Podi Idli

It is snowing outside my window as I am writing this post. In fact, we woke up to a temperature of about negative 30 deg C, the day I made these idlis. The weather we have right now is not the kind that is conducive for idli and dosa batter fermentation. The subzero temperatures and wind chills are not however stopping me from trying out these south Indian signature dishes in my kitchen. A warm oven and longer hours of fermentation (than usual) are yielding me somewhat "close to perfect" kind of batters in this harsh climate. And so I am here with a 'idli' based evening snack for this week's blogging marathon with the theme of Indian Tiffin dishes.

Usually I prepare a large batch of idlis and freeze them to use later during time constraints, either as a breakfast or to prepare an evening snack. Recently I had some leftover mini idlis and used them to prepare this podi idli. Podi idli is a dish inspired from Tamilian kitchens and uses leftover idlis and milagai podi to create a quick and yummy snack. It tastes altogether different from it's base dish 'idli' and hence provides a variety to taste buds for those who are tired of eating idlis.

Ingredients:
Button Idlis / Mini Idlis (About 25)
1 tbsp oil
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1 onion, finely chopped
2 tbsp. Idli milagai podi
Salt to taste
Minced cilantro to garnish

Method:
* Heat oil and add mustard and cumin seeds. When mustard seeds start to crackle, add onion and fry them until translucent.
* Add the mini idlis, salt, milagai powder and chili powder if using and mix well until all the idlis are coated well with the powder.
* Turn off the stove, garnish with cilantro and serve immediately.

Notes:
* I used this idli milagai podi, that also had some grated dry coconut added to it.
* Regular sized idlis can be substituted instead of mini ones. Cube them and use as needed.
* To make the dish wholesome, vegetables can be added in this recipe. After onions are fried, add finely chopped vegetables and saute them.
* Add about 1/2 tsp chili powder if you want the dish to be more spicier or reduce the quantity of milagai powder if serving kids.

This 'podi idli' is going to be a part of this week's BM theme of  'Tiffin / Nasta'. Check here to see what my fellow marathoners are cooking during Blogging Marathon #48.


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