A TALE OF TWO IDLIS
I might have been born non-vegetarian, but my most favourite food of all time was, is and will always be the humble Idly. Made with a fermented batter of urad dal and rice this simple steamed delicacy is actually a lot more healthy than many of us think.
The peculiar smell of freshly steamed idlies bring back childhood memories of lazy summer mornings, cold rainy days and walking down Seven Wells street to the 'idly woman's shop', where we would watch her steam her idlies and hand grind fresh chutney for us hungry kids.
Although the ingredients are simple, an idly made the wrong way could turn out too soft or too hard and utterly unpalatable. The assortment of chutneys, sambar and idly podi that usually accompany the otherwise bland idly can transform this into a truly delightful and sumptuous breakfast.
When my girls started school, 8 kms away from home, I often found myself dropping them and heading in for an early start at the office, thus began my quest for the perfect idly breakfast.
My formula is simple, I drop the kids and head out to a restaurant that serves breakfast at 7.50 am. The order is always the same: two idlies, one vada and a filter coffee. Although this started out as a fun quest, I soon realised that there was so much to share about the big differences in taste, price and ambience in each of the restaurants I visited.
So I decided to share my results in this blog, in the hope that it would help anyone who finds themselves with an empty stomach on the streets of Chennai at 7.50 am.
Enjoy!
The peculiar smell of freshly steamed idlies bring back childhood memories of lazy summer mornings, cold rainy days and walking down Seven Wells street to the 'idly woman's shop', where we would watch her steam her idlies and hand grind fresh chutney for us hungry kids.
Although the ingredients are simple, an idly made the wrong way could turn out too soft or too hard and utterly unpalatable. The assortment of chutneys, sambar and idly podi that usually accompany the otherwise bland idly can transform this into a truly delightful and sumptuous breakfast.
When my girls started school, 8 kms away from home, I often found myself dropping them and heading in for an early start at the office, thus began my quest for the perfect idly breakfast.
My formula is simple, I drop the kids and head out to a restaurant that serves breakfast at 7.50 am. The order is always the same: two idlies, one vada and a filter coffee. Although this started out as a fun quest, I soon realised that there was so much to share about the big differences in taste, price and ambience in each of the restaurants I visited.
So I decided to share my results in this blog, in the hope that it would help anyone who finds themselves with an empty stomach on the streets of Chennai at 7.50 am.
Enjoy!
