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TASTE OF THE TOWN

Vimala’s Curryblossom Café

Vimala Rajendran grew up in Bombay, India, where she learned to cook from family, street vendors and friends. She started cooking donation-based community dinners in her Chapel Hill home in 1994 and opened Vimala’s Curryblossom Cafe in June 2010.

Photo by Madelyn Cory

“Dosa is a crepe that originated in Madras, South India, and is now eaten and loved all over the world. My fondness for this breakfast item goes back to the time I was about 3 years old. I remember my first masala dosa from a restaurant in Bombay – my dad took me out to eat one Sunday morning after church. The aroma of the crispy rolled-up dosa and the taste of the coconut chutney, I remember to this day.

When I was growing up, I helped my mother by grinding the ingredients with a mortar and pestle, since we did not have electrical appliances. My mother would insist that my hands were blessed to make food delicious. I wondered if she said that only to get me to do the work, but over time I began to see the results of my hands’ work in delicious food, and have my mother to thank for it.” – Vimala Rajendran

DOSA
Start a day ahead to give time for soaking, grinding and proofing the batter.
Ingredients
3 cups rice
1 cup black gram beans, skinless (known as urad dal, can be found in Indian food stores)
1 tablespoon fenugreek seeds
3 green chilis, either Thai hot or serrano
2 teaspoons sea salt
Clarified butter (ghee) or oil for drizzling

METHOD
Wash the rice in several changes of tap water, then soak in 8 cups of water. Soak the well-washed beans in 5 cups of water for four to eight hours.
In a blender, grind small portions of the soaked urad dal and fenugreek seeds until the paste is very smooth and thick, using the dal-soaking water.
Grind the rice with the salt and green chilis until very smooth. 
Finish grinding all the dal and the rice and mix together into a batter with the consistency of pancake batter. Set aside in a warm place (80 degrees) to ferment for a minimum of eight hours. The batter will rise, so it should be in a large container with a loose lid.
When you are ready to make the dosa, put a flat griddle over medium heat. Whisk the batter – it should be of pouring consistency. Flick a few drops of water onto the pan – if they bounce and sputter, the pan is ready. Pour about 1/2 cup batter onto the pan. Using the back of a spoon, spread it out with a circular motion, starting from the center. Spread thin, almost transparent, then dip a spatula in oil or clarified butter and drizzle over the dosa. When the edges begin to leave the pan and the dosa’s underside is golden, lift off the dosa and serve immediately with coconut chutney.

COCONUT CHUTNEY
Ingredients
2 cups freshly grated or frozen coconut
4 serrano chili peppers or green cayenne peppers
1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
1/4 onion or 1 large shallot, peeled and chopped coarsely
2 sprigs curry leaves, stripped from the stem (optional)
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup water

METHOD
Place all ingredients in the jar of a blender and grind until uniformly blended and somewhat smooth, like hummus. Add more water if the chutney ingredients are difficult to grind.
Serve with dosa or use as a sandwich spread or a dip for chips or vegetables.