The Idli Project
Sannamudho
Konkani Specialty

Sannamudho

also called Drumstick Leaf Idli · Mashinga Palle Sannamudho

A spicy, lentil-free idli laced with drumstick leaves and a Kashmiri chilli paste - monsoon greens treated like the main event.

Konkani Saraswat households - coastal Karnataka

Image: AI generated · Generated asset · Original image generated for The Idli Project.

Sannamudho is a spicy idli with greens - most often drumstick (moringa) leaves, sometimes methi or spinach. Unlike most idlis, it has no urad dal at all: the structure comes from rice rava, the flavour from a bright Kashmiri chilli–coconut–tamarind paste, and the green from a generous handful of leaves folded in just before steaming.

Drumstick leaves are valued in Konkani households for their iron and a faint medicinal heat that suits monsoon weather. The dense batter takes longer than usual in the steamer - twenty to twenty-five minutes - and the cake is typically eaten with a drizzle of coconut oil or alongside hot rice and dalitoy.

The Recipe

Yield · ~13 idlis

Effort profile

Soak4–5 hours
Ferment8–10 hours
Steam20–25 minutes
Steps7

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

Soak4h 30mFerment9hSteam23mSteps7

Ingredients

Batter

  • 2 cups drumstick (moringa) leaves, picked off the stems and washed
  • 1 cup idli rava (rice rava)
  • Salt to taste
  • Coconut oil for greasing

Masala paste

  • ½ cup fresh or desiccated coconut
  • 1 tsp tamarind paste
  • 5–6 Kashmiri long red chillies, fried in 1 tsp oil

Method

  1. 1.

    Wash and drain the drumstick leaves.

  2. 2.

    Wash idli rava separately and set aside.

  3. 3.

    Grind the coconut, fried chillies, and tamarind into a smooth paste.

  4. 4.

    Combine the paste with the rava; add ½ cup water to form a thick batter; stir in salt.

  5. 5.

    Fold in the drumstick leaves until evenly distributed.

  6. 6.

    Grease idli moulds with coconut oil and fill with the mixture.

  7. 7.

    Steam 20–25 minutes - the long steam is needed because the batter is dense.

Serve with

a generous drizzle of coconut oilor alongside hot rice with dalitoy, koddel, or rasam

Notes

The recipe is lentil-free; the rice rava and the spice paste do all the work. Swap the drumstick leaves for **methi** or finely chopped **palak** (spinach) for the related Konkani variants.

Adapted from healthy-cooking-with-mitha.com.

Where it's from

Mangalore, Karnataka · 12.91°N, 74.86°E