Learn to make these delicious South Indian Mini Masala Uttapam with veggies by following this easy recipe. Serve them for breakfast or as an evening snack.
Dosa batter is a permanent fixture in my fridge. I nearly make it every week. I enjoy my share of dosa/uttapams for an evening snack, but with a twist. Yes, I like to give a spin to the regular dosa making it not just interesting for me to eat but also to give you a new recipe idea in the bargain. Actually, this batter is very versatile. There are numerous varieties of dishes that can be made with leftover dosa batter. And I promise to give you a new recipe idea every other week. For those who don’t know, dosa is an Indian crepe made with rice and lentils. The traditional recipe calls for soaking them overnight and then grinding it to make a thick batter. Next comes the step to ferment the batter. It needs to be left at a dark and warm place to ferment and rice. Only then is the batter ready to be used. It can be then stored in the refrigerator and the batter stays good for a week. In fact once it starts to sour a bit, you can make Chettinad Kuzhi Paniyaram Recipe using it. It tastes amazing. The proportion of the ingredients is key to the success of the recipe. You can use this batter to prepare Dosa which is a thin crepe or make uttapam which is a cousin of Dosa and is thicker than it. But the batter is the same. It’s normally had for breakfast!
Breakfast is an important meal of the day. One of the most common thing people ask for after waking up is, “What’s for breakfast today?” We all want to eat something nice and tasty but are often too bored or lazy to make something ourselves. But, we would more than happily enjoy a full course breakfast if its prepared by someone else! Isn’t that true? That is why I enjoy eating breakfast on vacations. We always pick hotels which include breakfast. Just the sheer sight of blown out breakfast spread is appealing to the eyes. Lots of nutritionists and dietitians keep emphasizing why the first meal of the day is essential for the body. In fact, a hot breakfast is much better than a cold one. Freshly prepared dish in the morning is always better than cereal or smoothie. But I understand that it could get difficult to freshly prepare something early in the morning especially on busy days. But if you have any batter handy, then making a hot breakfast is a breeze. No prep is required as you have done it already! Also using useful kitchen gadgets like waffle makers
and mini pancake pan
makes our lives so much easy. It surely does makes sense to having them in the kitchen these days. Don’t you agree with me?
The first meal of the day should be nourishing enough to fuel your body and help you get on with your day. Therefore it is very essential what you eat and when you eat. That is why I always have some kind of batter in my fridge. That ways, I can always cook up a hearty meal either for breakfast or an evening snack. This particular Mini Masala Uttapam recipe is a family favorite. It is super easy to make and not to forget, extremely delicious. My mom would make this for us. Coming from a South Indian family, we loved our Idli & dosa, and always have some batter handy in the fridge. I have seen my mom use this batter in many different recipes. I think I got this knack from her. She could immediately think of creative way to use leftovers and that is one trait I am proud of myself too. Although, I cannot take credit for this recipe as its my mom’s. I don’t know how she came to know of this recipe but she made this for us on many occasions. In fact her South Indian delicacies were famous in our neighborhood and everyone wanted a share of it. I still remember, she would make so many idlis just to give my neighbors. But as a kid, I preferred my neighbor’s food over my mom’s while my friends would want to eat what my mom made! Funny right?!
Now let’s see how to make Mini Masala Uttapam! The batter can be made in advance and then uttapams can be made as and when needed. If you do not have dosa or idli batter handy, you can use any pancake mix or mix rice flour
, semolina
, yogurt and water to make a batter. Transfer this batter to a mixing bowl
. Add whatever veggies you have handy. I used chopped spinach and onions. Heat oil
in a tadka pan
, temper mustard seeds
and once they crackle add chopped cilantro. Pour this tadka over the batter. Now it’s time to add all the masala. Add turmeric powder, chilly powder
, salt and sesame oil
. Add this oil will keep the uttapam soft even after it cools. Then add shredded cheese and give it all a good mix. Now there are many ways to cook this batter. You can use a small pan and make regular uttapams/thick pancakes, use a waffle maker and make Masala Waffles very similar to Savory Veggie Dosa Waffles or you can make Mini Masala Uttapams. I use this mini pancake pan
which I love. Heat the pan on medium flame and smear some oil and pour a spoonful of batter in each mold. Cook the pancakes evenly on both sides till they turn golden. Mini Masala Uttapam is ready! Serve them with any variety of chutney like Coconut Chutney Recipe or Tomato Almond Chutney For Idli/Dosa.
If you do try this recipe, please do share it with your friends on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest. This will keep me motivated to develop more interesting recipes. Click a pic and post it with the hashtag #cookiliciousveg . I would love to see your pictures on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter!
Ingredients
- 2 cups dosa/idli batter
- 1 cup chopped spinach
- 1 onion
- 1 tsp oil
- 1 tsp mustard seeds
- 2 tbsp chopped cilantro
- 1 tsp turmeric powder
- 1-2 tsp chilly powder
- 1-2 tbsp sesame oil
- 1/3 cup grated cheese
- salt to taste
- oil for cooking the uttapams
Instructions
- Now let's see how to make Mini Masala Uttapam! The batter can be made in advance and then uttapams can be made as and when needed. If you do not have dosa or idli batter handy, you can use any pancake mix or mix rice flour, semolina, yogurt and water to make a batter. Transfer this batter to a mixing bowl. Add whatever veggies you have handy. I used chopped spinach and onions. Heat oil in a tadka pan, temper mustard seeds and once they crackle add chopped cilantro. Pour this tadka over the batter. Now it's time to add all the masala. Add turmeric powder, chilly powder, salt and sesame oil. Add this oil will keep the uttapam soft even after it cools. Then add shredded cheese and give it all a good mix. Now there are many ways to cook this batter. You can use a small pan and make regular uttapams/thick pancakes, use a waffle maker and make Masala Waffles very similar to Savory Veggie Dosa Waffles or you can make Mini Masala Uttapams. I use this mini pancake pan which I love. Heat the pan on medium flame and smear some oil and pour a spoonful of batter in each mold. Cook the pancakes evenly on both sides till they turn golden. Mini Masala Uttapam is ready! Serve them with any variety of chutney like Coconut Chutney Recipe or Tomato Almond Chutney For Idli/Dosa.
Notes
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Here are some other dosa or savory pancake varieties that you can try – Kale Adai | Kale & Lentil Savory Pancakes, Healthy Oats & Veggie Mini Pancakes, Savory Chickpea Flour & Mushroom Pancakes, Quinoa Paneer Mini Pancakes, Cheesy Corn Rawa Pancakes, Gluten Free Mint Flavored Potato Bajra Pancake, Instant Wheat Flour Dosa, Spicy Quinoa & Red Pumpkin Adai | Lentil Dosa, Green Peas Crepes/Dosa, Instant Carrot & Oats Dosa/Crepes and Potato Dosa.
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