The first time I ate a masala dosa I was still quite new to Indian food.  I think it was the second Indian dish I had ever had (the first being tandoori chicken) and I loved it so much that it quickly became one of my favourite take-away dishes.  More than 10 years have passed from that first bite and they still are one of my favourite Indian dishes.  I wanted to try and make them for a long time, but I had always thought it would be too difficult to make at home as the very thin and crispy dosa seemed quite a challenge.  But, as I said before, blogging has helped conquer some of my “foodie fears” and gave me the courage to try making them.  I was blown away… they are not that hard to make at home as I had thought.  As I said in my previous post about the basic dosa, it is all about fermentation.  After you get that right, well then it is not that hard at all.  I was very satisfied with the results… I took the pictures after making them for the first time, but I have made them a few more times after that and I can tell you that experience makes it easier to get the dosas thin and crispy (without breaking them)… so, if yours don’t come out looking perfect after the first attempt, don’t worry too much, you will get the hang of it!  The filling is an easy potato masala.  You can make it as mild or as spicy as you like (I made mine milder, so my kids could eat it too) and, if you can, do add curry leaves to it, as I did.  They are so good and give the masala THE taste you are after!  I hope you enjoy my masala dosas!

Ingredients:
Dosa batter (click here for the recipe)

For the potato masala
500 gms potatoes
1 large onion, sliced
1 green chilli (or more if you like it spicy), halved
½ tsp urad dal
½ tsp channa dal
12 curry leaves
½ tsp cumin seeds
½ tsp black mustard seeds
¼ tsp turmeric powder
¼ tsp red chilly powder
Salt to taste
2 tbsp vegetable oil

Peel and cube the potatoes.  Boil them until soft, drain, coarsely mash and keep them aside.

Thinly slice the onion and halve the green chilli.

Heat the vegetable oil in a frying pan.  Add the mustard seeds and, after they splutter, add the urad dal, channa dal, green chilli, cumin seeds and curry leaves.  Fry them for half a minute on a medium flame, making sure not to not burn them.

Now add the thinly sliced onion and fry until soft and cooked through.  Add the coarsely mashed potatoes, salt, turmeric and red chilly powder and mix well.  Cook for a few minutes, until the ingredients are well combined.  Keep this masala aside as it is going to be the filling for your dosas.

Now you are ready to cook your dosas.  As I said in my previous post, I have read a lot about how to make thin and crispy dosas, but in the end there was only one method that worked for me… as I am no dosawalla and I only have a normal sized tawa.  To get the best results, it is easier to spread the batter on a cold tawa/non stick pan.  I use a roundish cup to spread it with a circular motion.  You should watch the video of the original recipe to see how dosas are made.  Spread it so you get a very thin layer of batter on the surface.  Now put the fire on and as soon as little bubbles start forming, drizzle a little vegetable oil all around the edges of the dosa.  This will help you remove it.  When the edges start browning, add a spoonful or 2 of the potato masala in the centre of the dosa and then flip the edges over it.

After making the first dosa, I usually put the fire off and then cool the tawa down with some cold water.  When the tawa is cold, then I make the second dosa, etc.

TIP: dosas do not need to be flipped over and they are ready when cooked on 1 side.

Serve hot with some coconut chutney and sambhar!  Enjoy!

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Masala Dosa

How to make s delicious South Indian treat: crispy masala dosas filled with a potato masala.

Course Main

Cuisine Indian

Servings 4

Author Manuela Zangara

Ingredients

• Dosa batter

For the potato masala

• 500 gms potatoes
• 1 large onion sliced
• 1 green chilli or more if you like it spicy, halved
• ½ tsp urad dal
• ½ tsp channa dal
• 12 curry leaves
• ½ tsp cumin seeds
• ½ tsp black mustard seeds
• ¼ tsp turmeric powder
• ¼ tsp red chilly powder
• Salt to taste
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil

Instructions

1. Peel and cube the potatoes. Boil them until soft, drain, coarsely mash and keep them aside.
2. Thinly slice the onion and halve the green chilli.
3. Heat the vegetable oil in a frying pan. Add the mustard seeds and, after they splutter, add the urad dal, channa dal, green chilli, cumin seeds and curry leaves. Fry them for half a minute on a medium flame, making sure not to not burn them.
4. Now add the thinly sliced onion and fry until soft and cooked through. Add the coarsely mashed potatoes, salt, turmeric and red chilly powder and mix well. Cook for a few minutes, until the ingredients are well combined. Keep this masala aside as it is going to be the filling for your dosas.
5. Now you are ready to cook your dosas. As I said in my previous post, I have read a lot about how to make thin and crispy dosas, but in the end there was only one method that worked for me… as I am no dosawalla and I only have a normal sized tawa. To get the best results, it is easier to spread the batter on a cold tawa/non stick pan. I use a roundish cup to spread it with a circular motion. You should watch the video of the original recipe to see how dosas are made. Spread it so you get a very thin layer of batter on the surface. Now put the fire on and as soon as little bubbles start forming, drizzle a little vegetable oil all around the edges of the dosa. This will help you remove it. When the edges start browning, add a spoonful or 2 of the potato masala in the centre of the dosa and then flip the edges over it.
6. After making the first dosa, I usually put the fire off and then cool the tawa down with some cold water. When the tawa is cold, then I make the second dosa, etc.
7. TIP: dosas do not need to be flipped over and they are ready when cooked on 1 side.
8. Serve hot with some coconut chutney and sambhar! Enjoy!

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