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Masala Dosa, also called Masale dosey, is a South Indian dish. It is a type of dosa and has its origin in the town of Udupi in Karnataka. It is made from rice, lentils, Urad dal, Chana dal, fenugreek, puffed rice, Toor dal, dry red chilli and served with potato curry, chutneys, and sambar. It is popular in South India, but can be found in all other parts of the country and overseas. In South India, the preparation of masala dosa varies from city to city. There are variations in Masala dosa like Davanagere butter dosa and paper masala dosa.

Ingredients for Dosa

• 500g of short grain rice, ideally dosa rice or ‘parboiled’ rice (which can be bought in specialist Indian grocers)
• 125g of urad dal
• 1/2 tbsp of fenugreek seeds, (methi)
• 1 tbsp of chana dal
• sea salt, to taste
• vegetable oil, for drizzling

Ingredients for Masala

• 1 1/2 tbsp of vegetable oil
• 1/4 tsp mustard seeds
• 1/4 tbsp of chana dal
• 1/8 tbsp of urad dal
• 1 green chilli, finely chopped
• 1 whole dried kashmiri chilli
• 1.5cm of fresh ginger, finely chopped
• 1 sprig of curry leaf
• 1/2 onion, finely chopped
• 1/4 tsp ground turmeric
• 250g of potatoes, boiled until soft, then peeled
• salt
• fresh coriander, chopped, to serve

Method to make Dosa

Begin with the dosa batter 6 hours in advance. Wash then soak all the dosa ingredients (apart from the salt) in cold water for 6 hours

• 500g of short grain rice, ideally dosa rice or ‘parboiled’ rice (which can be bought in specialist Indian grocers)
• 125g of urad dal
• 1/2 tbsp of fenugreek seeds, (methi)
• 1 tbsp of chana dal

After this time, strain the ingredients and place in a blender. Add a little fresh cold water and blend until smooth, slowly adding more water if needed – you want it to be the consistency of double cream. Transfer to a bowl, cover loosely and leave at room temperature to ferment overnight. It ferments better in a warm environment

Now While the batter fermentation takes place let prepare the masala…

Method to Make Masala

To make the masala, heat the vegetable oil in a pan and add the mustard seeds until they begin to crackle. Add the urad dal and chana dal, both chillies, the ginger and curry leaves and cook for a minute, but be careful not to burn

• 1 1/2 tbsp of vegetable oil
• 1/4 tsp mustard seeds
• 1/4 tbsp of chana dal
• 1/8 tbsp of urad dal
• 1 green chilli, finely chopped
• 1 whole dried kashmiri chilli
• 1.5cm of fresh ginger, finely chopped
• 1 sprig of curry leaf

Add the onions and cook over a medium-low heat until soft then add the turmeric and cook for a final minute

• 1/2 onion, finely chopped
• 1/4 tsp ground turmeric

Crush the boiled potatoes – do not mash completely as you still want some texture. Add the crushed potato to the pan and mix to combine evenly. Taste and season with salt. Set aside to reheat before serving or keep warm

• 250g of potatoes, boiled until soft, then peeled
• salt

Dosa preparation method continues…

To cook the dosa, heat a very wide non-stick or cast-iron flat pan until it starts to smoke. Turn the heat down and add a ladle of the batter, spreading it evenly on the pan in a circular motion using the back of the ladle

Drizzle a bit of oil and salt over the batter and cook until the dosa is golden in colour. Flip it over and cook for a further minute

• sea salt, to taste
• vegetable oil, for drizzling

Serve up immediately on a tray with the masala potatoes sprinkled with coriander along with a selection of chutneys and curries. Avinash serves his with a summer vegetable sagu (a dish from Karnataka), coconut chutney and tomato and split pea chutney

• A selection of chutneys, pickles or other Indian vegetable side dishes
• fresh coriander, chopped, to serve