Set Dose/ Pancakes

When i was young, Parry's confectioneries introduced this candy called coffee bite. I assume it is still very popular back home. Their advertisements were cool.. It always ended up with the punch line ...'......coffee... toffee.................and the argument continues' very smart indeed. If the punchline were to endorse the best amongst dose (that's the way we Kannadigas call Dosa!) then it would be ...'set dose...masale dose.....and the argument continues..Personally for me, the best of the doses is the Set Dose.. I just love it.. more than Masale Dose. Both were created and popularised by the udupi hotels... (yes dose is a very very kannada preparation according to food historians and there were no Dosais in Sangam age...may be somebody can do a PhD on Dosais in Sangam age sometime..afterall there are far more deemed universities than there are eligible graduates these days) Though set dose did not become as popular as its sibling the masale dose, but it is very popular in the heart of Darshinis. It will be a sacrilege to not have set dose on a Darshini menu!!!! In my house its always the argument... i used to pester mom to make set dose always, my sister on the other hand is a big big fan of masale dose. Now in my own kitchen, i m the boss ..so more often then not its set dose that my kitchen smells of.. though there is a greater than palpable demand for masale dose! The odds of been skewed against masale dose for quite some time now..and its high i make masale dosa ..may be this week end! My fascination for set dose is not an old one though. Making an honest confession, only my father has been an ardent and devoted fan of set dosa. So when ever we went to Janta hotel/ Malleshwaram, Mahalaxmi tiffin room/Mahalaxmi layout/ SLV, J.P.Nagar or any of the Darshinis it was always 'maani, mur masale dose ondu set dose, by two coffee kodappa' which translates into 'waiter, 3 masale dose, one set dose and 1 one by two coffee'...me, my mom, my sister against my solitary eater-dad!!!But as i grew older, my preferences started changing. I used to find masale dose too heavy, too greasy and bad for my bathroom scales!!!! May be it was just one introduction that was long waiting to happen and i fell in love with set dose after that first encounter.. it was love at first bite!! Now for the difference between the masale and set..

Masale dose is thick (it should never be thin, thin masale dose is a sign of a pathetic..not even bad one..the thin ones are paper dose which passes off as masale dose in the rest of the country!!!) very moist, crisp and richly caramelised on the outside that you can taste the sweetness of caramelised rice and slightly tart from the fermentation. It should be very soft and spongy inside. When you break the dose, you should hear the crunch but when you put it in your mouth, it should just melt..without complaints. It should be a bit greasy, rich from butter and ghee which also makes the dose more fragrant and moist. Then there should be a red chutney that had been slightly smeared inside, and the potato palya should just be just slightly dry, just right not to make the dose soggy. The chutney can be either thin or thick based on ones preference.. for me both are good. ..(even as i write it my mouth started watering!! will definitely make masala dose this week end!) As far the set dose goes, it is non greasy. It resembles the Ethiopian 'ingeera' It is far more thicker than masale dose, little less caramelised and softer, mostly because of the restricted use of butter and ghee while cooking set dose! And it always comes in a set of three. Because they are smaller in size, demolishing a plate of set dose is never a big deal, in fact i probably would order a second plate if i m very hungry (or may be greedy). Also, set dose is served with saagu instead of aloo palya. Of course chutney is always there. But i love my saagu because it had a lot of vegetable and therefore a lot healthy.

So last week end i had made some set dose and saagu. Saagu recipes vary and there might be as many recipies as there are Darshinis in Bengaluru.. This is the my mom's version..
We will need,

Mixed vegetables 3 cups cubed to uniform length(carrots, potatoes, string beans, avrekai,double beans, cauliflower any vegetable of choice)
Coconut grated 1/2 cup
Green chillies (can be substituted for red chillies, i preferred the flavour of green chillies) 10 and above
Coriander seeds 2 tsp
Cumin 1 tsp
Cinnamon 1/6 "
Clove 4
Fresh coriander 1 cup
Pudina 1 bunch (optional)
Ginger 1/2"
Salt
Tamarind extract 1 tsp
Mustard seeds 1/4 tsp
Hing 1 pinch
Curry leaves 8-10
Oil tbsp

Method:

• Toast coriander and cumin separately. 
• Grind the toasted spice, coconut, fresh coriander, pudina, ginger, clove Cinnamon, tamarind extract, green chillies into a fine paste. 
• Heat oil in a pot, drop the hing, mustard and curry leaves. Once the mustard stops spluttering, mix in the spice mixture. Cover and cook for 10-15 minutes till the raw smell disappears. 
• Cook the vegetable in salted water alternately combine the vegetables in a microwave proof dish, sprinkle salt and microwave high for 4-5 minutes till the vegetables are tender. 
• Mix in the cooked vegetables into the spice mixture. Simmer for about 20 minutes or till everything is well combined
• A dollop of butter can be added right at the end.

Serve it hot with set dose/rawe idlis. Enjoy...