Can babies eat idli with idli podi ?! Oh yes ! Why not ?!! My baby loved it. Try it and let me know how your baby liked it ?! This idli podi can be given to babies after completing 10 months, whenever your baby is ready for it. I gave it to my baby after her first birthday. Please read Tips at the end of the post for variations and age-wise recommendations..
Babies Idli podi Preparation– Stepwise pic follow the below printable description:
- Whole urad dal (without skin) / Ulundhu - ¼ cup
- Fried gram / Pottukadalai - ¼ cup
- Black Sesame seeds / Ellu - ⅛ cup
- Curry leaves - 3 sprigs
- Rock salt - ¼ tsp
- Dry red chilli - 1
- Wash urad dal, sesame seeds and curry leaves separately.
- Spread each over a plate(Preferable place a cotton cloth over plate and spread over the cloth) and let it fan dry for 30 mins to 1 hour. Don't worry if there is still moisture in it, as anyways we will fry it.
- In a dry pan, fry sesame seeds in low flame until it starts to pop. Once it starts to pop, simmer & keep sauteing, but switch off in exactly 1 minute. Some sesame seeds won't pop at all. In such case, it will start to smoke. Once it starts to smoke, simmer & keep sauteing, but switch off exactly in one minute. Transfer sesame seeds to a bowl.
- In the same pan, fry urad dal in low flame for 10 mins or until slightly golden color. Do not darken it. Transfer urad dal to a plate and fry Fried gram/pottukadalai in low flame for 5 mins. Transfer fried gram to the same plate.
- In the same pan, fry 1 dry red chilli along with ¼ tsp rock salt until chilli puffs up. Switch off, add generous pinch of asafoetida, stir quickly & transfer these to the same plate.
- Add curry leaves to the same pan and fry for 2 mins. Switch off and leave the leaves in the hot pan. It will turn crisp(you can easily break using fingers as below) in 10 mins.
- Transfer sesame seeds to mixie jar & grind for 3 to 4 pulses to a coarse mixture and transfer to a bowl. The color should remain black after grinding. If the color turns brown, then you have over-fried sesame seeds. If it's brown, just throw it out, as it will be too bitter.
- Once the items in the plate are cooled down completely, transfer to mixie jar and grind to fine powder.
- Now, transfer pulsed sesame seeds to the same jar & pulse once or twice until mixed well. Do not pulse longer as sesame seeds might start emitting oil. Transfer the powder to a plate and once cooled down, transfer to an air-tight container. Stays good for 6 months, if handled properly.
2.You shall add ⅛ cup of roasted peanuts & powder it in pulses just like sesame seeds. But adding peanuts will decrease the shelf life to 3 months.
3.Do not add salt for babies below 1 year. Without salt, the shelf life is just 3 months. If u add peanuts too(without salt), the shelf life is just 1 month.
3.After 2 years of age,
you shall replace fried gram/pottukadalai with chana dal/kadalai paruppu.
you shall grind to lil coarse powder.
you shall increase dry red chillies.
Preparation – How to make idli podi for babies ?
1.Wash urad dal, sesame seeds and curry leaves separately.
2.Spread each over a plate(Preferable place a cotton cloth over plate and spread over the cloth) and let it fan dry for 30 mins to 1 hour. Don’t worry if there is still moisture in it, as anyways we will fry it.
3.In a dry pan, fry sesame seeds in low flame until it starts to pop. Once it starts to pop, simmer & keep sauteing, but switch off in exactly 1 minute. Some sesame seeds won’t pop at all. In such case, it will start to smoke. Once it starts to smoke, simmer & keep sauteing, but switch off exactly in one minute. Transfer sesame seeds to a bowl.
4. In the same pan, fry urad dal in low flame for 10 mins or until slightly golden color. Do not darken it. Transfer urad dal to a plate and fry Fried gram/pottukadalai in low flame for 5 mins. Transfer fried gram to the same plate.
5.In the same pan, fry 1 dry red chilli along with 1/4 tsp rock salt until chilli puffs up. Switch off, add generous pinch of asafoetida, stir quickly & transfer these to the same plate.
6.Add curry leaves to the same pan and fry for 2 mins. Switch off and leave the leaves in the hot pan. It will turn crisp(you can easily break using fingers as below) in 10 mins.
7.Transfer sesame seeds to mixie jar & grind for 3 to 4 pulses to a coarse mixture and transfer to a bowl. The color should remain black after grinding. If the color turns brown, then you have over-fried sesame seeds. If it’s brown, just throw it out, as it will be too bitter.
8.Once the items in the plate are cooled down completely, transfer to mixie jar and grind to fine powder.
9.Now, transfer pulsed sesame seeds to the same jar & pulse once or twice until mixed well. Do not pulse longer as sesame seeds might start emitting oil. Transfer the powder to a plate and once cooled down, transfer to an air-tight container. Stays good for 6 months, if handled properly.
Mix kids idli podi with sesame oil or melted ghee(tastes better). Pair it with idli or wheat dosa for babies below 2 years. If the baby feels dry with idli, you shall sprinkle lil water over idli. For 2+ year kids, you shall pair with normal dosa as well.
Tips/Tricks in making Idli podi for babies and kids:
- You shall replace black sesame seeds with white, but the nutrition will be less.
- You shall add 1/8 cup of roasted peanuts & powder it in pulses just like sesame seeds. But adding peanuts will decrease the shelf life to 3 months.
- Do not add salt for babies below 1 year. Without salt, the shelf life is just 3 months. If u add peanuts too(without salt), the shelf life is just 1 month.
- After 2 years of age,
- you shall replace fried gram/pottukadalai with chana dal/kadalai paruppu.
- you shall grind to lil coarse powder.
- you shall increase dry red chillies
Nutritional Benefits
Urad dal– Protein , Fibre, Sodium
Fried chana dal/Pottukadalai– Protein , Fibre, Sodium
Sesame seeds(Ellu/Til)– Protein, Folates, Omega 3&6 fatty acids, Vitamins A,B&E, Phosphorous, Potassium, Magnesium, Iron, Calcium, Selenium & other minerals
Curry leaves– Fiber, Protein, Folic acid and a dash of Vitamins and Minerals
Thank you for the recipe. Turned out great. My kids are loving it.
Thank you 🙂 Glad to know that kids love it 🙂