Masala Dosa – A Typical Breakfast in Kerala

It is said that the further south you travel in India, the more chilli is in the food and the more rice is served. In Kerala, rice or rice dishes truly were a staple at every meal. And was it spicy? I remember that the first food I tasted during my visit to Kerala was soup – a broth. It looked very innocent, so I scooped up a spoonful. However, the broth was so hot that I burst into tears and began to hiccup. I admired as my Indian colleagues consumed the entire portion of soup without any problems. Only one spoonful was enough for me…

One of the main pillars of Kerala cuisine is masala dosa – a savory pancake that should be as thin as parchment, fluffy on the inside and crispy on the surface. It is traditionally served for breakfast, even in luxury hotels.

Although the recipe can vary from city to city, the basic recipe usually starts with a fermented dough made from pre-cooked rice. Preparing the dough for dosa is not difficult, but it takes a long time. Rice and black lentils must first be soaked in water overnight. They are then mixed with water and mashed into a fine paste. Then, you add some salt and sugar and make a thin dough. After that, you cover the dough and put it in a warm place for 24 hours to ferment. Dosa dough should have a medium thick to medium liquid consistency and can be spread easily.

The next day, you will prepare the dough and all the side dishes. The yellow-colored masala is prepared from potatoes, onions, chilli and mustard seeds.

Pour the dough onto the hot plate with a ladle.

Using a circular motion, spread the dough into a thin pancake.

Drizzle the surface with ghee (= clarified butter).

When the edges start to peel away from the plate, put the potato curry on the pancake.

Fry the pancake on only one side until light brown.

You can serve it, for example, with carrot and coconut chutney.

Usually, masala dosa is eaten with a portion of sambhar (red-colored vegetable mixture).

The filling does not have to be just potatoes. I also tasted dosa with eggs.

The name “dosa” refers to a crispy thin pancake. It can be rolled up, folded like an envelope or even like a triangle.

The preparation is not that difficult, in addition to the ingredients, you mainly need a hot plate and enough skill to spread the dough evenly and thinly.

There are various legends about the origin of masala dosa. One of them talks about Brahmins, who were in charge of cooking in Hindu society. Brahmins were against the use of onions. Therefore, they mixed it with potatoes, put it in a thin pancake and folded the pancake so that the filling remained hidden.

In Kerala, you can also try another pancake – appam – made from rice flour and coconut milk. Traditionally, a toddy drink made from palm sap is used to ferment the dough.