Fried idli or Masala Idli Fry is a mildly spiced sautéed dish made from idlis. The idlis are fried till they are crispy and then tossed in curry leaves and South Indian spices.
Idli is a traditional South Indian Breakfast made by steaming a batter consisting of fermented black lentils (de-husked) and rice.
It is considered as one among the best nutritious and light food as steaming preserves most of the nutrients. Also the fermentation process breaks down the starches so that the Idlis are more easily metabolized by the body.
This dish can be made either from fresh idlis or leftover idlis. Normally a day old refrigerated idlis are more suited as they have less tendency to break when frying and absorb less oil.
Fried idlis can be served along with Coconut Chutney, tomato ketchup or even Sambar. This dish can be served as breakfast meal or evening snack.
To make Fried Idli at home follow the detailed step by step recipe with photos posted below.
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Fried Idli Recipe | Masala Idli Fry
Recipe Info
Nutrition
Ingredients For Fried Idli Recipe | Masala Idli Fry
- 5-6 Idlis
- 20-25 Curry Leaves
- 4-5 Whole Dried Red Chillies
- 3-4 Garlic Cloves
- 1 Teaspoon Cumin Seeds (Jeera)
- 1 Teaspoon Black Peppercorn (Sabut Kali Mirch)
- 1 Teaspoon Rai (Black Mustard Seeds)
- 1 Teaspoon Urad Dal (Split & Skinned Black Gram Lentils)
- 1/2 Teaspoon Salt
- 1/2 Teaspoon Sambar Masala
- 1/2 Teaspoon Amchur (Dry Mango Powder)
- 1 Tablespoon Cooking Oil
Step By Step Instructions for Fried Idli Recipe | Masala Idli Fry
- Gather some dried red chillies, curry leaves, cumin seeds, garlic cloves and black peppercorn.20-25 Curry Leaves, 4-5 Whole Dried Red Chillies, 3-4 Garlic Cloves, 1 Teaspoon Cumin Seeds (Jeera), 1 Teaspoon Black Peppercorn (Sabut Kali Mirch)
- Add the ingredients to a blender and grind them coarsely.
- Gather the idlis. Leftover idlis works best since they are less crumbly. If you are using fresh made idlis, then you can refrigerate them for 30 mins before using.5-6 Idlis
- Cut the idlis into bite sized pieces.
- Heat oil in a pan and fry the idlis till they are crispy and light brown in color. Traditionally the idlis are deep fried, but I have just shallow fried for a healthier version. You can also bake the idlis instead. Set the fried idlis aside.
- In the same pan, add some black mustard seeds (rai) and urad dal.1 Teaspoon Rai (Black Mustard Seeds), 1 Teaspoon Urad Dal (Split & Skinned Black Gram Lentils)
- Add a few curry leaves. This is optional, and you can skip adding them here since they are already in the spice blend we prepared earlier.
- Now add the spice mixture prepared earlier and fry for a few seconds.
- Then add the fried idlis to the pan.
- Add salt, sambar masala and amchur. Toss the idlis in the masala mixture to coat them evenly.1/2 Teaspoon Salt, 1/2 Teaspoon Sambar Masala, 1/2 Teaspoon Amchur (Dry Mango Powder)
- Fried Idlis are ready. If you want you can sprinkle a pinch of chaat masala on the top before serving.
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Can garlics be omitted?
Hey Sharmistha, yes you can skip the garlic 🙂
Wonderful 😊what can I use in place of amchur powder
You can use a bit of chaat masala or lemon juice instead of amchur powder.
Wonderful 😊
Thanks Anjali 🙂
Thank you for sharing this recipe, I think I will be making some extra idlies just too enjoy this way 🙂
Thank Sneha, let us know how it turned out 🙂
Great recipe…. I added a pinch of sugar and it was delicious
Sounds delicious Viral, I’ll try with a bit of sugar 🙂
Superb!!!!! A totally different taste.👌👌👍
Do you any App of veg cravings.
Thanks Deepak 🙂 Sorry we don’t have an app yet.
try changing “perseveres” for “preserves” – but thanks for the recip, I’ll be trying it out over the weekend!
Hope it turned out well! Thanks for catching the typo 🙂
My daughter hates idli. I have tried various recipes and this one is a hit. All thanks to you for making my daughter eat idly. It’s definitely a must try recipe.
Thank you for your kind words Bhuvana 🙂 Glad that you liked the recipe!
It looks tasty and delicious. I wanna try this at home.
Thanks Denise! Let us know how it turned out. 🙂
Last line says stuffed capsicum is ready….while making fried idli…..very poor
Thanks for pointing it out Ayush! Our readers help us build better content. It should be corrected now.