Erra Kaaram dosa -Ulli karam masala Dosa - from Rayalaseema andhra

Hyderabad stay has enlightened my life in many ways . I just loved the beautiful city ,with peaceful life,spacious houses ,historic places to visit, hyderbadi pearls (moti) & bangles in chudi bazaar from charminar ,simple people & Last but not the least the multi variety ,delicious & royal hyderabadi & andhra cuisine. I have tasted both hyderabadi cuisine & typical andhra cuisine & my verdict is its simply superb ,one will keep licking his /her fingers .Not only that it was here that I learnt to make various hyderabadi & andhra dishes & not to forget the numerous chutneys & variety in dosas & idlis. Till last year I just knew plain dosa & masala dosa but hyderabad exposed me to a wide array of dosas..........

One such dosa which I am posting today is Erra Kaaram Dosa .Its also know as Erra Karam or Ulli Karam dosa .Erra kaaram dosa is quite famous in Rayalaseema region of Andhra Pradesh.'Erra kaaram'  in telugu means 'red onion chilli chutney' which is smeared on dosa and dalia powder is sprinkled liberally over dosa to neutralize the heat from the red chutney.Difference between erra kaaram chutney & the  one prepared for  for mysore masala dosa is  this chutney is less garlicky and the combination of this pungent chutney with dalia powder makes this dosa distinct  from the other dosas.

Try this dosa & your hubby will surely get impressed.

Ingredients:
 Dosa batter:
3 cups normal rice(I used sona masuri)
1 cup urad dal
1/2 cup chana dal
1 tsp poha
1 tsp methi seeds
salt to taste
oil/ghee to roast dosa


Erra Kaaram(red chutney):

2 onions
2-3 garlic pods(optional) This chutney tastes good even without garlic
1 tsp red chili powder or 5-6  red chillies (depends on your spice level)
1/2 tsp tamarind pulp
1 tsp jeera
salt to taste
1 tbsp sesame oil/ghee

Pappula Podi/daliya powder:
1/3 cup fried gram/chutney dal(putnala pappu)
1 garlic pod
salt to taste

Method  :

Erra Kaaram(red chutney)
1.Fry all the ingredients for little time in little oil and grind all of them by adding tamarind, salt and a pinch of sugar.If you are using  red chili powder instead of red chillies, do not roast them add directly at time of grinding.

Notes :

1. Adding tadka is optional Heat  oil and crackle mustard seeds and add this to the chutney and mix well.Use ghee for tadka for additonal touch.
2. If you  like raw chutney then you can grind the ingredients of erra karam directly in mixie without adding water no need to fry them in oil.If you are using red chillies instead of red chili powder,dry roast red chillies for few minutes until crisp and use it for blending,

Pappula Podi/daliya powder:

1.Grind fried gram with salt to a fine powder




Dosa batter
1.For the dosa batter soak rice,chana dal,poha urad dal and fenugreek seeds in water for 5 to 6 hours.
2. Wash them & grind in a mixer to smooth consistency .Add salt & let it ferment overnight.




Erra karam dosa

1.Heat a tava/ griddle.

2.Take a ladleful of batter and spread out a dosa on a hot tawa. Sprinkle oil or ghee on the top & sides.



3.Cook on medium low heat till lower side turns brown.Turn dosa &  let teh other side cook till it gets brown ,flip it again .Apply & spread  the erra kaaram/red chutney all over the dosa and sprinkle pappula podi all over liberally and pour some ghee over dosa and fold it to half.


4.Serve dosa with sambhar & chutney of your choice like coconut chutney/groundnut chutney/mint chutney/tomato chutney/tomato onion chutney.



5.I had served the dosa without any chutney as it tasted great on its own.



Erra karam masala  dosa

Proceed everything as mentioned above .after spreading erra karam & dalia powder   place the potato masala in centre of dosa and fold into half to make erra kaaram masala dosa. pls click here for dosa potata masala recipe