Cracked Wheat and Moong Dal Crepes (Dosa without fermentation)

My grandmother used to prepare this moong dal dosa with raw rice and it was my favorite. I substitute the rice with either cracked wheat or corn grits and it tastes equally good and is healthy too. Technically this is adai I guess because it uses spices, coconut, lentils and not urad daal. Also the batter does not require fermentation. Since the batter has to be in the consistency of dosa batter, very smooth and thin, it qualifies for dosa. You would be surprised that these dosas doesn’t taste anything like wheat. Nobody can guess it’s made of cracked wheat.
Yield: 12 medium size dosas.
2 Drain the dal in a colander and reserve the water. Blend together the daals and chilies with some of the reserved water until smooth.
3 Then add the soaked cracked wheat, coconut, ginger, tomato puree. Add water as needed to get a smooth batter.
4 Tranfer the batter to a bowl, add salt and mix well. The batter is ready to make the dosas. No need to ferment it.
5 Heat a tava. Sprinkle some water to check if the tava is hot enough. Take the batter in a ladle and pour it on the pan and spread it into a thin circle with the back of the ladle.
6 It takes about 2 minutes for the batter to cook. If you want it crisp you can wait for another minute or until you see a reddish thin crust in the middle. You could either use little oil to top the dosa or use a non stick spray like Pam and spray it lightly in a circular motion on top of the dosa. Using the non stick spray effectively requires some practice. You have to press the nozzle with very light pressure, otherwise there’s going to be an “oil rain” on the dosa. Since the batter is thin, unlike the regular adai batter this one cooks well even without oil. Flip it and cook the other side for another minute.
7 Turn it over once again and roll it just like shown in the picture or serve it as it is.
2The tomato puree in the batter is optional. I got this idea from another blogger Ashwini. I usually prepare this adai without tomato and that’s good too. But the tomato makes it little tangy and also gives a nice color to the dosa. You could use one small tomato chopped instead of the puree. If adding chopped tomatoes grind it together with the daals itself, otherwise it may not blend properly.
3 This dosa is good either soft or crispy. If you want it soft take it a minute early.
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November 2nd, 2009 at 1:56 pm
can the dough be refridgerated for a week?
I don’t think it will be nice. I’m guessing it will become sour. Usually adai batters are best when used fresh.
August 26th, 2009 at 6:02 pm
Hi,
Can i use bulgur instead of cracked wheat? I really want to try this recipe as i am looking for healthy recipes. thanks heaps,
Shina
I’m not sure about it Shina. But I think it should work fine, since it also wheat but cooked and dried.
April 12th, 2009 at 7:42 pm
I tried this today but with a slight variation used couscous since I did not have cracked wheat and added one green tomato for a tangy taste.Thanks for posting a healthy version of a dosa.
Couscous! that’s really an interesting idea Priya.
March 14th, 2009 at 7:07 am
The taste was amazing. I was able to make it finally – I used toor dal in place of red lentils just because I didn’t have them. Also instead of the tomato paste, I put a whole tomato and blended it together to make a smooth batter. My family loved it and I know that I will be making this again and again. Thank you very much.
I’m so glad that you tried it and liked it Gita. Thank you for the feedback.
March 4th, 2009 at 7:45 pm
lovely pic..looks yummy n mouthwatering !!
March 3rd, 2009 at 3:23 pm
Man, that looks so good. Would love to make it. What can I substitute the red lentils with – ususally I don’t keep it at home.
Thanks for sharing…
Gita, you can use moong daal itself or use 1/4 cup of toor daal. My mother tried it with toor daal and she told that it was very good.
February 28th, 2009 at 4:26 pm
Hi Madhu,
Nice one.. !! I make Pesarattu.. (which is the moong dal raw rice version you mentioned your grandma makes…) I would love to substitute it with wheat.. ! Thanks for sharing..
February 24th, 2009 at 12:23 pm
This is my first time commenting,although have tried different recipes from here.I tried your apple cake and it was awesome…..(I have baked from other blogs but never has come out as good as yours)
I have tried the Cracked wheat idli,dosa, Zucchini pappu and Zucchini fritters,they came out well.Thanks for your recipes and great work…..
Thank you very much Shobha for the feedback. I really appreciate it.
February 21st, 2009 at 7:57 pm
U added wheat to this!! looks crispy yet spongy. wonderful pics too.
February 20th, 2009 at 9:21 pm
Mm..that picture of yours is making me hungry