The Idli Project
Mini Idli
Regional & Traditional

Mini Idli

also called Bullet Idli · Button Idli · Kutti Idli · Rasa Idli (when soaked in rasam)

Bite-sized idlis steamed in tiny moulds and dunked into hot sambar or rasam - the South Indian answer to a soup dumpling.

Tamil Nadu - restaurant classic

Image: AI generated · Unverified

A bite-sized idli - five-rupee-coin small - steamed in special moulds with tiny circular cavities. The "fourteen idlis" plate format is the classic Tamil restaurant serving, dunked into ghee, podi or, most often, into a special mini-idli sambar (sometimes called rasa idli when made with rasam) until the cakes drink it up.

The trick is the soak: about five minutes in the hot sambar is enough for full flavour absorption; longer and the idlis disintegrate. Eat with a spoon.

The Recipe

Yield · ~50 mini idlis (and 3 servings of sambar)

Effort profile

Soak3–4 hours
Ferment8–10 hours
Steam5–10 minutes
Steps7

Each axis is scaled against the longest example in the archive.

Soak3h 30mFerment9hSteam8mSteps7

Ingredients

Idli batter (Udupi-style)

  • 1 cup urad dal
  • 2 cups idli rava
  • Salt to taste
  • Water as needed

Rasa Idli sambar - main

  • 1 cup toor dal
  • 2 tomatoes
  • ½ onion, chopped
  • Few curry leaves
  • 1 inch ginger
  • 2 green chillies
  • Coriander leaves
  • Juice of ½ lemon
  • Salt and chilli powder to taste
  • Water as needed

Tempering

  • 3 tsp ghee
  • ½ tsp mustard seeds
  • ½ tsp cumin seeds
  • ½ tsp split urad dal
  • 1 dried red chilli
  • Pinch of asafoetida
  • Few curry leaves

Method

  1. 1.

    Grease a mini idli mould with oil; spoon batter into each cavity and steam 5–10 minutes until done.

  2. 2.

    For Rasa Idli - pressure-cook toor dal with the tomatoes and a pinch of turmeric for 4 whistles. Whisk smooth.

  3. 3.

    In 1 tsp oil, fry the onion until golden; add ginger, green chillies and curry leaves and cook a minute more.

  4. 4.

    Add the dal–tomato mash, salt and chilli powder; bring to a boil with enough water for a flowing consistency. Simmer 5 minutes.

  5. 5.

    Garnish with coriander and lemon juice; finish with 1 tsp ghee.

  6. 6.

    In a separate ladle, prepare the tempering and pour over the sambar.

  7. 7.

    To serve, place ~14 mini idlis in a wide bowl, ladle the hot sambar over, drizzle ½ tsp ghee, garnish with chopped onion and coriander. Let the idlis soak ~5 minutes before eating.

Serve with

rasa idli sambarhot gheeidli podi

Notes

The "fourteen idlis" plate format is the classic Tamil restaurant serving. Rasa Idli is the spiced-rasam variant - same idea, lighter broth.

Adapted from hebbarskitchen.com.