Food science is a field that does not look complicated but is a bit important as compared to other fields of science. The food recipes we follow while making our favorite dishes at home do not result in accidents, but have gone through a lot of hits and trials, and more importantly, research.
This particular concept was illustrated by Sweta Shivakumar, a food researcher and blogger. Shweta conducted a food experiment in which she used the very popular South Indian dishes, idli and dosa, and showed why the dishes ask people to boil rice before making the batter.
She demonstrated her experiment on a Twitter thread and also posted it on her blog ‘Upgrade My Food’. In the sutra, Sweta explains the premise of her experiment and writes, “Why is steamed rice always called for in idli/dosa recipes? What happens if we make idli, dosa batter from raw rice? I did an experiment to find out.
Why is it always called for boiled rice in idli/dosa recipes? Or idli rava (which is essentially light boiled)? What happens if we make idli, dosa batter with just raw rice?
To find out, I did an experiment and here are the results: pic.twitter.com/XotvQoQt9Y
— Shweta Shivakumar (@Upgrade_My_Food) December 10, 2021
Sweta made two different batters – one with urad dal and boiled rice and the other with urad dal and raw rice.
Why is it always called for boiled rice in idli/dosa recipes? Or idli rava (which is essentially light boiled)? What happens if we make idli, dosa batter with just raw rice?
To find out, I did an experiment and here are the results: pic.twitter.com/XotvQoQt9Y
— Shweta Shivakumar (@Upgrade_My_Food) December 10, 2021
She used the same water ratio and blending time for both batters and compared the texture of both batters before placing them in the sun for a day to trigger the fermentation process.
Step 2: Grind the Batter Grinding Made with the Exact Water Ratio, Blending Power and Time. One difference I noticed was that the texture of the ground boiled water was slightly thicker than the raw rice batter which was smoother. pic.twitter.com/jxloHgy3jQ— Shweta Shivakumar (@Upgrade_My_Food) December 10, 2021
Despite grinding them for the same amount of time, notice how fine and smooth the raw rice batter is. The texture of the boiled rice batter feels gritty. This is apparently due to the effect of the on-boiling process, which causes the starch in the rice to retrograde and harden. pic.twitter.com/J0o68oU8DV
— Shweta Shivakumar (@Upgrade_My_Food) December 10, 2021
Step 3: Ferment the Batter, It was a hot, sunny day. So, I put the batter on the patio and left it to ferment during the day. pic.twitter.com/WNDTj7Hb2p— Shweta Shivakumar (@Upgrade_My_Food) December 10, 2021
Then he analyzed how different the two batters are in terms of fermentation. Boiled rice slurry ferments faster than raw rice slurry. Sweta explains that since the steamed rice is already slightly cooked, it provides Lactobacillus bacteria to boost the hog on the sugars in the rice. If the rice is already boiled it kind of introduces bacteria.
In the evening (about 10 hours later), I excitedly bought the batter inside, to see the condition of the batsmen. I opened the lid to find this: pic.twitter.com/ugCDJCdn8V— Shweta Shivakumar (@Upgrade_My_Food) December 10, 2021
The par boiled rice batter was well fermented and bubbly. Unfortunately the raw rice slurry was not showing much signs of fermentation. pic.twitter.com/GuOiHLs6JF— Shweta Shivakumar (@Upgrade_My_Food) December 10, 2021
So, anyway, I thought “oh well, I guess raw rice is hard to ferment…”. I left the raw rice batter overnight and fell asleep. To my surprise, the next morning I found the raw rice batter fermented!! pic.twitter.com/9b1usV8hrk
— Shweta Shivakumar (@Upgrade_My_Food) December 10, 2021
So, anyway, I thought “oh well, I guess raw rice is hard to ferment…”. I left the raw rice batter overnight and fell asleep. To my surprise, the next morning I found the raw rice batter fermented!! pic.twitter.com/9b1usV8hrk
— Shweta Shivakumar (@Upgrade_My_Food) December 10, 2021
So, while it is possible to ferment raw rice batter, it takes longer. Remember that Para boiled, as the name suggests, is cooked evenly. That 1 extra step gives the Lactobacillus bacteria the boost it needs to quickly access the sugar in rice.—Shweta Sivakumar (@Upgrade_My_Food) December 10, 2021
You can see raw rice batter recipes that ask you to add some poha, murmura or a handful of cooked rice while grinding – that’s exactly the reason. This gives bacteria a head start in digesting and fermenting grains.—Shweta Shivakumar (@Upgrade_My_Food) December 10, 2021
Now that both the batters were ready, it was time to make the idli and dosa and really see how different the dishes would turn out. It turns out that the idli is thicker than a lightly boiled batter, i.e. it gets ‘more lift’ than the raw rice batter. But, on the contrary, the raw rice batter won out when it came to the dosa. According to Sweta’s food experiment, the battered dosa of raw rice was more crispy and tasty.
Step 4: To make Idli, I measured the exact same amount of batter and steamed 2 types of batter together.
Here’s how they turned out: Look, how steamed rice widens. This is because the batter had more rise, aka more lift, than the raw rice batter. pic.twitter.com/KjWyGqaXFC
— Shweta Shivakumar (@Upgrade_My_Food) December 10, 2021
Step 5: To make dosa I have used batter to make dosa. Here’s what I found:
Light Boiled Rice Dosa: Pay attention to the lightness/airiness of the batter, which makes it easier to peel the dosa once it is removed from the pan. pic.twitter.com/iHEYDxU9pP
— Shweta Shivakumar (@Upgrade_My_Food) December 10, 2021
Next, the raw rice batter: The raw rice batter sticks more to the pan. This gives it a better browning, which makes it more flavorful and crispier than steamed rice batter. pic.twitter.com/uYEuecDgWb
— Shweta Shivakumar (@Upgrade_My_Food) December 10, 2021
Here are 2 dosas side-by-side: While the steamed rice batter comes off easily from the pan, the raw rice dosa is definitely tastier (the one with those wonderfully crunchy, jagged edges) than the steamed rice batter dosa. ) Was. pic.twitter.com/GLsvtYtREl— Shweta Shivakumar (@Upgrade_My_Food) December 10, 2021
Conclusion: Boiled rice batter ferments quicker and easier than raw rice batter
Idli Idli rises better, has more springiness and is made with lightly boiled rice than with raw rice.
Dosa made with raw rice batter is more crisp and tasty.
— Shweta Shivakumar (@Upgrade_My_Food) December 10, 2021
This food experiment made it clear how a slurry of raw rice isn’t always a bad choice. Rather it can make your dosa even more delicious if not idli.
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