Vazhaithandu dosai – How to make Banana stem dosa / Plantain stem dosa
I started making vazhaithandu dosai/ banana stem dosa / plantain stem dosa after tasting in a restaurant. I make it by stuffing vazhaithandu masala in the center of dosa like our regular masala dosa. But Raksha is not a big fan of it. She doesn’t like to eat banana stem as poriyal, pachadi too. So I was thinking on how to include this healthy vegetable in her regular diet.
Suddenly this vazhaithandu dosai recipe by grinding and adding banana stem paste to regular idli batter flashed in my mind. I googled and found an easy and yummy dosa recipe in Chettinad samayal YouTube channel. It was an instant hit at home. As I expected, Raksha loved it very much and had more dosa. I am so happy that I got a perfect dish to make my daughter eat Vazhaithandu.
Friends, do try this version of vazhaithandu dosai. I am sure its a great way to make the fussy eaters consume this healthy vegetable. Ok, lets see how to make banana stem dosa with step by step pictures and video.
Wash and slice the banana stem into rings. Immerse in buttermilk till use.
Grind onion, green chilli, ginger, curry leaves and cumin seeds coarsely.
Add chopped banana stem, add little water and grind to smooth paste.
Do not add more water. Grind to a thick but smooth paste.
Take thick idli batter and add this paste. Mix well and check for salt.
Add water to adjust consistency. Heat dosa tawa. Pour a ladleful of batter.
Spread it thin or thick. Drizzle oil around the dosa. Flip and cook the other side too.
Serve hot with coconut chutney, tomato chutney or sambar !
METHOD – STEP BY STEP PICTURES
Peel the outer stem part/ bark part and wash the inner ring. Chop into thin slices and keep immersed in buttermilk till use.
Take a big mixie jar. Add onion, green chilli, ginger, cumin seeds and curry leaves. Grind coarsely without water.
Now add in the batch of chopped banana stem slices by squeezing the buttermilk. Grind coarsely without adding water. Then add little water and grind to a smooth paste. Do not add more water. Firstly add 1/4 cup water. Try to grind to smooth paste by wiping the sides.
Open the mixie jar and add the remaining banana stem pieces too. Now grind again to a smooth paste. Add little water if required. As banana stem is a watery vegetable, it doesn’t need more water to grind. After grinding, paste looks dark grey or black in color. Its completely normal. Don’t panic.
Take 4 cups of our regular idli batter in a wide bowl. Add this banana stem paste to the batter and mix well. Batter turns light grey in color after mixing. Check for taste and add salt if required. Add some water if required. Addition of water depends on the consistency of idli batter and the paste. So use water carefully.
Heat a dosa tawa. Spread a ladleful of batter to make a thin or thick dosa. Let it cook in medium flame till 50%. Now drizzle oil all over the dosa. Flip and cook the other side OR remove once the bottom turns golden and top looks completely cooked. Fold and remove. Serve hot with chutney or sambar !
Enjoy !
Note
For variations, you can use red chilli instead of green chilli while grinding.
You can make this dosa thin or thick as you like.
No fermentation is required as we are using fermented idli dosa batter.
Make sure idli batter is not too thin or watery. After adding paste, the batter will become even more thin.
You can refrigerate this batter and use it for one day.
Try this healthy banana stem dosa/ vazhaithandu dosai for a change.
I am sure everyone will love it ! I made uthappam kind for me.
