dosa recipe

Dosa Recipe, How to Make Dosa Batter

By Swasthi on June 8, 2023, Comments, Jump to Recipe

Dosa Recipe, Learn how to make Dosa Batter at home. This detailed post will guide you to make dosas of all kinds – soft, crispy, restaurant style, home style and healthy dosas. No matter you are a beginner or an experienced cook the tips & tricks mentioned in this post will help you master the techniques of making the BEST South Indian Dosa.

Dosa recipe with homemade batter served with chutney

If you are new to South Indian cuisine, then read on to know more

About Dosa

Dosa is a popular South Indian thin crepe made with fermented rice and lentil batter. History of dosa says they were made using only rice but with the passage of time, people started to add urad dal / black lentils to give texture and taste.

Dosas became very popular with the rise of Udupi restaurants which serve the best dosa varieties – plain, set and masala dosa. Dosa is made by soaking and blending black gram lentils (urad dal) and rice to a batter. Then the fermented batter is spread like a crepe on a hot griddle or tawa.

Yes Dosa is a healthy protein rich vegan breakfast. Urad dal is high in protein & calcium. It makes a great food to start your day.

I consider it to be one of the best healthy Indian foods that can nourish the body so I try to keep the ratio of urad dal more & rice to minimum or only as needed without compromising the taste and crispiness.

Idli and dosas are made regularly at my home for breakfast and sometimes even for dinner. There are so many kinds of dosas one get to find on a tiffin or a fast food center menu in South India.

Dosas can be made with so many different ratios of rice and urad dal. I am sharing 4 recipes here on this post which I often use. You may experiment with any of these dosa recipes to suit your taste or dietary needs.

Blender or a Wet Grinder – Which is Better?

I often get queries on this so trying to answer here. I do not use a wet grinder though I have one since I personally do not prefer the cleaning and lifting the stone tasks. Years ago we would have frequent guests home from India, So we would make the batter once a week in the wet grinder.

It is a good deal to have and use a wet grinder if you have many people at home to eat idli dosa frequently. For the past 2 decades I’m happy with my Indian mixer grinder (blender) though we are a family of 4 and make dosas at least thrice a week.

The batter rises very well even when ground in the blender/mixer if it is powerful and does not make your batter warm while grinding.

However I have shared making batter in a wet grinder and also in a blender. All the ratios shared in this dosa recipe post work even if making batter in a wet grinder.

Which Kind of Rice is Suitable for Dosa?

There are many kinds of rice available in the market. All the recipes posted here have been tried with raw rice, idli rice and parboiled rice. But you will get the best results with raw rice. Even basmati rice or a combination of the raw rice & parboiled rice gives good results.

The results with parboiled rice are not the same always. It depends mostly on the weather conditions & the kind of parboiled rice.

Please note that all parboiled rice are not suitable. Only short grain like ponni or sona masuri have worked out for me.

So overall you need to experiment to see which rice works well for you.

When to Add Salt?

When to add salt to dosa batter? While grinding, before fermenting or after fermenting is one of the most common question.

This you will have to experiment and check what works good for you. Since this depends on the climatic conditions and the water used to blend the batter.

In cool places or cold countries, unsalted batter takes longer to ferment. When kept for long hours the batter may turn too sour without rising.

So to avoid that it is good to add a non-iodized salt like rock salt or sea salt before fermentation. These salts assist in quick fermentation.

But in hot places and hot season, it is good to add salt just before making the dosas i.e after fermentation else the batter turns sour and smelly.

In India most people add salt after fermentation unless living in cool places like Bangalore. Taste wise yes there is a difference in adding before and after. So please experiment what works good for you.

Avoid iodized salt by all means if you are adding it before fermentation as it prevents the batter from fermenting.

For more dosa recipes, you can also check
Instant Wheat flour dosas
Brown Rice Dosa
Set dose
Pesarattu
Cheese dosa
Oats dosa
Ragi dose
Jowar dosas

Recipe 1 – Crispy Dosa Recipe

This recipe yields one of the best tasting brown & crispy dosa. This batter can be used to make masala dosa, crispy plain dosas, uttapam, masala paniyaram and sweet paniyaram. I follow this recipe the most for my regular breakfast.

The masala dosa shown in the first pic is made using this recipe. It can be served with any Chutney, potato masala or Tiffin sambar.

Typically most proportions yield red to brown color dosa only when made on cast iron tawa, but this dosa recipe yields brown crispy dosas even when made on non-stick.

Dosa Recipe

How to Make Dosa Batter (Stepwise Photos)

Soak Lentils & Rice

Recipe 1

1. Add ½ cup urad dal (skinned black whole lentils), 2 tablespoon chana dal (bengal gram) and ½ teaspoon methi seeds to a large bowl/pot. Add 1½ cups raw rice to another bowl.

washing dals for dosa recipe

2. Rinse dal thoroughly a few times and soak in lots of water for 4 hours. During cold weather they can be soaked up to 6 hours or even overnight.

soaking urad chana dals for dosa recipe

3. Rinse rice too a few times until the water runs clear. Soak in enough water for 4 hours. Same here as well, during cold weather they can be soaked up to 6 hours or even overnight.

soaking parboiled rice for dosa recipe

4. 30 mins before blending the batter, rinse and soak 2 tablespoons poha (beaten rice) with ¼ cup water for 30 mins.

soaking poha for dosa

Make Dosa Batter

5. Add soaked poha to the grinder jar or container first. Drain the water completely from dal and add them along with ½ teaspoon non-iodized salt and ¾ cup cold water.

You can also try leaving out salt during summer, add it the next morning when you are about to make dosas. It will still ferment well without salt. I use salt when I grind the dal else my batter does not ferment well.

grinding lentil batter for dosa recipe

6. Blend until smooth, frothy and bubbly. If needed add more water. I add another 2 to 4 tablespoons water. But do not make it thin or runny. It must be a thick batter yet of pouring consistency. (Check video for consistency)

smooth frothy urad dal batter for dosa recipe

7. Transfer the batter to a a large bowl. Drain rice completely and add to the blender jar. Pour ½ cup water. I use another 2 tbsps more.

blending rice for dosa recipe

8. Blend to a smooth batter. Slightly coarse is okay but not like suji.

parboiled rice paste for dosa recipe

9. Add the rice batter to the urad dal batter. Mix both of them well with your hand. The warmth in the hand is said to help in fermentation. The prepared batter must be of pouring consistency yet thick and not runny.

If it is too thick you may pour some water at this stage and mix. Thick batter won’t ferment well. If it is slightly runny, it is still fine. (check video for consistency)

fermenting batter

When I double the recipe, I use 2 glass or ceramic bowls to ferment and refrigerate the dosa batter. I divide and distribute the batter to 2 bowls. Undisturbed batter stays good in refrigerator for longer without going sour.

How to ferment Dosa Batter

10. Cover and ferment it in a warm place until the batter rises and turns bubbly. If you live in a warm region, then you can just keep it on the counter overnight. It may take anywhere from 5 to 16 hours depending on the temperature.

To ferment in colder regions, preheat the oven at the lowest heat settings (120 F or 50 C) for 5 to 7 mins. Turn off the oven and keep the dosa batter inside with the oven light ON. You can also use your instant pot to ferment with the yogurt settings. Use an external lid and not the IP lid. I ferment for only 7 to 8 hours in the oven & IP.

11. When I made this, I had to ferment for 16 hours in a closed kitchen cabinet. When properly fermented, the batter raises and turns light, fluffy with lots of pores & bubbles. The batter was half of the bowl before fermentation. It rose a little over ¾ of the same bowl.

Fermentation test: To check, drop half a spoon of this batter into a bowl filled with water. Well fermented batter will float & not sink.

dosa batter recipe

12.This is a closeup shot of how the batter looks after fermentation. For a good fermentation 4 things matter the most – quality of dal, non iodized salt, temperature and the consistency of the batter. You can find more tips & tricks for fermentation on the soft idli post which I shared earlier.

fermented batter with lots of bubbles

13. Do not over ferment the dosa batter as it turns sour and the batter is not so good to spread on the griddle. This is a picture of over fermented batter just for your reference.

dosa batter overflowing after fermentation

14. Once your dosa batter is well fermented, keep it in the refrigerator.

Make Dosa

15. The batter will be thick after fermentation. Transfer the required portion to a mixing bowl. Pour little water as needed to make it of a pourable and spreading consistency. (please check video for consistency).

16. Add few drops of oil to a griddle or pan. Rub well with a kitchen tissue or cloth until the oil is absorbed. Make sure there is no excess oil on the pan. You can also use a sliced onion to rub the oil.

17. Heat the pan on a medium high heat. You can sprinkle few drops of water and check if it is hot and ready. It will sizzle immediately. Do not sprinkle water often on a hot non stick tawa that’s going to wear out even the best non stick coating.

18. When the pan is hot enough, regulate the heat to medium. Stir the batter in the bowl and pour a ladle full of batter in the center of the pan.

Pouring batter on tawa

19. Immediately begin to spread it evenly starting from the center in a circular way in clockwise direction to make a thin crepe.

Troubleshooting tip: If you are unable to spread the batter because it got stuck on the pan, this means either the pan is too hot or the batter is too thick. Reduce the flame and cool down the pan slightly. If that doesn’t work then pour little more water to your batter to bring to right consistency.

spreading dosa batter on the griddle

20. Keep spreading it from the center making circles till you reach the edges.

spreading batter on a hot griddle to make dosa

21. Regulate the heat to slightly high and let it cook for a minute then add oil/ghee or butter towards the edges. The edges of the dosa will begin to leave/ come off the pan when done.

22. When it turns golden or brown on the base, turn it to the otherside and cook if you like. Not all dosas require cooking on the other side, if needed you can cook. Since I made the masala dosa, I used this potato masala for filling. Plain dosa is most commonly served with coconut chutney.

golden fried masala dosa recipe

Serve the dosa right away when it is hot. They begin to soften as they cool down.

dosa recipe

Recipe 2 – Soft idli & Crispy Dosa (2-in-1 batter)

These ratios yield good crispy as well as soft dosas and can be used to make soft idlis as well. Just mixing the batter matters. A runny batter yields soft dosas. Making with moderately thick batter, but of spreadable consistency yield crispy dosas.

This can also be used to make masala dosa, paniyaram, uttapam and also soft idli. The only difference from the first recipe is the color. These do not turn as red or brown like the other one but will be golden.

If you like to make your idli and dosa batter in one go in the same blender or wet grinder, then this may be for you.

Ingredients
½ cup whole skinned urad dal
1½ cups rice for blender – 2 cups for wet grinder
½ tsp methi seeds (fenugreek seeds)
2 tbsp poha (flattened rice) (substitute ¼ tsp methi seeds)
Non iodized Salt as needed

Recipe 3 – Restaurant style Masala Dosa

If you have ever wondered how dosas made in restaurant or tiffin centers turn out so flavorful, crisp and delicious, then you will have to put in little more effort and try this karnataka restaurant style masala dosa. These are very aromatic and unique.

Recipe 4 – Sada dosa recipe

This batter can also be used for idli if the quality of urad dal is very good. Aged dal or dal from old harvest won’t work here.

These ratios yield good crispy as well as soft dosas. Just mixing the batter matters here as well. A runny batter yields soft dosas. Making with moderately thick batter, but of spreadable consistency yield crispy dosas.

This can also be used to make idli, paniyaram, uttapam. This dosa batter recipe needs just 3 ingredients

Ingredients
½ cup whole urad dhal
1 ½ cup rice
Non-iodized or crystal salt as needed

plain dosa recipe

Recipe 5 – High Protein Dosa Recipe

Healthy, high protein and high calcium dosa. These are made in most Telugu speaking homes. Great food for all, including folks recovering from illness, kids and babies above 9 months and even for under nourished.

I make this sometimes when the hubby asks for it since he loves the flavor.These have a unique flavor & taste of urad dal. If you like it, you may not look for any other recipe.

They must be served right out of the pan as they turn lightly crisp, not as crisp as the other recipes I have shared in this post.

I highly recommend this, if you have babies & kids at home (especially underweight kids). Also good for those looking for high calcium foods and even for breastfeeding mothers.

Ingredients
Half cup whole urad dal
1 cup rice

Related Recipes

Recipe Card

dosa recipe

Dosa Recipe, How to Make Dosa Batter

Dosa recipe – South Indian Lentil crepes made with fermented dosa batter. These are known as dosa or dosai and are a popular breakfast food. These are served with chutney, potato masala and sambar.
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For best results follow the step-by-step photos above the recipe card

Prep Time12 hours
Cook Time25 minutes
Total Time12 hours 25 minutes
Servings12 dosas
AuthorSwasthi

Ingredients (US cup = 240ml )

Recipe 1 – Ingredients for crispy dosa

  • ½ cup urad dal (or whole skinned black gram)
  • ¾ to 1 cup water (to blend dal)
  • cups rice (regular raw rice or basmati rice, Refer notes)
  • ½ cup water (to blend rice, may need 2 tbsps more)
  • 2 tablespoon chana dal (bengal gram)
  • ½ teaspoon fenugreek seeds (methi seeds) (optional)
  • 2 tablespoon poha (flattened rice)
  • ½ teaspoon rock salt (or non iodized salt or crystal salt)

Recipe 2 – Idli & dosa batter (2-in-1)

  • ½ cup whole urad dal (skinned whole black gram)
  • ¾ to 1 cup water (to blend dal)
  • cup rice (regular raw rice or basmati rice, refer notes)
  • ½ cup water (to blend rice, may need 2 tbsps more)
  • ½ teaspoon methi seeds (fenugreek seeds) (makes dosas golden)
  • 2 tablespoons poha (flattened rice, or substitute ¼ teaspoon methi seeds)
  • ½ teaspoon rock salt (or non iodized salt or crystal salt)

Instructions

Preparation

  • Firstly add urad dal, chana dal & methi seeds to a large bowl. Rinse them very well several times and discard the water. Soak them together in enough fresh water for 4 to 5 hours.
  • Next add rice to another bowl and rinse a few times. Pour fresh water and soak in ample water for 4 to 5 hours.

How to Make Dosa Batter

  • Soak poha in ¼ cup water 30 mins before blending the batter.
  • Drain the water from the dal & methi. Add them to a blender jar along with salt, soaked poha and ¾ cup water. You can also skip salt at this stage if you live in a hot region. Add it to the batter just before you make dosas.
  • Grind to a smooth batter until smooth & bubbly or frothy. If needed add more water about 2 to 4 tbsps. It will be of thick pouring consistency and not very runny. Transfer this to a large pot.
  • Drain the water completely from rice & add it to the jar. Then pour ½ cup water.
  • Blend to a smooth or slightly coarse batter. It will be of thick pouring consistency and not very runny.
  • Pour this to the urad dal batter and mix well both of them well with your clean hand. Warmth in the hand will help in fermentation. The consistency should not be too thick & too runny otherwise the batter will not ferment. (Check video to understand the consistency)

Fermenting Dosa Batter

  • Cover the pot and ferment it in a warm place until the batter rises and turns bubbly. If you live in a warm region, then you can just keep it on the counter overnight. It may take anywhere from 5 to 16 hours depending on the temperature.
  • To ferment in colder regions, preheat the oven at the lowest setting (140 F or 60 C) for 10 mins. Turn off the oven and keep the dosa batter inside with the oven light ON. You can also use your instant pot to ferment with the yogurt settings. Use an external lid and not the IP lid. I ferment for only 7 to 8 hours in the oven & IP.
  • Check if properly fermented: Well fermented dosa batter will rise & increase in volume. It will be frothy and bubbly. To check, drop half a spoon of this batter into a bowl filled with water. Well fermented batter will float & not sink.
  • Stir the dosa batter once. Transfer a portion of this to another small bowl to make dosas. Refrigerate the rest for up to 1 to 2 weeks.
  • The fermented batter usually becomes thick, so add little water good enough to thin it down. At this stage it has to be of a pouring consistency yet thick. (check video)
  • If making masala dosa, you will have to make this potato masala or any chutney from here.

How to Make Dosa

  • Grease a dosa pan or tawa with few drops of oil. You can also rub the oil with a slice of onion. This prevents the dosas from sticking to the pan.
  • Heat it until hot enough. To check you can sprinkle little water over then pan. If it is ready it will sizzle.
  • Stir the batter well in the bowl. Take a ladle full of dosa batter & pour on the center of the hot griddle/ tawa.
  • Immediately begin to spread it evenly starting from the center in a circular motion in clockwise direction to make a thin crepe.
  • Increase the heat to slightly high and let it cook for a minute then add oil or butter towards the edges.
  • The edges of the dosa will begin to leave/ come off the pan when done. Continue to toast until the dosa turns golden and crisp.
  • Not all dosas need to be cooked on the other side. Only thicker ones need. If you wish to cook on the other side, flip it when the edges begin to rise from the pan. Cook on the other side of the dosa. Then flip back and toast until the base becomes crisp & golden.
  • Before making the next dosa, reduce the heat to low. You can also rub with the cut onion and then pour the batter.

Notes

  1. Type of Rice: The taste & texture of the dosa depends on the kind of rice used. Here are my latest updates: You can use basmati rice or any short grain regular raw rice like sona masuri or ponni.
    You can also use 1 cup regular raw rice and ½ cup parboiled rice or idly rice.
    You can also use ¾ cup raw rice and ¾ cup parboiled rice or idly rice.
    Experiment with the above proportions and find what works for you the best in terms of taste and texture.
  2. I have shared troubleshooting tips along with the step-by-step photo instructions. If you are a beginner, you may follow that.
  3. The actual amount of water needed to make the batter depends on the kind of urad dal and soaking time. If you soak them longer, you will need lesser water.
  4. To make the batter in wet grinder, Soak the methi seeds separately. First add the soaked methi seeds to the wet grinder container. Begin to grind sprinkling water little by little. After sometime it will become fluffy, thick and frothy. Then add the urad dal and poha blend until fluffy. Followed by rice. If your wet grinder does a very good job, then you can also add dal, rice and poha together.

Alternative quantities provided in the recipe card are for 1x only, original recipe.

For best results follow my detailed step-by-step photo instructions and tips above the recipe card.

Video

NUTRITION INFO (estimation only)

Nutrition Facts
Dosa Recipe, How to Make Dosa Batter
Amount Per Serving
Calories 123
% Daily Value*
Sodium 1mg0%
Potassium 36mg1%
Carbohydrates 25g8%
Fiber 2g8%
Protein 4g8%
Vitamin C 0.3mg0%
Calcium 11mg1%
Iron 1.7mg9%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Tried this recipe?Mention @SwasthisRecipes or tag #swasthisrecipes!

© Swasthi’s Recipes

Dosa Recipe, How to Make Dosa Batter

About Swasthi

I’m Swasthi Shreekanth, the recipe developer, food photographer & food writer behind Swasthi’s Recipes. My aim is to help you cook great Indian food with my time-tested recipes. After 2 decades of experience in practical Indian cooking I started this blog to help people cook better & more often at home. Whether you are a novice or an experienced cook I am sure Swasthi’s Recipes will assist you to enhance your cooking skills. More about me

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Is urad daal necessary? Any alternative?

Thankyou for your prompt reply, if my batter has more rice than daal will that make it too sticky? Because I messed up this recipe and have not used the half cup daal and instead of rice have use rice flour…pls help

5 stars
Initially I used 2 tablespoons of channa daal, 3 tbsps of rice and 1.5 cup of rice flour. I think it was raw rice flour but I am not sure 🤔.

5 stars
Thank you for the amazing instructions.
Thank you for the great information!
I have success w/ my dosas but does not last long stored in the refrigerator.
Maybe I am fermenting for too long, or add the salt before the rise?
I also was wondering if it is important to blend separately or can it be blended all together?

5 stars
Thank you very much for the detailed information. I have a very quick, simple question, as I’m still a fair novice making fermented dosas. Every recipe I read says to “pour a ladleful of batter onto a hot tawa”, but how much, exactly, is a ladleful? Is it 1/4 cup? Is it 75 ml? I just want to be precise and give my dosas the best chance to be crispy and thin. Thank you for your help and advise.

Its seem theoretical knowledge where to get the practical knowledge as I am interested in making batter for idly n dosa for both restaurants n homes please advose

5 stars
Absolutely delicious, I am English and have been trying to perfect dosa for many years, I made the batter in a kitchen Ninja smoothie maker and for the first time mixed it by hand, I have never seen it ferment so well. I made them and they are crispy and so more-ish. After watching the “Flying Dosa” guy on youtube I will be making them with the mashed filling later ( I have cheated and pre prepped this) and only cooking them on one side and then rolling them to serve with coconut chutney. I am very proud to be living in the UK but able to prepare authentic dosa, considering I haven’t any Indian heritage. Thankyou 🙂

5 stars
Thanks for the great detailed explanation of every step – the photos, the video! So good!! I’ve eaten them the last 3 meals in a row – about to make more!!

5 stars
I have a quick question that I thought would be easy to answer, but I haven’t had luck with Google. How much batter should I use per dosa? I need a new flat-bottomed dosa ladle because my old one mysteriously disappeared, but I’ve seen so many different sizes. Is it 1/4 cup? 4 ounces? 8 ounces? I am so confused. I know it depends on the size of your tawa, but mine is the standard size. Can you

5 stars
We own a mobile restaurant serving Asian foods and recently introduced dosa on our menu. We serve the dosas with podi and tomato chutney. They are gone by noon and we get to reach home early. Thanks to you for the recipes and they have helped us. I plan to order a new highspeed blender soon because preparing the batter is easier. We plan to introduce chana masala soon with rice. We are using your recipe again. You really do a great service to the society. Stay blessed…..

Do you have a link to the tawa you are using? Looks good and I want to purchase that.

I’m sure the dosa is reasonably healthy and quite tasty, but I wouldn’t call it protein rich. Carb : Protein ratio is well over 7 : 1.

Hi

Nice and simple recipe, I just have one question, what is the ratio if you use split urad dal intead of whole urad dal?

5 stars
Your blog is a one-stop online library for me. I use them often and love this post especially for the number of options you give us. Thank you very much. I have a question regarding millets. I would like to use foxtail millets for dosa. Please advice.

I’ve read that chlorinated water can inhibit the fermentation process? Is this correct?

5 stars
Can you please share if fermented foods are okay to eat by diabetics like these dosas and idli? Please I’m looking for information and unable to find. I have been making them for a diabetic family member and want to change if it is needed. TIA

5 stars
I cook often from your site and everything I made so far turned out amazing. My husband is a Indian and loves dosas but I haven’t made them any time. Advice me the easiest one from these many dosa recipes you have. Thank you and keep up the good work.

5 stars
Excellent recipe! I used the measurements as a guideline and made it in the wet grinder using 1:3 ratio. Applied the tips as needed and the result was an excellent Dosa batter! Thank you, Swasthi 🌸

5 stars
Thanks for teaching me different kinds of dosa. Love them all and have tried each one of them. My family thinks I am a super chef & the credit goes to you. Your dosa aloo and sada dosa is by far the best!

5 stars
Hiii Swasthi….
For today’s breakfast, I tried out your 2 in 1 idli-dosa batter. Super soft dosa!!! As you suggested, I used rock salt for quick fermentation.. that too worked!! You made my day once again!! Thanks alot..

5 stars
Hi,I love your web site.You give clear and precise instructions and the recipes come out well. What kind of blender do you use,what is the wattage?I have wet grinder but don’t enjoy the lifting and cleaning the machine.Thank you.

5 stars
Is 500 watt also sufficient for making less quantity of batter ?

5 stars
Excellent recipe, delicious dosas. Just one comment: the recipe suggests using your hand to stir the rice batter into the urad dal batter because “warmth in the hand will help in fermentation”, but the tiny amount of heat transferred from your hand to the batter during stirring won’t actually make a noticeable difference in fermentation. There’s no need to get your hand all messy. I use a spoon whenever I make this recipe and the fermentation has always been excellent.

5 stars
Thankyou so much for sharing your recipes. They are amazing and so helpful. I’m a beginner to cooking and most of my recipes I have learnt from your website!!