Rava Amboli- Soft and Spongy Rava Amboli

Amboli is one of the staple Bread in every Konkani household, especially in Ratnagiri and Malwan region.

Though my Mom being a working woman would manage to make Amboli only once a week, but in typical kitchen in Ratnagiri it is prepared more often and served with Coconut based gravies and with chutneys and Vangi-Batata-Shenganchi Amti (a dish from which Sambar has supposedly evolved) for Breakfast.

During weeks when we abstain from Non-vegetarian food, Amboli is best enjoyed with Kala Vatanyachi Usal (Black Peas Curry) by a Konkani and this combination of meal defines our comfort food while on other days Amboli is best enjoyed with Chicken Curry, Prawns Curry and Tisrya Masala (Clams thick gravy preparation).

This comfort food on weekends is always followed by an uninterrupted couple of hours of sleep in the afternoon-aah a pure bliss! Such is our pure love for food.

India’ western coastline that spans across coastal districts of states of Goa, Karnataka and Maharashtra is also known as Konkan coast. The similar geographical and metrological conditions govern the food crop pattern and other food related choices in this region. Rice and seafood are two primary food choices of inhabitants of Konkan region. Several preparations of rice like Amboli, Gavan, Sanna etc. dominate the Konkani cuisine. These delicacies are often served with Coconut based gravies.

I have witnessed online world filled with lot of confusion about Amboli and often food bloggers have mistaken it for Ghavan and it’s important to clear this misconception. This case of mistaken identity can be attributed to the fact that both have rice as a primary ingredient (though Rava Amboli replaces rice with Semolina). However, besides this similarity these two Konkani dishes are completely different from one another.

Ghavan is a quick bread, made with homemade rice flour batter and the process of fermentation is not part of its preparation process. However, Amboli derives its name from the culinary process “Ambavne “which in Marathi refers to “fermented “!

Amboli are typically made in two ways. One that is more common combines Rice, Urad Dal and Chana Dal in batter. While the other variant combines Rava and Urad Dal in the batter. It’s worth mentioning that Rava must be Wheat Rava and not made from Rice which is more commonly used for making Idlis (Idli Rava)

Today I am sharing with you Rava Amboli recipe – a lighter version of Amboli. It’s a perfect breakfast option and could also be part of your weekend brunch with your favorite chicken/prawns curry.

Remember to share your feedback with us in comment section below

P.S. I served Mangalorean chicken ghee roast with this Amboli to my family and they just loved it.

Save Print

Rava Amboli- Soft and Spongy Rava Amboli

Serves: 8-10

Ingredients

• 1 Cup=200gms Rava/Semolina/Suji (made of wheat)
• ½ Cup=125gms Split and dehusked Black Gram
• ½ Cup=40gms Poha/Flattened rice
• 1 tsp Salt
• Cooking Oil
• Water as required

Instructions

1. To start with, we will wash and clean Urad Dal and Poha. Drain the excess water. Now we will soak both the ingredients. Soak Urad Dal in enough water (water level must be above the Dal). Soak Poha in water. Soak for 4-6 hours. We are not soaking Rava at this moment. We will soak it only for 30 mins prior to grinding the ingredients
2. Poha and Urad Dal has been soaking for almost 6 hours. We will drain out excess water and grind it together in a fine paste. Before that, we will soak Rava in water. Add water gradually and keep stirring. We have used 2½ Cups water for soaking Rava. Keep it aside for 30 mins. Let's now grind Urad Dal and Poha
3. We have made a fine and thick batter of Urad Dal and Poha with ¾th Cup water. We will add soaked Rava in this batter and mix the batter with our bare palms. Wash and clean the hands. Remove all kinds of accessories worn in fingers. Add Soaked Rava. Batter of Idli, Dosa or Amboli must be handled with hands. Natural heat of your palms helps activate bacteria for fermentation. Keep mixing with hands for 5 mins
4. Let the batter ferment overnight or atleast for 6 hours. Keep it covered in a warm place- kitchen platform, above Refrigerator. Personally here is what I do, Heat microwave for 4 mins on High. Then switch off the microwave and keep this batter inside the microwave.
5. After 9-10 hours, let’s uncover the batter now. Gently mix. Do not stir vigorously. I am pretty sure Ambolis will be soft and light.
6. Add Salt (1 tsp approx.) and stir in gently
7. Heat a non-stick tawa on high heat. You can also use cast iron tawa. Smear tawa with some Oil. Reduce the heat to medium and now add batter on Tawa. Do not spread too much as Ambolis are supposed to be thick. Cook covered on medium heat
8. We have cooked for about a min on medium heat. The edges start to get brown. Let's turn and cook from other side. Underside has cooked nicely. Put few drops of Oil at the sides. Cook from other side. We have cooked for about 1 and ½ mins.
9. Amboli is ready. Let's remove it and similarly we can make all Ambolis
10. In this measurements, we can make 8-10 Ambolis. Let's serve this in breakfast with some chutney

3.5.3251