Healthy Oven-Baked "Fried Idli" With Veggies

Day4: "Fried Idli" is a popular snack/appetizer in Tamil Nadu. I called my dear friend SP to borrow the recipe of her "deep fried" version that I ate last summer.If I am remembering it from last summer, it must be really something,right? She is an instinctive cook and as I listened she ball-parked the ingredients. I told her that won't work cause I need to type a recipe with accurate/near accurate ingredient proportions. The next time I go over to her place, I will observe how she makes it and write up another post. Meanwhile I was scouring the internet for a baked alternative. I was inspired by a recipe from Mye's Recipe Corner. So I used Mye's recipe for baked Idli as a base recipe and built another recipe on top of her's by adding some veggies and masala.

#4 in my LustList: Buccelati White Gold and Diamond Bracelet (US $59, 500. 00)

This no doubt will be the perpetual object of my desire. The astronomical price tag makes it near impossible for me to even think about buying.Unless me and hubby win a lotto or something. Even if Hubby goes loco and decides to get it for me, I would never say yes. I would rather he invest it on real-estate or something. **Sigh**

Now onto the recipe-

Ingredients:

• Idli Batter,  to make 3 plates of mini-Idlis(54#s)

For the Idli Marination:

• 1 Tsp Chili Powder
• 1/2 Tsp Garam Masala
• 1 Tbsp Olive Oil
• 2 Tbsp Lemon Juice
• 1/2 Tsp Salt or as needed

For the Idli Fry With Veggies:

• 2 Cups Julienned Mixed Vegetable(Carrot, Red Pepper, Green Pepper, Cubanelle Pepper)
• 1 Small Red Onion, thinly sliced
• 2 Small Tomatoes, pureed
• 3-4 Green Chilies
• 1 Tbsp Ginger-Garlic Paste
• 1/2 Tsp Garam Masala Powder
• 1/4 Tsp Turmeric Powder
• 2 Tbsp Oil
• Salt as needed
• Cilantro for Garnish

Procedure:

• Grease the Idli Molds with little oil and fill the wells with Idli batter using spoons. It is a bit time consuming but the cooked mini-idlis are super cute!

• Steam the Idlis for about 10 minutes. The cooking procedure is the same as the other Idli Recipe I posted the other day.

• Make the marinade in a wide shallow bowl. Remove the Idlis from the mold and when they are relatively warm, add to the bowl. Stir the Idlis to coat with the marinade. Let it sit for 5-10 minutes.

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Arrange the marinated Idlis in the baking sheet in a single layer and bake in the middle rack for 20 minutes.

• After baking, it comes out crispy on the outside and soft on the inside.

• In a Kadai (Preferably Cast Iron), add oil.  Soon after add the julienned vegetable and fry until the tips are slightly browned. Remove to a  plate. No need to add too much oil. If the Cast Iron pan is properly seasoned, the browning effect is achieved with less oil.

• In the same pan, add a little oil and brown the sliced onions. Remove to a plate.

• In the same Kadai, add little oil, then add ginger-garlic paste and the green chilies. Follow-up with pureed tomatoes. Add the powders and salt. 

• Once the mixture reaches a gravy consistency, add the baked Idli and the browned vegetables + onions.

• Quickly stir to combine and switch off the stove in 2 minutes.

• Transfer this yummy appetizer to a plate and eat while it is still piping hot with a cup of Chai.

Similar Idli Recipe- Masala Pan-Fried Idli Recipe with Pepper and Peas-

Paneer can be substituted instead of Idlis: Healthy Kadai Paneer

Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM#15

Enjoy!