Mysore Masala Dosa

- Submitted by Dahlia

(Mysore Masal Dosai)

Jump to recipe ↓

Mysore Masala Dosa is a variation of the masala dosai in which a bright red chutney is smeared on the dosai before stuffing. This Mysore Red Chutney is made with a combination of garlic, dry red chilies and channa dal. This gives an added spice and flavour to the masala dosa. This dosa orginated in Mysore, Karnataka but is popular all over South India. 

The dosa in the Mysore Masala Dosa has a slightly different texture as compared to other dosas. While other dosas are made crunchy, mysore dosa has a crispy texture with a spongy inside. This is due to the small variations that we make in the dosa batter preparation. At home you can very well make Mysore Masala Dosa with the regular idli/ dosa batter itself. When making Mysore Dosa batter, pressed rice or aval is added which gives that sponginess to the dosa. Channa dal gives that beautiful reddish colour to the dosas. While preparing the dosas, butter or ghee is smeared gereously that gives the crispiness. 

So lets learn how to make this restaurant special Mysore Masala Dosa at home.

Recipe For Mysore Masala Dosa

Preparation time: 12-15 hours
Cooking time: 60 minutes
Serves: 4

Ingredients

For the Dosa

• Rice - 2 cups
• Urad dal - 1/2 cup
• Pressed Rice (Aval, Poha) - 1/4 cup
• Channa Dal - 2 tbsp
• Fenugreek Seeds - 1/2 tsp
• Water - as required

For the Mysore Red Chutney

• Channa Dal - 3 tbsp
• Garlic - 5-6 cloves
• Shallots - 4-5
• Dry Red Chilies - 6
• Salt - 1 tsp

For the Masala Aloo Palya

• Potatoes - 3 or 4
• Onion - 2 (finely chopped or sliced)
• Ginger - 1/2 " pieces (finely chopped)
• Green chilies - 4 (finely chopped)
• Curry Leaves - 1 strand
• Cilantro - handful
• Mustard seeds - 1/2 tsp
• Cumin Seeds - 1/2 tsp
• Chana dal - 1/2 tsp
• Urad Dal - 1/2 tsp
• Asafoetida - 1/2 tsp
• Turmeric powder - 1/4 spoon
• Green Peas or Grated Carrots - 1/4 cup (optional)

Method

Preparing Dosa Batter

1. Wash the rice and urad dal separately. Soak the rice, urad dal, channa dal and fenugreek seeds together in enough water for 3-4 hours.
2. Grind it to a smooth batter along with some pressed rice. Add water little by little while grinding to get the perfect dosa batter texture.
3. Mix in salt with the batter and let it ferment for 10-12 hours.

Preparing the Mysore Red Chutney

1. Roast the channa dal in a small pan with 1 tsp oil until it turns golden brown.
2. Grind it to a thick paste along with garlic cloves, shallot onions, dry red chilies and salt. Mysore Red Chutney is ready for use.

Preparing the Masala Aloo Palya

1. Boil the potatoes and mash them coarsely.
2. In a kadai heat little oil, temper the mustard seeds, cumin seeds, urad dal and chana dal. Add some cashew pieces if you like its crunch in the masala,
3. Add asafoetida, curry leaves, chopped green chillies, ginger and sliced onions. Saute it until the onion is transparent.
4. Add turmeric to it. Add 1/2 a cup of water and salt to taste,let it boil.
5. Add the mashed potatoes (and green peas or grated carrots if you prefer) to the mixture. Let it cook together for about 5 minutes until all the moisture is absorbed.
6. Sprinkle some chopped cilantro on top and switch off.

Making the Masala Dosa

1. Check if the dosa batter is in the right consistency. If not, mix in some water.
2. Heat a dosa tawa or a griddle. Pour a spoonful of batter using a ladle and spread it to a big round using the back of the ladle. 
3. Add some ghee or butter on top and spread it using a brush or spatula.
4. After about a minute the bottom side will be cooked and have some brown spots.
5. Now add about 1-2 tsp of the red chutney on the dosa and spread it all around.
6. Add about 3 tbsp of the prepared potato masala in the center.
7. Cover the masala with the dosa as you see in restaurants or as shown in the picture below. Tasty Mysore Masala Dosa is ready. Serve with a dollop of butter on top to make it extra special.

Detailed Steps to make Mysore Masala Dosa

Prepare the dosa batter. I have explained the steps for making dosa batter in detail here.

Prepare the Mysore Red Chutney by roasting the channa dal and grinding it along with the other ingredients.

Prepare the Masala Aloo Palya too. This potato masala preparation is explained in detailed in the Masala Dosa Recipe.

Take some dosa batter and spread it as a thin dosa. Put some butter or ghee on top and spread it around.

Cook until brown spots appear at the bottom. Spoon in some red chutney in the middle.

Spread it all over the dosa using a spatula.

Spoon some prepared potato masala in the center of the dosa.

Now you can fold the dosa just like the normal Masala Dosa. Here I will show a different fold which is also seen in some restaurants. For this, first fold the dosa on one side to cover the masala.

Repeat the folding on another side.

Fold the bottom side to form a triangle.

Cook for a minute to make it crispy. Enjoy delicious Mysore Dosai.

Tips

• Dosa can be folded in a simpler way just in half or like the normal masala dosa. I have folded as a trangle to give it that special look and feel.
• A tsp of sugar can be added to the dosa batter if you want a deeper colour.
• A dollop of butter can be added on top of the hot dosa while serving.

Serving Mysore Masala Dosa

• Traditionally Mysore Dosai is served with mild coconut chutney and piping hot udipi sambhar.

More Dosa Recipes

Neer Dosa	Mushroom Masala Dosa	Rava Dosai	Aval Dosa
See more ⟩⟩