Plain Dosa

Wash and soak black gram, rice and fenugreek seeds for 4 hours. They can be soaked separately or combined before soaking.

When properly soaked, grind together until you have a smooth batter, adding about 1/2 cup to 1 cup water, as needed. (I use a tabletop wet grinder, but you can also use a blender or food processor.) Scrape sides of bowl while grinding. You want a smooth batter with bubbles.

Remove from the grinder. Add salt and mix well. The batter should be fairly thick. Allow to ferment 5–8 hours, or up to overnight in the refrigerator. Batter will become looser as it ferments.

Heat dosa pan (lava, or other flat griddle) over medium heat. Sprinkle some water on the pan to check the heat; if water sizzles, pan is hot enough.

Spread a ladleful of batter on the pan, spreading in a circular motion to form the crepe. Pour 1 teaspoon oil on the batter and cook until light brown. Flip and cook on the other side, until light brown. Remove from heat and repeat with remaining batter.

Serve plain dosa with peanut chutney, coconut chutney and any pickle.