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Ridge Gourd(Uppu Huli) Dosa

Ridge Gourd(Uppu Huli) Dosa is one of the traditional cuisine of Udupi, Mangalore region popularly know as Dakshina Kannada. People here are well known for their unique cooking style with minimum or no wastage. They cook from almost all edible parts of any given vegetables. Ridge gourd is one of the locally grown vegetable. This dosa is usually prepared during rainy or winter season to keep the body warm. There are few variation of this dosa too. Ridge Gourd can be replaced with fine chopped onion, fenugreek leaves or fine chopped cabbage. However Ridge gourd is the most famous authentic and tasty among all variation.

The batter of ridge gourd dosa is made with rice and flavored with methi seeds, coriander seeds, chili, tamarind pulp, jaggery and freshly grated coconut. The  right amount of tanginess, spiciness and fresh aroma of coriander seeds gives a trickle to your taste bud. You can adjust the spiciness as per your taste. This dosa doesn’t require any fermentation before preparation. The texture and taste of ridge gourd dosa makes it very different than other any other regular dosa. It’s not as crispy as other regular dosas however it taste really awesome. Traditional recipe does not include Quinoa in the dosa however I have added it give a slight twist. My kids are very picky eater and they doesn’t like any vegetable which they can see, so I generally grind the vegetable and mix it in batter.  My kids loved ground ridge gaurd dosa. Goes well when served with hot cup of tea as breakfast.

I learnt about this dosa from one my friend Akhila Ramakrishna as she prepared it for dinner when we visited her place. She is really a good cook especially Mangalore special foods. I am very thankful to her for sharing this recipe with me which helped me posting it on my blog site.

Bisi Bele Bath

Bisi bele bath is one of most popular dish in Karnataka. The recipe is very similar to north Indian khichdi. In Kannada, bisi means hot, bele means daal and bath means rice hence the name. Rice and daal cooked along with veggie, spices, and jaggery makes this dish delicious. I am very fond of south Indian food and this is one of my favorite dish. The aroma of bisi bele bath masala, curry leaves, ghee and tamarind creates a craving for the food. You can use home made Bisi bele bath masala which gives an awesome freshness and taste to this dish but if not available, you could use store bought MTR Bisi bele bath masala powder. Bisi bele bath tastes best when served hot, topped with ghee along with papad and kara boondi.