Kambu Dosai – Pearl Millet Dosai – Bajra Dosa

Kambu is a millet variety, known as pearl millet in english and bajra in hindi. It has a very unique flavour and aroma by itself. As a child, I never used to like this Kambu Dosai. But now-a-days I love these kind of recipes. To my surprise Chotu also liked it. Unlike me, he is a good child 🙂 This Kambu Dosai does involve grinding/fermenting like the normal dosa. It is a much healthier option than the normal dosa. Post updated with video..

Here is the video..

[Soaking Time- 3-4 hrs : Fermenting Time- 7-8 hrs : Cooking Time- 10 mins]

Kambu Dosai Ingredients:

• Idli rice – 1 cup
• Kambu/Pearl Millet – 1 cup
• Urad dal – 1/2 cup
• Salt – as needed

Method:

• Wash and soak idli rice, kambu and urad dal separately for 3 -4 hours. Make sure there are no stones in the kambu.

• Wash your grinder and add the soaked urad dal. Grind it in the same way as for normal dosa. Sprinkle water in between. It should be soft and fluffy. Keep it aside. Now add the soaked kambu to the grinder. When it is coarsely ground, add the soaked rice to it. Grind until smooth. Take the batter and combine it with the urad dal batter. Add required salt and mix well.

• Leave the Kambu Dosai batter in a warm place. Allow it to ferment for atleast 3-4 hours. If u are in a hot place, 3-4 hours is enough else leave it for some more time. For me it takes around 10 – 12 hours. U can see there are small pores in the batter after fermenting. Mix well. Heat a dosa tava. Pour a ladle full of batter and spread it in a circular motion. Add some oil on top. Once it gets cooked, flip it and cook it on the other side as well.

Thats it!! Healthy Kambu Dosai is ready!!

Serve hot with chutney. Red Chilli Chutney suits the best!!

Tips:

1. The ratio between the ingredients is similar to normal dosa. Instead of taking full amount of rice, we are using half of rice and kambu. Ratio is 4:1 for rice+kambu(combined) and urad dal.
2. Fermenting is important. As I said, let the batter ferment according to the place u are at. In a cold region it takes a longer time.
3. Mix the batter with your hands. This will help in fermenting.
4. U can make the Kambu Dosai as a thin and crispy one too. We personally prefer to have it like this.

– By Sundari Nathan