What You Are Making
Anyone who has watched a dosa cook knows the sound. Batter hits the hot iron with a short hiss, the ladle swings out in a quick spiral, and within seconds a pale wet circle has become a wide, golden disc that crackles when the cook lifts the edge. The batter is nearly the same one that makes idli, yet the skill is utterly different. The fermenting is only half the work. The rest is in the wrist and in the heat of the pan. A batter can be perfectly sour and airy and still produce torn, patchy, rubbery dosa if the griddle is too cool or the spreading is timid. When it all comes together, you get a crepe that is thin, shatteringly crisp and faintly tangy. It can be wrapped around a spiced potato filling, as for masala dosa, or eaten plain, torn into pieces and dipped in chutney and sambar.
The Dish’s Backstory
The beginnings of dosa are unclear, much like those of idli. Both grew out of a single South Indian tradition of fermented batters, and the early record is thin and quarrelled over. What is on firmer ground is the dish's central place in the kitchens of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, where regional styles took shape over time. The huge, paper-thin dosa served in Chennai restaurants is not the same thing as the thicker, more textured ones eaten in parts of rural Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. Udupi, on the coast of Karnataka, is generally given the credit for making the masala dosa popular, the version stuffed with spiced potato. Udupi-style restaurants then carried that format across India and abroad.
At the Stove, Step by Step
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Prep
Loosen the batter
Idli batter is stiff, but this one has to flow. Aim for the pour of a runny pancake mixture that slides off the ladle in a steady ribbon and still feels a little creamy. Add water by the spoonful, stirring and watching. How much it takes varies with the age of the batter and its starting thickness.
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Prep
Heat and season the pan
Warm the tawa on medium-high until a sprinkle of water skitters and disappears almost instantly. Spear half an onion on a fork, dip the cut face in oil and sweep it over the iron, or use an oily rag instead. The film makes the first dosa release without a fight, and that first one is normally the troublemaker.
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Cook
Pour and spread in a single motion
Drop the flame to medium. Tip a ladleful of batter onto the centre and sweep the bottom of the ladle outward in one continuous spiral, never lifting it, until the batter becomes a thin, even round. A pause part way through leaves heavy rings and bald spots, so once the ladle moves, keep going to the rim.
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Cook
Oil the edges and wait
Drizzle some oil or ghee along the outer rim and across the top. Then give it 1 1/2 to 2 minutes without touching it. Watch for the rim pulling away from the iron in a golden-brown ruffle, and for the middle to lose its shine and look matte. There is no need to turn it. This thin style cooks on one side only.
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Cook
Fold or fill and lift off
Once the base is a deep gold and rattles under the spatula, crease the dosa into halves or thirds and ease it onto a plate. For masala dosa, spoon a stripe of potato along the centre before closing it. Keep adjusting the flame from one dosa to the next: lower it when the pan runs hot, raise it when the batter drags or refuses to crisp.
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Serve
Bring it to the table at once
Get it to the plate immediately, while the surface still shatters under a finger. Within minutes it turns leathery. Coconut chutney and a bowl of sambar are the usual company.
Stand-ins If You Are Short
Batter that has fermented for only a day gives a softer, milder dosa than batter that is two or three days old, and both are fine. More fermentation generally means more crispness and a sharper sour taste. Some cooks blend a spoonful of cooked rice or a pinch of sugar into the batter to encourage browning and crunch, although this is not a tradition everywhere.
Dial the Chilli Up or Down
A plain dosa has no heat. Spice and flavour arrive through the chutneys, the sambar or a seasoned filling such as the one used for masala dosa, and each of those can be adjusted to taste without touching the dosa itself.
Where It Goes Wrong
Almost every failure traces back to the heat of the iron. A cool pan lets the batter pool instead of stretching, and then it clings and rips when you try to lift it. A scorching pan sets the batter on contact, before the ladle can move, so you are left with a thick, uneven disc. Hesitant spreading is the second trap, because a stop in the middle of the spiral leaves heavy patches. A third problem is a pan that was not seasoned enough, which makes the first few dosa stick. This usually sorts itself out after two or three, as the surface builds up a thin protective film.
Leftovers, Kept and Revived
Keeping: Left in the refrigerator, the batter goes on fermenting at a crawl for 4 to 5 days and turns sourer each day. It stiffens while it waits, so stir in a splash of water before every session at the stove. Cooked dosa neither store nor reheat well, because their whole appeal is that they are fresh and crisp.
Reviving: Warming a finished dosa in a dry pan over medium heat for about a minute per side will bring back some of the crunch, though never quite as much as a fresh one gives. Dosa belongs to the kind of cooking that is done to order, not ahead of time.
Handle This Part Carefully
Well-fermented batter smells pleasantly and mildly sour. Throw it away if it smells sharp, boozy or rotten, or if you see any discolouration or mould, and do not cook with it. Keep the batter chilled between uses once it has fermented to your liking, and take out only the portion you need, letting it warm briefly to room temperature so it spreads more easily.