Dosa recipe, learn how to make dosa batter at home easily. Step by step photos and video to show how to spread dosai over tawa.
I am getting loads of requests to post dosa batter recipe. Though I never grind batter separately, I had a recipe that is written in my handwritten cook book and I have tried it successfully before marriage when I was zero in cooking. So I am sure its a keeper recipe even beginners can try.
I usually use my idli batter itself and just dilute it to make dosai. I have used it in all my dosai recipes like masala dosai recipe, cauliflower masala dosai, vegetable masala dosa and paneer dosai. Also I use same batter for making utappam. Its all in all multipurpose batter.
But I wanted to post this to help bachelors or beginners who want to just make it simple, quick and only dosai batter using mixie. I hope this will be useful to many 🙂 And the texture of this dosai is dense than the one I make with idli dosai batter. So perfect for masala dosas.
*You can use 1/2 tsp methi seeds to get softer results.
Dosa recipe
Ingredients
- Raw rice - 1 cup
- Idli rice -
1 cup - Urad dal -
1/2 cup - Toor dal - 2 tsp
- Chana dal - 2 tsp
- Poha/ aval/ flattened rice - 1/4 cup
- Salt - as needed
Instructions
- Soak everything except salt in the ingredients together for 3 hours atleast after washing it 3 times.Grind it with little water in mixie. Need not be too smooth. Add water very carefully. You can grind in two batches and add salt in one batch and mix it lastly together.
- Keep overnight for fermentation (12 hours). It will ferment well. Morning stir well and make dosas. Adjust consistency if its too thick by adding very little water.
- Heat tawa, pour 2 ladles full of batter and spread evenly. Then drizzle enough oil over it and cook until its golden in medium flame. No need to flip.
Video
Notes
- Right consistency and fermentation is key for even browning.
- You can brush with butter to make it more tastier.
- Add methi seeds, if you want the dosa on softer side. (1/2 tsp)
- In case it gets little more watery, add a fist full of rawa /sooji/ semolina.
- Refer this page for more tips.
How to make dosa batter
- Soak everything except salt in the ingredients together for 3 hours at least after washing it 3 times.Grind it with little water in mixie. Need not be too smooth. Add water very carefully. You can grind in two batches and add salt in one batch and mix it lastly together.
- Keep overnight for fermentation (12 hours). It will ferment well. Morning stir well and make dosas. Adjust consistency if its too thick by adding very little water.
- Heat tawa, pour 2 ladles full of batter and spread evenly. Then drizzle enough oil over it and cook until its golden in medium flame. No need to flip.
Notes
- Right consistency and fermentation is key for even browning.
- You can brush with butter to make it more tastier.
- You can add methi seeds, if you want the dosa on softer side. (1/2 tsp)
- In case it gets little more watery, add a fist full of rawa /sooji/ semolina.
- Refer this page for more tips.
Serve hot hot with sambar, chutney or any of your favorite side dish! My kid’s most favorite breakfast in this whole world! Stay tuned for another dosa version. 
I hv tried adding thoor dhal this one is slightly diff with chana dhal also.. Dosa no can get ever bored with it.. nice clicks
lovely clicks! The colour of the dosa tempts me a lot. Didn't know there is a separate recipe for dosa batter. Waiting eagerly for the another version!
so dark.. the ingredients u used is mainly used for preparing masala dosai in karnataka side 😀 loved the texture
amazing clicks and a terrific recipe, actually this is what I follow for the Mysore Masala dosa…works well , great colour…well done
Dosa is an all time favorite for us…
Dosai will be more specific Raks. Very nice one and i love your creativity.
what is idli rice?
Terrific color and recipe, Raks! Thanks for sharing. A couple of questions: What is raw rice? Do you use the thick or think variety of poha?
Perfect dosa..looks really inviting!
Idli rice is parboiled rice, specifically used for making idli dosa batter. Its stout, little on dull side.
Raw rice is everyday eating rice. I used sona masoori rice here. I used thick, but thin also should work.
Can you tell me how much to water di you end up using?
Can you tell how me how much water did you ending up using?
Very nice post…Should try grinding batter this way..the dosa looks so tempting
lOVELY POST, SUPER TEMPTING DOSA
tempting dosa and very very nice clicks
Delicious dosa dear!!! Is it a must to add toor and channa dal.. Hearing it for the first time …
thanks!!!!!!
can i add 2 cups of raw rice instead of 1 cup idli rice and 1 cup raw rice(i don't have idli rice)?can't wait to try this dosa.Mouth watering.I love ur recipes tried many of them and everything came out well.
Thank you so much for ur recipes
Thanks for the recipe. ….The dosa was realy tasty and crispy.
hi raks,love the dosa and chutney combo,very restaurant style!wht abt methi seeds/uluva,no need in this recipe?
Awesome recipe. Thanks for sharing. I tried it out and it came out very well. The dosa texture was very good.
Can I use the same recipe in wet grinder instead of mixie ?
I thought that raw rice means pacharisi and parboiled rice means pulungalarisi… am i wrong???
Sure, it will come out more nice 🙂
Thank you for your prompt reply …..vil try it over this weekend
Hi,
waiting for ur reply
Yes raw rice means pacharisi in tamil(sona masoori is a raw rice). Parboiled rice is pulungarisi in tamil. All parboiled rice are not idli rice.
Sorry, missed it. Idli rice is must as its important for the texture.
No need, if you want you can add, but make sure grind smoothly.
This was an awesome recipe, the dosas came out very tasty and crispy. Thanks!
i'm using rajabogham is this pacharisi variety mam?? in india pacharisi not used for everyday eating na??? u hv mentioned raw rice means every day eating rice …
i tried making the batter as per ur suggestions, it came out really good , so crispy and yummy , thank u 🙂
Dosa was crispy came out very well thank u raks
Please tell how to heat pan before and while making cosa that is on high medium or low heat
Thanks in advance
Madhu
Can I use 2 cups basmathi rice as sona masuri and idli rice is hard to find in singapore
Idli rice can be bought in Mustafa though out the year! Or even in murugan stores or laavan near saravana bhavan. Sona masuri also is found in laavan and murugan. So you can find it
Dear Haseena,
Pacharisi, rajabogham are really expensive basmati types. So keep them for festive occasions please! Raw rice- go to an Indian shop and say I want chawal for boiling. You'll get short grained rice. Enjoy!
Dear Raks,
Trying to get idli Rice in Punjab is a headache! Tried telling them I wanted Ukda rice and got a look of Duh? And then the reaction- Hey maddam, seems like you are from Outside.(!) Yep say I, supposed Punjabi who lived all her life in South of India and other parts of the compass and now can't get her favorite Dosa ingredients, let alone kari patta, or sona masuri rice!
So for all ye Poonjabis sprinkled all over the compass , try 2 cups basmati, 1/2 cup urad dal, 1/4 cup poha 1tbs chana dal. Wadhia!
Dear Farin,
Channa Dal is the dal from which you get Besan. If you can't find it, use 1 TBS besan instead. Besan is just refined channa dal atta. This is what is normally used by beauticians in beauty ubtans or to make pakoras.
Toor dal is also called Too-war or yellow arhar dal. You can get it at any Indian store.
Hope this helps.
Dear Madhu,
If you are using an ordinary tava, it should be hot hot hot. Put a little water on it to cool the temp. No oil. Non stick, don't cool with water.Put tava on to heat while making batter and by the time everything's ready, your tava will be ready.
Enjoy!
hi Raks,
can i use cooked rice instead of poha?
if yes, what is the measurement?
plz reply 🙂
Same measure 🙂
Dear Raks
Can I use masoor dal instead of toor dal.? Kindly suggest
Yes try and see.
thanku 🙂
When I tried to cook the dosa it got stuck to the tawa. How can I avoid this?
Do you use non stick pan or anything else ?
dear raks,
dossa batter ko thandi jaga par rakhna chaiay aour garm jagay par?
Until it ferments well, keep in preferably a warm place.
all your recipes are great….easy to understand for beginners like me…..one small doubt….can i use idli rava instead of idli rice…whats the difference between the two
Haven't tried personally so have no idea. Sorry
Thank u for ur excellent recipe
which part of Singapore you are from. Still you find difficult idli rice and if you get what is the cost. Are they selling dosa battar ready made in the shops if at all yes what is the cost.
apne gas stove ke paas, ek kone main:-)In South India. It is left over night in a warm place, So that it can ferment at its own speed and time.
Hi , can i use this batter to make idlis as well ??
No I have another idli dosa batter recipe please refer that. Find it in recipe index as Idli
Can I use basmati rice instead of raw rice?
Yes, slightly flavor will be different.
Is poha same as oats? Where would i buy it?
Poha is beaten rice / Flattened rice. You can get in Indian grocery stores.
Hi rags….I stay in London…I have tried just the way you mentioned of soaking n grinding…can you plz tell me should I need to add anything for batter to ferment. bz I saw batter dint ferment. Thank You
You can keep inside a oven, with oven light on. Or keep it beside fridge or something which emits heat to the surroundings
Sindhu, I don't know whether this message will be posted as a reply to your query but here goes- London in the winter… Cold cold. Fermentation nil so possibly the fermenting of this overnight will take a while. If your kitchen is warm place this near your stove. or just heat your oven mark 7 for 20 minutes, switch it off and place it inside the shut oven throughout the night. A bit of salt and some fenugreek seeds will also help.
Hope you find this tip here.
Hi,
Is basmati rice considered raw rice?
My packaging says idili/raw rice.
Do I need to add extra raw rice?
Thanks.
Yes you can use basmati, but it has slightly different flavour (Very mild though). Usually idli rice looks stout and slightly dull, opaque. And it comes as parboiled rice. If its white and tiny, then it is raw rice, no need to add extra raw rice.
Hi..
Lovely recipe Did you get the batter recipe from a chef? The dosa color is like hotel type.
For how many days can we store and use this batter??
3 – 4 days in fridge
What type of dosa tawa are you using in this video and where did you get that from? Thanks
Rajeswari, made this today exactly as you have described. The climate is cold-ish. So while the batter rose, it was not khatta, sour. The dosas looked good, rolled out well, and all that, but the taste was lacking something.
a. What do you think is missing?
b. How is this batter different from the regular dosa batter?
Kindly explain.
meera
May be it did not fermented well, otherwise, I use idli rice, urad dal and methi for regular idli dosa batter. For this, I use raw rice and idli rice combo, plus toor dal and chana dal for flavour. It turns out crisp and dense than the regular idli dosa batter dosa.
When the weather is cold, make sure that the batter is placed in a
really warm place, so that it can ferment properly. I normally place
it in the sun, especially in the winter weather, when the sun is mild
and warm. And it ferments beautifully. To make it really sour and to
help it ferment, I just added half a teaspoonful of yogurt to the
batter, and believe it or not, those dosas turned out really nice.
Excellent recipe!! Thank you! My son loves them. Though is there anything i can do do make them thinner? Thinner batter made it white and raw looking.
Thanks a lot for the feedback… Cook closed, it wont be looking raw 🙂
hi Raks, can i use brown rice to make dosa.
Yes definitely, please use something for softness like methi or poha or sago.
thanks for your reply