The thin pancake known as dosa is one of the most famous Indian dishes. It is made with soaked rice and black gram beans, which are ground into a paste and mixed to create a thick batter, usually left to ferment overnight. The mixture is enriched with a handful of fenugreek seeds, which give dosa its distinctive golden brown color and a delicious, crispy texture.
It is then baked on a hot oiled griddle, pertaining a delicate, thin texture and round shape. Indian dosa is a staple dish in the entire country, but some believe that dosa had originated in the south Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is an ancient dish, whose origins are traced back to the 1st century AD, when it was first mentioned in Tamil literature.
Others claim that it's linked to Udupi (present day Karnataka) due to the association with the Udupi restaurants. Usually, dosa is consumed as a savory dish, commonly eaten for breakfast, dinner, or a quick snack. Since it has a rather neutral taste, dosa is an ideal accompaniment to many luscious Indian dishes, such as meat and vegetable curries or chutneys.
It is often filled with ingredients and wrapped, or served on the side as an integral part of a meal, when it is usually used as a utensil to scoop the fragrant side dishes. As other ancient food staples, dosa has been adapted and combined with other ingredients to create numerous distinct varieties.
Wheat flour, semolina, rice flour, or soy milk are used in some regions to create milder, diverse, and more interesting dosa varieties. This ancient Indian creation, in its numerous forms, is found everywhere in India - it is sold as a quick snack by street vendors, and it is an irreplaceable item in traditional Indian restaurants.