Dibba Rotte is a popular Andhra dish made with unfermented idli batter. It has a delicious crispy crust and a soft, fluffy inside. Served with chutney or sambar, this recipe is filling and delicious to make for any meal of the day.
I grew up eating Andhra dishes at home. And I love making them for my kids now. It is so satisfying watching them enjoy the foods from my childhood.
Here is one such Andhra recipe that is now a family favorite (even my picky daughter loves it). Dibba rotte aka minapa roti is a classic recipe that is very easy to make and a crowd pleaser.
The name literally translates to fat/ thick (dibba) bread (rotte). So, this is a South Indian style thick bread made with lentils and rice. There is no fermentation required for this recipe. It is like a big pan fried idli.
This used be my ammamma (mom’s mom) speciality. She used to make big fluffy dibba roti in a round brass utensil aka ithadi ginne. I inherited one of those utensils and I cherish it very much.
Once cooked in that round pan, the rotte almost looks like a cake, both in shape and texture. Which is why we call it Andhra cake. Serve with your favorite chutney or sambar or chutney podi.
Why I love this recipe
- back to roots comfort dish
- easy, no fermentation required recipe
- quick to make – only time consuming part is soaking lentils and rice
- can be served for any meal – breakfast, lunch or dinner
- crispy crust is absolutely addictive
Ingredients
All you need to make dibba rotti is idli batter. So, you can use your favorite idli recipe. To make the Andhra way, use urad dal and idli rava. You only need a handful of ingredients for this recipe:
- urad dal – either whole or split. I generally use whole urad since my mom uses the same. But you can make idli with split urad as well.
- idli rava – widely available in Indian groceries. Look for finely ground rava – this gives the best texture to the rotte. I love Laxmi brand idli rava.
- cumin seeds
- salt and oil
- optional – soaked chana dal, grated ginger, green chilies
Instructions
Start by soaking urad dal and rice, separately, in lots of water for about 4~6 hours.
Drain the water from the urad dal and reserve about 2 cups of soaking water. Grind the lentils into soft and smooth paste by adding little water.*
Soak poha for 15~20 minutes and grind to a smooth paste. Add to the dal.
Squeeze excess water from idli rava. Add to the dal batter and mix well with hand.
Add cumin seeds and salt to the batter and mix well. It is time to make dibba rotti.
In a deep round or flat bottom pan*, heat 1 tablespoon oil on medium heat, add about 1~1½ cups* of batter.
To evenly cook the inside, place a small spoon or a tiny plate in the batter and push it in. Cover and cook on medium-low flame for about 10~15 minutes or until the rotte is golden brown and crispy on the outside.
Once ready, dibba rotte will move around the pan without sticking to the bottom. Check if the inside is cooked by using a knife and make sure that it comes out clean. You can skip cooking the second side if the top feels set and the inside is completely cooked.
But if you want a crispy crust on both sides, then turn the rotte over and cook on the other side for another 5~8 minutes. Once done, turn off the heat and let it sit for a 5 minutes before removing from the pan. Repeat with the remaining batter.
Remove from the pan, cut into wedges and serve with chutney, sambhar or pachadi.
Tips
- Feel free to use your favorite idli batter recipe. There is no need to ferment it, use it as soon as you grind the batter.
- If you grind in wet grinder, then add water in increments, about ¼ cup at a time to make a soft, fluffy and smooth batter.
- If using a blender, you might have to add more water for the blades to run. But DO NOT add too much water in the beginning itself. Add water in increments.
- The amount of batter per dibba rotte depends on the size of the pan used for making the rotti.
- Make sure that the pan that you use has a heavy bottom for even cooking.
- You can use a round pan as shown in the photos above or a flat bottom as well. The thickness of the rotte might be different based on the pan used.
- If you are using a deep pan, then place a small spoon or tiny plate in the center of the batter. This will help evenly cook the inside of the minapa roti. If you are using a shallow pan, this step is not necessary.
- You can skip cooking the second side if the top feels set and the inside is completely cooked.
- Leftover batter can be left out to ferment and then made into idli.
- Any leftover dibba rotti can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days. The crust might lose it’s crispiness but it will still taste good.
Few more Andhra recipes to try
- Andhra style greens & chickpea curry
- Menthikura pulusu kura (Tangy methi stew)
- Bell pepper avakaya
- Thelaga pindi kura
- Vankaya senagapappu iguru (eggplant chana dal curry)
- Dosakaya pachadi (cuke lemon chutney)
- Kanda bachali kura (yam-sorrel spinach curry)
- Nethi beerakaya pachadi (silk squash chutney)
I love hearing from you!! If you’ve tried this or any other recipe on the blog, tag in your creations on Instagram @cook_hideout. I love sharing photos when people make my recipes. You can use the hashtag #cookshideout too.
Dibba Rotte
Ingredients
- ½ cup Urad dal (whole or split)
- 1¼ cups Idli rava
- ¼ cup Poha (flattened rice), optional
- 1 teaspoon Cumin seeds
- To taste Salt
- ¼ cup Oil
Instructions
- Soak urad dal and idli rava, separately, for 4~5 hours.
- Drain the water from the urad dal and reserve about 2 cups of soaking water. Grind the lentils into soft and smooth paste by adding little water.*
- Soak poha for 15~20 minutes and grind to a smooth paste. Add to the dal.
- Squeeze excess water from idli rava. Add to the dal batter and mix well with hand.
- Add cumin seeds and salt to the batter and mix well. It is time to make dibba rotti.
- In a deep round or flat bottom pan, heat 1 tablespoon oil on medium heat, add about 1~1½ cups* of batter.
- To evenly cook the inside, place a small spoon or a tiny plate in the batter and push it in. Cover and cook on medium-low flame for about 10~15 minutes or until the rotte is golden brown and crispy on the outside.
- Once ready, it will move around the pan without sticking to the bottom. Check if the inside is cooked by using a knife and if it comes out clean, then it is ready to turn.
- Turn the rotte over and cook on the other side for another 5~8 minutes.
- Once done, turn off the heat and let it sit for a 5 minutes before removing from the pan. Repeat with the remaining batter.
- Remove from the pan, cut into wedges and serve with chutney, sambhar or pachadi.
Notes
- Feel free to use your favorite idli batter recipe. There is no need to ferment it, use it as soon as you grind the batter.
- If you grind in wet grinder, then add water in increments, about ¼ cup at a time to make a soft, fluffy and smooth batter.
- If using a blender, you might have to add more water for the blades to run. But DO NOT add too much water in the beginning itself. Add water in increments.
- The amount of batter per dibba rotte depends on the size of the pan used for making the rotti.
- Make sure that the pan that you use has a heavy bottom for even cooking.
- You can use a round pan as shown in the photos above or a flat bottom as well. The thickness of the rotte might be different based on the pan used.
- If you are using a deep pan, then place a small spoon or tiny plate in the center of the batter. This will help evenly cook the inside of the minapa roti. If you are using a shallow pan, this step is not necessary.
- You can skip cooking the second side if the top feels set and the inside is completely cooked.
- Leftover batter can be left out to ferment and then made into idli.
- Any leftover dibba rotti can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days. The crust might lose it’s crispiness but it will still taste good.
Lakshmik
Hi PavaniCongrats on your new acquisition. And thanks for the recipe. I heard of this dish in India and did not know how to make it.
swapna
hai pavanicongrats..nice dibbarotti…right..:-)looking yummy….thanks for sharing..
archana
Merry Christmas to you, happy holidays. One portable grinder is in my list of things to buy on my next India vaccation. This is totally a new recipe to me,will try it out soon, Thank you.
HariPriya
hi pavani….chala santosham ga vundi dibbarotti anna mata vini…chala rojulu ayyipoyindi chesukuni….maa nannamma chesipettedi…i miss indian food!!!!:(
Lakshmiammal
Hi Pavani,Great that you have purchased wet grinder.Dibba rotte has come out very good. Wish you a happy new year!
Pooja
Hi Pavani,this dish looks delicious, and easy to amek even without oven. thanks for sharing this. wishing Merry christmas and a bright new year ahead to you and your family.
Menu Today
Hi Pavani,My friend make this and she call it as “Attu”. Thanks for sharing .
Bong Mom
Happy Holidays PavaniYour new grinder looks great, I had seen one of them at a friends place who is from B’lore. It’s amazingLoved the Andhra cake you made..something different for me
Pavani
Thank you Lakshmi and Swapna.Hi Archana,Wish you and your family very happy Holidays. Portable wet grinder is a very good investment. Do try the recipe and let me know if you liked it.Thank you Haripriya. I miss Indian food too, even though I just came back from India. Thank you Laxmiammal.Thank you Pooja. Yes.. it is great way to make a cake sans oven. My mom was telling me that our neighbors in India celebrated their birthday cutting this Andhra cake. :-)Thank you Menu today.Thank you Sandeepa. Wish you too a very happy holidays.
sra
Hi Pavani! Nice that you put an authentic, old-time recipe on your blog! I rarely see them made nowadays!
Vini K
Hi Pavani,Love dibbarotte.That grinder is great help,I agree..wish I had one too!
Amanda
Hi Pavani,
I tried this recipe out this morning and it was awesome! I used my wet grinder too.
I had never tried this recipe before, but I really enjoyed it. It was nice and light, tasting kind of like bread married with iddli. Served it with sambar and coconut chutney and it was perfect.
Thanks for such great recipes!
-Amanda
Anonymous
Rotte means rat in Norwegian, hoho.
Nandhini
Yummy … I am going to try this recipe. Thanks for sharing with us.More than a year ago I bought my ultra wet grinder from http://www.perfectpeninsula.com/Ultra125Litres.htmlIt is a very good friend in my kitchen too. It help to make fluffy idlis and crispy dosa : ) Do you have kara dosai recipe ?
Dr. Savitri
Good for health
All should prefer this type of rotte is my plea to maintain healthy body.
Avoid all types of bugger ,pizza, etc to avoid doctor…..