Idly podi

I love idly with sambhar, idly with chutney, idly with sambhar and chutney, idly with mango pickle, idli with plain gingelly oil  and idly with this podi and gingelly oil. In short I love idly and I can gulp down a few with any side-dish. But idly, podi and gingelly oil combination is very special. Many a time my lunch box contained idly and podi. My mom would mix this idly podi with gingelly oil and apply on the the idlies. Until afternoon the idly imbibes the flavour of the podi and OMG!!! I miss it. I definitely miss it. This type of idly podi preparation is my mom's speciality. Urid dhal is the main ingredient. Fried urid dhal smells awesome and imagine it being mixed with the flavours of curry leaves and fresh pepper corns.......Excellent is the word to describe the combination and this idly podi. I have seen many people asking my mom for this recipe. Hope you will like it too.

Ingredients :

Urid dhal- 1 cup

Channa dhal- a handful

Rice- 1 tspn

Black pepper corns- 50 nos

Curry leaves- some 40 leaflets

Garlic- 5 pods ( mince into small pieces)

Dried red chillies- 15 nos (adjust according to your taste, I love it hot and when you mix this podi with oil the hotness get reduced a lot)

Asafoetida- few pinches

Salt to taste

Method :

Very simple. Fry all the ingredients together, including the garlic pieces. Remove from fire when the urid dhal acquires a golden brown colour. Then dry grind the ingredients into a coarse powder with enough salt and few pinches of asafoetida. Idly podi will be ready to be served. Serve with gingelly oil.

Taste enhancing tips for this recipe : Take care not to burn any ingredient when frying. Fry on low heat. Never miss black pepper and curry leaves when preparing this idly podi. Happy cooking!!!