Ragi, Sorghum and Moong Dal Adai (Pesarattu) (Lentil and Millet spicy pancake)

Whole Ragi dosai, while it takes a little bit of planning and time tastes much better than dosai made with ragi flour. The sticky mealy feel of the dosai when it is made with ragi flour is completely absent. Truth be told after my mom introduced me to these whole ragi dosais I have not had the heart to buy ragi flour anymore even though I do not have ready access to whole ragi. End result far less usage of ragi. Sad. I know.

Anyway I had the last stash of whole ragi and sorghum which I wanted to put to good use. Adai is one of those dishes that is filling and also tasty. I have tried making Adai with several lentils like this one here. The Andhra style adai or pesarattu is made primarily with moong dal and that is what I decided to cook. Instead of the small amount of rice that is used I decided to use the whole ragi and sorghum.


Also Adai has been on my mind ever since my friend mentioned about the Adai/pesrattu she tasted at Whole Foods in DC. While these adai dosais are sometimes thick like uttampam/oothappam they can made crispy like a regular dosai roast.

I prefer them to be crispy and the side that goes best with this is just a simple coconut chutney.

Note:If you do not have ragi or sorghum try brown rice or just white rice.

Ragi, Sorghum and Moong Dal Adai - Lentil and Millet Spicy Pancake
Preparation Time:8 hours + 30 minutes + 8 hours (for presoaking the grains and lentils, grinding and fermenting)
Cooking Time:20-25 minutes

Ingredients

1. 1 cup split Moong dal (paasi paruppu)
2. 1/4 cup Sorghum
3. 1/2 cup Whole Ragi
4. 5 Red Chilies
5. 2 inch piece of ginger
6. small piece of asfoetida (a couple of pinches worth or slightly more)
7. salt to taste
8. oil to make the dosa

To Make the Batter

1. Soak the Ragi, Sorghum and the Moong Dal overnight after they have been washed till the water runs clear. The next drain the soaking water and rinse once.
2. Using a wet grinder or blender blend the grains and lentils. Start with the sorghum and when it is partially grounded add in the ragi and let them blend to a nearly smooth paste.
3. At this point add in the soaked moong, red chilies, ginger and asfoetida and let them grind to a fairly smooth or slightly coarse paste.
4. Add salt and remove to a container. Do not add too much water, just enough to be pourable consistency. Should be fairly thick.
5. Set it in a warm place to ferment. I left it in an oven with the light on for about 8 hours.

Method

1. Heat a dosai pan or griddle and add a laddle full of the batter and spread fairly thin in a circle. Drizzle oil on the sides. Let cook on one side. Flip and cook for a minute on the other side.

Serve with coconut chutney or any coconut/yogurt based gravies for best taste.

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