Semolina/Rava Idiyappam

Idiyappam or Noolpittu or String hoppers is a culinary speciality of Kerala, Tamil Nadu, southern parts of Karnataka, Srilanka, Malaysia and Indonesia. Its often served for breakfast or dinner. Traditionally, Idiyappam is made with rice flour or by grinding raw rice. Its at times made with ragi or finger millet flour and wheat flour too. Its tastes best when paired with a spicy non veg curry or a vegetable kurma or stew. Some people enjoy it with sweetened coconut milk. This is an instant version and can be made in ten minutes. And believe me, it tastes almost similar tothe rice version and is very soft too.

When I first heard of idiyappam using semolina or rava, I was quite surprised and wanted to try it immediately. This is such an easy recipe, no need of grinding rice or buying idiyappam flour. Perfect for those busy morning hours as it gets ready too quickly. I found my semolina to be slightly yellowish in colour and this has resulted in not so white idiyappams. But, nevertheless they tasted quite good. Remember to press it out into the idiyappam plate when the dough is still warm. The amount of water absorbed by the semolina might vary according to the nature of semolina. So please adjust the water quantity accordingly. I had to use two cups of water for a cup of semolina.

Ingredients:

• Semolina 1 cup
• Salt to taste
• Oil 1-2 tsp
• Water 2 cups
• Grated coconut 2-3 tbsp (optional)

Method:

• Heat water with some salt and a teaspoon of oil till it boils.

• Add the semolina and mix well till it forms a dough like consistency. This will take around 2-3 minutes.

• Switch off the flame and over the pan with a lid and allow it to rest for five minutes.
• After two to three minutes, knead it (while it’s still warm) into a soft dough.
• Cover it with a moist cloth and allow the dough to rest for five minutes.
• Grease an idli plate or a perforated idiyappam plate with oil. Wash and coat the idiyappam press too with some oil.
• Take a small lump of the dough and fill the mould.
• If you are using grated coconut, sprinkle some at the base of each idli cavity. If you are not a big fan of coconut, you can very well skip this step.
• Now press the idiyappam maker and squeeze the dough over the grated coconut.

• Heat water in a pressure cooker or a big pot or an idli maker and place the idli stand into it
• Steam for 10-12 minutes and transfer them into a casserole
• Serve it hot with a spicy vegetable stew or vegetable Kurma or kadala curry or a non-vegetarian gravy
• Healthy oil free dish is ready within few minutes 🙂

Notes:

• I was going through several recipes and noted that each one had a different ratio for flour and water. My flour absorbed double the quantity of water. You can adjust it as per your semolina.
• Its best to use the fine semolina also known as chirotti rava.
• I had to steam it for around 10-12 minutes.
• Check these after around 7-8 minutes (as some recipes suggested it to be cooked for only 7-8 mutes), but I found it to be a bit sticky then and so cooked for some more time.