Oman dining: The many ways of dosa

There was a time when dosas meant just a plain crepe cooked on the girdle accompanied with chutney and sambhar. But not any more. This eternal South Indian favourite is now made in a variety of ways. Prepare at home or walk into one of the restaurants serving this delight, the humble dosa has taken many avatars. What was once only available in South Indian restaurants are now found in many upscale restaurants, cafés, and hotels too owing to its versatility.

From plain ones to the stuffed and the ones with a twist like the Chinese dosa, the taste and flavours of dosa has been reinvented catering to the global audience. It has been an integral part of Indian breakfast culture for long.

Mainly made from rice flour and urad dal that are soaked and later ground, the batter is mixed with water to get the desired thickness. Mostly the consistency of the batter should not be very thin but it varies depending upon the kind of dosa that you are making.
Here are a few popular dosas one can try.

Masala Dosa
Masala dosa is like a fermented crepe with stuffing of mashed potatoes and onions with a little spice and served with coconut chutney and sambhar.

Neer Dosa
A thin, crispy dosa made with a runny rice batter. Unlike the regular dosa, neer dosa does not require more time for soaking and fermentation. It is white and a very thin dosa.

Rava Dosa
These are wafer thin dosas made with semolina. You can also stuff them with bhaji or potato fry.

Cheese Chilli Dosa
A fusion of desi food with western flavours. Make it the same way but add cheese to it to get the flavour.

Mysore Masala Dosa
This is a spicy crisp dosa lathered with a fiery red chutney and stuffed with a masala potato filling.

Schezwan Noodle Dosa
It is a fusion of Indian and Chinese. The addition of noodles as a filling for dosa, where Schezwan sauce is spread on the dosa and is topped with thinly shredded vegetables and is folded and cut into thin strips.

Ghee Roast Dosa
The same family of the dosa where we add more ghee to make it crispier. It can also come in a cone shape or a long one.

Oats Dosa
A healthy dosa for all that can be made instantly by using oats. It does not require any advance preparation. Here you mix dry roast oats, semolina with yoghurt, and spices for the batter.

Ragi Dosa
This is another healthy dosa especially for diabetic patients. It is made from ragi flour, (finger millet) rice flour, yoghurt, and spices and can be made instantly.

Pizza Dosa
A great way to attract children to eat their veggies. Make the dosa in the same way and on top add cut veggies and cheese and cook it till the cheese melts. Drizzle with some oregano powder to give the authentic taste.
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Ingredients for Dosa Batter
2 cups dosa rice
½ cup urad dal (split black lentils) 1 teaspoon fenugreek seeds
½ teaspoon salt
Oil, for frying
Method
Soak rice, dal, and fenugreek seeds in water separately for 5 hours. Drain the water and grind all of them together with a little water. Check for consistency and let the batter ferment overnight.

On a Dosa Trail in Muscat

Bollywood; +968 2456 5653
Saravana Bhavan; +968 2470 4502
Oman Express; +968 2483 1329
Udupi Home; +968 2237 8010
Woodlands; +968 2470 0192
Kamat; +968 2479 3355
Bombay Sweets; +968 2483 2900
Indraprastha; +968 2481 1991
Khana Khazana Express Food; +968 9988 3489
Ghasitaram Halwai; +968 2448 2100