..this reminds me my grandmother……….thanks for sharing this.
I love idly, thought I’ve never tried making them. it’s my all time favourite. thanks for sharing!
Primitive idly and the story behind are fantastic dear. Good that we are not in stone age, we can’t do physical work like them:) Egg curry combo makes me drool.
so soft and fluffy! yummm!
Wow this is so different and looks so yummy. Love the way u made. looks interesing.. first picture super.
You have made making idly so simple I am sure we can all make perfect idlis now just like yours.Thanks
wow! awesome ..very new to me ..Thanks for sharing!
Dear malar, Don’t they say OLd is gold..you have just proven that with ur Post on old fashioned idlis. Hats off to you for attempting this and taking us on a culinary adventure and loved ur beautiful write-up as well. Always learn a thing or 2 when I visit you.Awesome and delightful spongy idlis with hot pungent sambhar… What more can one ask for..
Looks fantastic…and some nice information about the primitive way of things.
hey malar this idlis seem very soft n spongy…nice way of prep them…dint knw this traditional way b4
This idili looks wonderful so soft and fluffy!Very interesting malar..Thanks for sharing!
Grrrrr, I wish I had a grinder… Looks sooo tasty!
Oh I’m not sure I’ve ever had this but it sounds great!
You made me nostalgic.. My granny still makes many sweet dishes steaming them your way presented here…The idli has come out really well..also the egg curry lying near by looks scrumptous
Never knew they made idli like this.
Wonder how many times they would have to steam to make these gaint size idlis???
I make idlis with the cloth on the plate and never use oil over the plate, maybe I am old fashioned but idlis turn out very soft and fluffy this way….good food does not come easy.
omg, you have an effect of making me crave whatever you photos of! Now I crave idli
Looks delicious and a great informative post.
Nostalgic….as a kid, hv seen ppl making such idlis in small eateries across Mangalore. It also reminds me of my amma (my grandma) who used to painstakingly make cups out of jackfruit leaves to steam idlis…simply loved em.
Cheers.
I clearly remember granny making these and we used to have them with yummy gravies or chutneys…or when we were really kids just with sugar too..Thanks for rekindling memories…
Thank you girls:)
Idlis are welcome any day ..remember the times how people used to make idlis for weddings..in big andas and adukkus.
whoa girl! i’d love a couple of those giant sized idlis! something wrong with my blogger, it did not show up so many updates including yours and i kinda almost missed this idli if it hadn’t been that i scrolled down from the haleem!
hehehe, Malar, the giant old fashioned idli with that delicious combination of mutta kozhambu (i think)and all, look perefect and delicious !!!!!
small idlis pathalannu, nalla big size-aaa pottu veluthu kattrayaa, nalla idea , hihihihi!!!
hard works theva padudhaa??? heihihih, nalla ponnu nee!!!
seriously, nice lesson of prehistoric methods of cooking !!!! have a nice week end malar!!!
WoW!….I really like that big size idli…..I remember when I first started to make idlis…lllooonnnngggg time back my maid use to tell me to steam it in white cloth……
hey, dear me again….U put soda before fermentation, right & how much…???