This is one of the most requested recipe in Kannamma Cooks.
I have already shared the following recipes for making idli batter using various techniques.
Best Method – Idli batter made in wet grinder
Making easy idlies – Idli batter made using idli rava
I have also shared the tips and tricks for soft idli batter here below. This article also has answers for a lot of frequently asked questions. Please refer to this article and I am sure most of your doubts will be answered.
Tips and Tricks for a better idli.
Here is the video for making idli.
The ingredients for making this batter is very similar to this recipe. I strongly suggest you read that before you proceed with this recipe. I have explained each ingredient in detail in that post. The ingredients remain the same for this recipe too but with one addition. We use the addition of poha / avalakki in this recipe which makes the idlies softer in this mixie method. Here is how to do idli batter using a mixie/blender.
Measurements used 1 cup = 250 ml , 1 tablespoon = 15 ml
Wash all the ingredients separately in running water for 2-3 times. Soak Fenugreek Seeds (vendhayam) , Whole white Urad Dal and Idly Rice separately in lots of water for a minimum of 3-4 hours. Soak the poha/avalakki in 2 cups of water.
Grind the soaked and drained fenugreek seeds along with the soaked poha/avalakki (it would have puffed up by now). No need to drain the water from poha. Add a cup of water and grind for 3 minutes until the seeds and poha are finely ground and have fluffed up. Remove the ground poha mixture and empty it into a big vessel.
Now comes the tricky ingredient called urad dal!
The mixie / blender was making the urad dal hot when ground. While warmth encourages the growth of the bacteria, heat kills it. A very hot environment can make the batter sour too soon and the taste will not be good.
Fermentation of Idli batter is carried out largely by lactic acid bacteria. Not yeast. There are two kinds of lactic acid bacteria. Homofermentive and heterofermentive.
Homofermentive lactic acid bacteria produces only lactic acid.
Heterofermentive bacteria – the Idli bacteria (Leuconostoc mesenteroides) produces carbon dioxide in addition to lactic acid.
So for good Idli, we need the rise of batter (CO2 effect) and also souring of the batter. If the batter is too hot at the beginning, it gets fermented too soon and the resulting Idlies might not be very soft. Also the Idlies may be good for the first day but hard on the second day.
So we use ice water for grinding the urad dal so the dal doesnt get heated up when ground. Lets now grind the urad dal.
Now, add the drained urad dal in the mixie. Add in a cup of ice water. Grind for 3 minutes till the urad dal is perfectly smooth. We use ice water so as to keep the dal from heating up in the mixie. Remove the ground urad dal mixture and add it to the vessel.
Now grind the drained rice in 3-4 batches. Add upto 1.5 cups of water while grinding. Remove the ground rice mixture and add it to the vessel.
Add in the salt and mix the batter well with hands.
I marked the below orange tape to show you how much the batter ferments. Let the batter sit in a warm place. If the place where you live is cold, I have some tips to accelerate the fermentation. Keep the batter inside a cup board or a shelf or some place warm. Insulate the vessel with a warm heavy blanket. That will keep the vessel warm. If you have a small room heater, keep it running near the shelf where you place the batter. if you don’t have a heater, buy a small table lamp and leave it running near the idli batter vessel. You just need to make sure that the batter is kept warm.
Allow the batter to ferment for 8-10 hours. As you can see, I wrapped the idli batter container in a blanket to make sure that its warm as its been cold in the place where I live. I also left a table lamp inside the shelf switched on. Once the batter is fermented, it would have doubled in volume. Mix the idli batter well and store it in the refrigerator and use it within the next 3 days.
Lets make some idly now!
Put some water in an idly vessel and put it on medium flame. Oil the idli plate and gently fill the rounds with the batter. Put it inside the idly vessel and let it steam for 6-7 minutes. The key to good idlis – Do not allow it to over cook. It might become hard and dry. Just keep an eye and remove the idlis after 6-7 minutes. Do not remove the idlis immediately. It might stick. Leave it undisturbed for 4-5 minutes and then spoon it out. Serve hot with your favorite chutney and sambar.
The one common comment I get from a lot of readers is that, their idlies did not rise and the idlies were flat. The main reason is watery or runny batter. Watery batter will not rise and the idlies will be hard and flat. So use caution while grinding and do not add too much water while grinding. The batter will thin out a little after fermentation. So a BIG CAUTION on using water. Please use correct measurements as mentioned in the recipe.
- 1¼ Cups Urad Dal
- 4 Cups Idly Rice (1 liter)
- 1.5 cups thick poha / avalakki
- 1 tablespoon Fenugreek seeds (Vendhayam)
- 2 tablespoon Salt
- Soak all the ingredients except salt in lots of water. Soak the ingredients separately.
- Grind the soaked and drained fenugreek seeds along with the soaked poha/avalakki . Add a cup of water and grind for 3 minutes until the seeds and poha are finely ground and have fluffed up. Remove the ground poha mixture and empty it into a big vessel.
- Now, add the drained urad dal in the mixie. Add in a cup of ice water. Grind for 3 minutes till the urad dal is perfectly smooth. Remove the ground urad dal mixture and add it to the vessel.
- Now grind the drained rice in 3-4 batches. Add upto 1.5 cups of water while grinding. Remove the ground rice mixture and add it to the vessel.
- Add in the salt and mix the batter well with hands. Let the batter sit in a warm place. Allow the batter to ferment for 8-10 hours. Once fermented, mix well and store it in the refrigerator.
What is the problem with using split urad dal and can we make idli with normal rice and not idli rice?? Won’t my idlis be soft if I follow your procedure but use split urad dal and normal rice?
Have you read the post fully? All your questions are answered in the tips post.
No.. I had missed out the tips and tricks link..
No.. I had missed out the tips and tricks link.. I will have to check if idli rice and white whole urad dal is available here in Jharkhand
Awesome! I followed your recipe to the letter! Result:- I used the mixie for grinding, and still got “Malli Poo Idli”:-)
Thanks, and keep up the good work!
A lot of people look forward to your recipes!
Thank you so much Mythili! getting good idlies makes everyone happy at home 🙂 Happy cooking!
I tried yr idli receipe n they were ausome
My idlis used to never become proper till isaw yr receipe. Thank you sister for explaining in detail
God bless u n protect u alwaus
Thank you so much!
Dear Suguna, your generosity of spirit comes through very clearly in the way you write. May you remain blessed always.
Thank you Pete!
Hello,
Amazing recipe, thank you. Idli’s came out very soft and fluffy, I’ve got compliments from everyone who had it. But last three times my batter didn’t rise at all. It use to rise and overflow. I haven’t changed the method of making the batter. Not sure what has changed. Please advise. Thank you.
May be its because of the weather. Its getting cooler may be? Try to store in a little warm place. You can read my tips and tricks post to know about storing in warm place.
Thank you for the reply.
I’ve always put the batter in the oven with the lights on. Its summer here in Canada, I’ve turned off the heater in the house and the house is a little cooler. May be its the difference in the temperature in the house causing the issue regardless of keeping the batter in the oven. Thanks again.
Thanks a lot! Very useful tips specially when there is no grinder for making idli batter, thanks again tried your method idlis came out super soft and yummy!
Thank you!
Hello mam.
My concern is dat rice are not properly grounded to paste in mixie. If I add water too much they remain remain in small bits. If no water then mixie gets jammed. In either way my rice are not grounded to fine paste. Please help
Soak the rice overnite. That will help and please use a heavy duty mixie. Lite power mixie wont work and the motor will burn.
Thanks a lot for tips and detailed explanation..I use to prepare idli with idli rava and now I don’t feel like to use idli rava once I prepared idli as per your instructions.ur tips helped me a lot…thanks for explaining how to prepare batter in mixie.I read many blogs and tried different versions and I was not happy with taste ..your post is perfect one…can you please post paniyaram recipe
Thank you!
http://www.kannammacooks.com/chettinad-kuzhi-paniyaram/
Hi
Followed this recipe and ended up with tummy idlis. Can’t thank you enough ? One question…
If I need idlis for Monday morn, can I grind the batter today (sat), ferment it over night, put it in the fridge tomorrow morn, keep it out for a couple of hours on MOn day morn and make idlis?
Hi Dheepa, the batter will be good after fermenting for 2 days and on the third day you will get decent idlis too. So not to worry. Go ahead and make it.
Awesome’ thanks kannamma ?
Thank you so much.
Tried this recipe…came out very well and yummy… thank you Kannamma…
Thank you so much. Happy Cooking. Glad that you like the recipes.
Hi thank you so much for the recipe
But mine turn good wen steaming but became hard after 1 hour
Where did I go wrong
Thank you again
How many minutes did you steam?
Dear Kannamma,
What a fantastic recipe you have given us. The idlies were super soft. Never imagined that even I can cook such awesome soft idly. Not even in restaurants I’ve had such idlies.
Thanks a ton to my friend who shared this page on FB. Im so glad that I found this recipe.
Looking forward to more such recipes.
Thanks again 🙂
Thank you so much Divya!
Thank you for a well written recipe where you explain things in detail. I had tried several times before this to make an idli/dosa batter with no success. But the first time I tried your recipe, it worked for me pretty well. Though I live in Boston, MA where it is quite cold and so I did have to add baking soda in the end. I am trying again in hopes to have repeated success and perhaps avoid the baking soda this time. Thank you so much! My sweet South Indian husband never dreamed that I would be making home made idli’s – so thanks from him also 🙂
You can place the batter in the oven with the pilot light on and the batter would ferment well. You need not add baking soda.
Thank you for the recipe! When fermenting the batter, does it need to be in a container with a lid, or will a large bowl (no lid) suffice?
You will need a container with a lid.
Just tried the recipe.Idlies were so soft and were so yummy…thank u kannama fior The BEST RECIPE for making idly.
Thank you so much.
Hi Kannamma, thank you for this wonderful instruction. My idlies always come soft and spongy. However I have a strange problem with the idli batter. My batter never rises, and there are no bubbles even if it ferments well and turns sour, overnight. Although it is excellent for idlies, my dosas are white and hard ( even after 2nd day of fermentation), even if I dilute it perfectly & use hot cast iron dosa pan for making dosas. Please guide me. Thank you
Try changing the brand of rice and use hands for the final mixing. Also warm and draft free place to ferment.
hi Kannamma, thank you for your suggestion. I Changed the brand of rice & now my dosas are excellent too. I wholeheartedly appreciate your knowledge & your effort of sharing it with all. This website is a treasure for newly married women like me. Thank you once again.
Thats so nice of you to say Aarti. Really happy that the dosas are coming good. Idli and dosa is a staple and things going wrong may be stressful. Happy that you figured it out. Thank you!
Hi kannamma, thank you for this wonderful instruction. My idlies always come spongy & soft. But I have one strange problem. My idly batter never rises even though it ferments well and turns sour overnight. & my dosas never come gloden brown, they are always white even if I dilute the batter, perfectly& use cast iron pan. I don’t understand what’s is causing this problem. please help.
Try to ferment the batter in a warm draft free place. That might be the issue.
Dear kannama..this is the first time im trying my hands at making idli batter and they wer the best maligapoo idlies i hav had so far..thanks you so much.. Cant wait to try ur other recipes
Can i use the same batter to make dosai if so kindly guide me
Thanks Khadija. Sure. you can use the same batter to do dosas.
I used to buy ready batter but recently moved to a city where we don’t get it. I am a mum of triplets and so always looking for healthy food recipes to make in bulk. Can’t thank you enough for writing this recipe! Batter fermented really well considering its winter where I live and Idlis turned out nice and soft! My lot loved it!
Thank you Swati.
Thank u soooo much for “THE PERFECT” recipe for soft idlis!! So happy to have found this blog. 🙂
Thank you Shweta.
Thank you sooooo much…!!! Made the idlis yesterday. They were super soft. I used split urad dal since I didnt hv any other type and was very eager to try ur recipe asap. And even with that it turned out awesome.
Thank you.
Can we use split Urad dal? And also, is it ok if the Urad dal is little old?
I prefer whole unpolished urad dal.
good recipes very useful tips
Thank you!
Is it ok to use cooked rice instead of poha?
No. I would not substitute.
keep in preheated oven it will rise .in steel vessel
hi,
want to try this recipe i have normal urad dal can we use this with same measurement.
What do you mean by normal urad dal?
Tried this idly recipe today, first time my idlis were so soft, the whole family enjoyed it. Thanks a lot Suguna for the wonderful description & tips.
Thank you so much. Really glad you like it!
after reading the IDLI recipe, I could imagine eating classic idlis. of-course I have yet to try & succeed making it.
enjoyed reading very nice explanation & tips.
Cheers
Thank you!
Its a such a pleasure to read your blog and description. I really enjoyed reading the tips and tricks and thoroughly appreciate the explanation.
One suggestion- Please also add water in the list of ingredients and its measurement. Cake recipes usually detail out the amount of water to ensure accuracy while we tend to ignore the water bit in our recipies and end up with a variable for water which leads to inaccurate results.
I have given the approximate water measurements in the recipe. If you read the recipe, i have mentioned it. I have not put water in ingredients as the water is added in steps for each time while grinding dal, rice, aval etc… Its difficult to give the exact water measurement as the water required will vary a little depending on the age of the rice used for making batter. But I have given the best optimum water measurement after a lot of tries. Hope this helps.
Today, the unthinkable has happened.
The softest idlis have finally been created in my kitchen!
I cannot thank you enough for this recipe!
My family simply loved it !
Thank you so much for adding all the details. Followed it to the T and the result was amazing!
Thank you so much Vincy. Really glad that you got soft idlies. One of the great achievements in the kitchen.
Eager to try it. Have always been using storebrought batter. Few questions please.
1) Should the poha also to be soaked for four hours?
2) I have just red rice poha in stock, is that fine to use?
Awaiting your quick reply. Thanks in Advance.
Hi Navya,
you can soak poha for 30 minutes upto 4 hours. No problem.
Suggest you use white poha.
Very good presentation.Really “kannammacooks”. Very nice and informative. Advance Thanks for future recipes,tips etc.
Thank you!
Kudos for such a detailed recipe, you have absolutely nailed it 🙂
Me and my daughter are big fan of south food. Thanks to you, I am able to make awesome idli and dosa at home. Another great article was on how to season cast iron tawa. I have been happily sharing this blog to everyone since I came across it! Thanks again 🙂
Thank you so much. Really glad that you liked the recipe.
Hi..Thanks for the to the point recipe!I just want to know if I can use any other ingredient as a substitute for poha..I dont get it here in Japan!
You can use Sago-Javvarisi-Tapioca Pearls in the place of Poha. But soak for a longer time and grind well to a rally smooth paste. Sago takes time to grind.
Hi suguna,
Great recipe… every minute detail very well illustrated and explained.. i just ground idly batter with half the mentioned measurements and that turned out to b a lot… i do have a very small fridge and hence cant grind too much and store.. i am planning to use this recipe for 1 cup idly batter.. do let me know if these measurements work…
1 cup idly rice
1/4 cup urud dal
1/3 cup poha
1/4 tbsp methi
1/2 tbsp salt
Thanks in advance
It should work I guess!
Hi..
I make idlies with this method only for quite sometime now.. When I first tried it the idlies very really very good but for the last couple of time whn I cook the idlies I get that MAAVU or PAACHAI taste. But the idlies ate cooked well. What could have gone wrong. Can u plz let me know wht to do. And ya the batter is well fermented.
Thanks in advance
What rice do you use?
Ponni idli rice
Try to soak for extra time and grind fine!
Hi.. I tried this recipe and the idlis came out so soft and fluffy.. thanks for the wonderful tips.
Thank you. Glad that the idlies came out soft!
Hi Suguna,
I have been trying to make idli batter in a mixie for while. Always end up in hard idlies. End up in using as dosai for the family. My children love idli than dosai and thanks so much today I could. The recipe is foolproof. It’s come soft and fluffy thanks once again for sharing.
Cheers
Sandhya
Thank You so much. Glad that the idli turned out to be soft.
I tried yr recipe yesterday and the idlies turned out very soft and spongy.thanks for sharing such a fool proof recipe.
Thank you for trying.
Hi, can I take large cup for measure which can hold up to 250ml?
Sure.
Hi
I followed this recipe, n got a very thin idli batter which made d idlis very very soft n flat! Ne trick to gt d right consistency of d batter wud help me. Looking fr sum tips.
Thanks a ton.
you added too much water while grinding. thats the problem. watery batter will make idlis flat. Please check my idli tips post. The link is given above.
Why do we use poha in mixie reecipie and not grinder
Mixie can heat up a lot. Poha gives a headstart in fermentation. You can use in grinder too for an extra soft idli!
Please tell me idly kharam pudi recipie
http://www.kannammacooks.com/idli-podi-idli-milagai-podi-recipe/
Hello Akka
Thank you so much for this awesome recipe the idilies were sooooo soft and yummy. My house is always very cold so I never get the fermentation proper. But your blanket method nailed it. The remaining batter I made set dosa today and they were melt in the mouth. I regret carrying the grinder all the way from India to make idili when you have given me such a foolproof method. Thanx a ton
God bless
Laiju Shaheen
Thank you so much Laiju. Really glad that you liked the recipe.
Hi Shivani, Sorry I dont cook in a microwave. For idli batter, you need to grind the ingredients to a smooth fine paste for getting that proper idli texture. Heavy duty mixie / blender or a wet grinder is a way to go.
Nice presentation, keep posting
Do u have the recipe posted on ulandhu vadai using mixie. If so can u plz plz share the link.
Thank you for the recipe. I will surely try it. Please can you explain the reason for using ice cold water?
Have you read the post?
Just read through again and understand now why you use ice cold water! thank you.
Hi suguna,
I tried this method for making idlis, it turned out awesome. I never used to like idlis before. But after trying by this method ,I feel like eating them all day at all time..
But I have a question to ask. Plz help me. Is it necessary to soak for min of 4hrs or can I soak it over night.
Thank you. You can soak overnite too!
Thank u
.
Quick question, any reason why we add more urad dhal and aval to grind by mixie??
Thank
please go thorough my idli batter tips post!
Explanation on soft Idli was convincing and clear. Will work out today
oh my …you are so meticulous ….really enjoyed your painstaking explanations…..thank you so much for the time spent for others benefit…God Bless you
Thank you Prabha.
Hello mam
I have asked a question to u yesterday but no rpl and even not updated in comments here also..plz help
You had asked a question on this post Bhavna.
http://www.kannammacooks.com/tips-tricks-making-idli-batter/
I have replied yesterday itself.
I am sorry I dont understand hindi. So I dont know what your question is.
Happy to help.
Hi Suguna…I tried this idli mixie receipe and it turned out awesome… Being a Gujarati it’s difficult to cook souh Indian food…but my hubby loves South Indian food a lot..I can’t believe I could ever make this kind of idlies…thanks a lot for such a detailed n lovely easy recipe… If possible please share a link for sambhar n chutney receipe or let me know where I can check…thanks God bless u…
Thank you so much Archana. Your comment really made my day. I am so happy you were able to get good idlies.
Try this sambar to start. I have a lot of sambar recipes on the site. You can just search for sambar and you should get it!
http://www.kannammacooks.com/annapoorna-hotel-sambar/
chutney
http://www.kannammacooks.com/category/recipes/south-indian/chutney-south-indian/
Hi, I tried making idli using mixie method taking your tips and tricks. I must say it turned very soft. Also I made Appam using your recipe. Thanks to you my husband (a goan) and my son loved it. I thoroughly loved the compliment which my hubby gave while eating appam and idli. Thanks to you. Keep updating more recipes. Thank you once again.
Thank you so much Leena. I am really glad your family enjoyed idli and appam. perfect soul food for south indians!
Suguna wen i had prepared the batter it had bcome slightly loose so then ended up making dosas instead of idlys…. But the dosas came out so very soft dat i ve dcided il nevr again buy the dosa mix dat we get from d grocery store… Thanks a ton suguna…. My set dosas had a lot of holes on top i guess dats k na??
Please refer to the water measurements in this post.
http://www.kannammacooks.com/tips-tricks-making-idli-batter/
Set dosas are supposed to have those trademark holes:) You did correct dear!
Hi suguna,
Luvd reading your post!! Very well written n easy to understand for an amateur lik me..I really never ever get soft idlis suguna n dat upsets me a lot?.. So dats wat ultimately led me to your site… Ive soaked the rice , urud dal n fenugreek seeds in the morning at 9 and will grind it at 6 in the evening so that i can use it at 6 the following day morning hence giving it 12 hours to ferment.. But my ratio of rice: urad dal is 1:1/4.. Wud dat be ok? N i have never used poha so far.. Used to add a tablespoon of cooked rice while grinding rice… Which would you suggest cooked rice or poha n y? N how long should i soak poha before grinding? Sorry for the long post but just wud be really glad if you could help me on this…thanks a ton..
Hi Dilna,
I prefer Poha. You can soak it for a couple of hours.
I have never tried adding cooked rice to idli batter.
Your ratio will work. Dont worry.
Please refer to http://www.kannammacooks.com/tips-tricks-making-idli-batter/
let us know how it turns out!
Thanks a lot for your reply suguna… Will let u know how it comes out..
Hi Suguna.
Sorry.I am a total idiot.:(I followed the link recipe and went to the recipe for using wet grinder.Thank you for responding.Looking forward to many authentic recipes.
regards
geetha
Absolutely no worries 🙂
Hi Suguna,
I have been making lovely soft idlis,thanks to you and my family is very appreciative.:)I was wondering how much pohe one has to take for your recipe.Thanks again for all the recipes.
regards
geetha
Hi Geetha, Its mentioned in the ingredients.
1¼ Cups Urad Dal
4 Cups Idly Rice
1.5 cups thick poha / avalakki
1 tablespoon Fenugreek seeds (Vendhayam)
2 tablespoon Salt