Instant Oats Idli with Coconut Mint Chutney

Did you know that a single bowl of oatmeal provides all essential nutrients like complex carbohydrates, B vitamins, fiber, and minerals such as phosphorous, iron, selenium, and calcium? Sounds like music to ears but a bowl of oats porridge is a torment to me. I can manage swallowing not more than a spoon with utmost disgust! I experimented on my kiddos and their reaction after the 1^st spoon intake was sign enough for me to not give them the porridge again. I can’t torture the innocent souls with something that I myself detest…

But its health benefits haunt me all the time and I somehow wanna include oats in our diet. Best way is to sneak it in so that its presence is unknown and not felt. I started off by adding handfuls in my chapathi or puri doughs. I added them in my cookies. Now recently I came across instant oats idli in Madhuri’s blog and it was just the perfect breakfast for those lazy weekend mornings or for busy weekday mornings (if you have the mix preserved ahead). Accompanied with Coconut-Mint Chutney, it was a wholesome and at the same time yummy breakfast. Abbas who skips breakfast when there is idli or dosa (other than Masala Dosa) loved it so much that he said he would skip lunch as he had over-eaten his breakfast.

Here goes the recipe for Instant Oats Idli:

Ingredients:

Rolled oats – ½ cup

Rava or Sooji – ½ cup

Baking soda – ½ tsp

Curd – ½ litre

Carrot – 1 medium sized, grated

Green chillies – 1, finely chopped (I skipped this for my kids)

Coriander leaves – a handful, finely chopped

Mustard seeds – ½ tsp

Asafoetida – a pinch

Oil – ¼ tsp

Method:

1. Dry roast the oats for 2-3 minutes in a wok till they turn fragrant. Keep aside to cool.
2. Repeat the same procedure with the soji and keep aside to cool.
3. Once the oats have cooled, coarsely powder it in the mixer.
4. Grease idli moulds with oil and put a spoonful of grated carrot in each of the moulds in the centre. Keep remaining carrot aside to be mixed with the idli batter.
5. Make a tempering with asafoetida and mustard seeds.
6. Mix together all the ingredients in a bowl. The curd goes in last. Blend the mixture well and allow the batter to rest for 15 minutes.
7. Pour the batter into the prepared idli moulds and steam cook for 15-20 minutes, like you would your normal idlis.
8. De-mould once they are cool.

For the Coconut Mint Chutney:

 

Grind together the following ingredients with water as per required consistency

 

Coconut grated – ½ cup

Green chillies – 7-8 or as per spice tolerance

Tamarind – marble sized ball

Ginger – ½” piece

Mint leaves - about 15

Salt to taste

Temper the chutney with Coconut oil (1tbsp) + mustard seeds (1/2 tsp) + red chillies (1 or 2) + Curry leaves (10-12 sprigs)

This goes out to Bookmarkes recipes Every Tuesday hosted by Priya and Aipi

I found these Health Benefits of oats from here:

• Lowers Cholestrol
• Reduces high blood pressure
• Boosts immune system
• Reduces weight
• Good source of protein
• Improves digestion
• Reduces the risk of cancer
• Stronger bones
• Excellent for pregnancy
• Good for skin
• Reduces stress
• Energy booster