World Idli Day 2022: Twitter Reacts To This Crowd-Pleasing Dish

By
Pramod Hegde
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Every year on 30th March, the entire world celebrates Idli day. Although idli is South Indian cuisine, today the whole country loves to eat it as breakfast. It is easily available in every nook and corner of the city. Let us learn more about the dish and the reason why we celebrate Idli day.

Celebrating Idli day

Popular Chennai-based idli caterer, Eniyavan, dedicated this day (30th March) to celebrate the fluffy treat also known as idli. On March 30, 2015, he reportedly made 1,328 varieties of idlis, and also made massive 44-kilogram idli that was later cut by a government official. That is how March 30 became World Idli Day, and we got a reason to celebrate it.

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Traditionally, idli is a steamed rice cake made out of fermented rice and urad dal batter. But, if your look around, you will find different idli recipes across South Indian cuisine. While some like adding vegetables to the recipe, others replace rice with ragi, oats, and even Semolina to make it more nutritious.

History

Coming to the history of this recipe, some food experts say that idli first originated in Indonesia, which is known for its long tradition of fermented food. Later, it came to India in the form of steamed idli during the period of 800-1200 CE.

Some believe that the word Idli was originated from ‘Iddalige’, which was mentioned in a Kannada work of 920 AD. It suggests that idli was made from an urad dal batter. Furthermore, the Sanskrit Manasollasa of 1130 AD has a reference to ‘Iddarika’, which means a dish made with urad dal.

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People in Tamil Nadu first mentioned it as ‘Itali’ in the 17th century. With all these considerations make it clear that from the very beginning idli had the use of rice grits, urad dal, a long fermentation process, and the steaming of the batter to tasty fluffiness.

The popularity of the dish 

This dish has become so popular that the Defence Food Research Laboratory (DFRL) is planning to send idlis to space. These idlis are said to be in the size of Rs 2 coins. With the likes of sambhar powder and coconut chutney, this dish will be sent to space with the astronauts.

According to reports, these space-designated idlis will be dried using infrared radiation at a temperature of 700º C, and then made moistureless further by microwaving. The moisture in the rice ball would be completely taken out, but the smell and nutrients will be kept unchanged in the process so that the Indian astronauts can enjoy this in space.

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Why is it healthy? 

These idlis are soft and fluffy, and because it is steamed it doesn’t have oil contents and is goes easy with the stomach digestion. The dish is also rich in fiber and protein, which keeps your tummy full for rest of the day, and doesn’t make you feel hungry quite easily.

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