Davangere Benne Masala Dosa

Davangere Benne Masala Dosa - Is a "masala dosa' variant where the dosa, the potato curry and the chutney is white in color and use of turmeric or coriander is minimal to nil. Its distinct taste is because of this feature and of course because of generous use of butter while making and serving the dosa. Davangere is a place in Karnataka in the southern part of India and this dish had its beginning there and became very popular.. hence the name. In restaurants where this type of dosa is served, its generally made on firewood heated large tava/stone which carries the smoky flavor when served. When  eaten along with subtly flavored coconut chutney its just out of the world! In my place we eat this dish in a brunch on a lazy Sunday as its very sumptuous and filling! Kids especially like this as its not very spicy but at the same time its very yummy :)

For this preparation 3 items are required. The Dosa batter [specifically for Davangere Benne Masala Dosa] ; The Aloo Curry for the filling and the Coconut Chutney.

                                        

To serve 4:

Ingredients to make Dosa Batter :

• 1 cup Urad Dal
• 2 cups Dosa Rice [thicker grains compared to the regular rice we cook for steamed rice]
• 3/4th cup Beaten rice also called as Poha or Avalakki [soak for half an hour before grinding]

How to prepare the batter for this masala dosa:

• Soak Urad Dal and Dosa rice for 4-5 hrs and grind to a smooth paste. 
• Grind the soaked beaten rice or poha and mix well and let it all come together and get the same consistency. Make sure its not very runny as the dosa batter needs to be firm but at the same time good enough to spread it easily on the tava.
• Please note i haven't added methi seeds which we generally add in dosa batters as i wanted to keep the whole dish white based.
• Let the batter ferment and rise. You could add a pinch of soda as well. Preferably set aside overnight.
• Mix the batter well and add salt to taste.

Ingredients to make potato/ aloo curry for this masala dosa:

• Potatoes - 6 medium sized [boil peel and mash]
• Onion - 2 medium sized [chopped]
• Curry leaves - a sprig [chopped]
• Green chillies - 3-4 [slit]
• Salt to taste

How to make the potato / aloo curry:

• Heat a pan and add about a tbsp cooking oil. Add a tsp of mustard and urad dal and let it crackle. Add the onions, curry leaves and chillies. Fry till translucent. You could sprinkle some water so that the onion doesn't change the color.. remember white is key for this dish! before onions caramelize and change color add the roughly mashed potatoes to the mixture and mix well. Add salt and mix. Turn off the heat and set aside to cool.

For Coconut chutney recipe pls click on the following link:

http://www.manethindi.com/2016/07/kayi-chutney-coconut-chutney.html

How to make the dosa - 

• Heat a "cast iron" or well seasoned "iron" skillet or tava and when its evenly heated till smoke appears, reduce the flame to medium and then pour a ladle full of batter and keep spreading the batter clockwise.
• Once the batter is spread, increase the flame to high and add a tsp of oil/ghee and let it cook. 

• In this dosa recipe we dont flip it over and cook the other side as its done only on one side. the other side is let to get roasted as we work on the top part of the dosa. You can see holes appearing which is the sign of a well fermented batter. 
• At this point of time, take a tsp or 2 of the coconut chutney which is also white and spread it evenly and as per taste. let it cook for a min or 2. [i have used less chutney as this dosa was for my little one :)]

  

• take a big scoop of the potato curry and place it in the middle. By this time the dosa would have cooked through.

• Fold the dosa to half and smear some butter on top. 
• Serve piping hot with white coconut chutney!