How To Make Dosa

Ghee roast · restaurant style

Ghee roast dosa, crisp from edge to centre.

A ghee roast is a plain dosa taken further. It is spread thinner and wider, covered in ghee, and cooked longer at lower heat until it is brittle all the way to the centre. Same batter, different pan technique.

90 mlBatter
28–30 cmDiameter
10 gGhee
2½–3 minRoast

What goes in

Ghee roast dosa ingredients (makes 8)
IngredientAmount
Fermented dosa batterWell risen, 1–2 days old. Day-one batter gives a paler roast.750 ml
WaterAbout 50 ml per 500 g of batter, slightly more than for plain dosa.70 ml
GheeMelted. 10 g per dosa.80 g
OnionHalved, for seasoning the tawa.1
Pan sizeYou need a tawa at least 30 cm across. On a smaller pan you cannot spread 90 ml thin enough, and the result is a thick plain dosa.

Making it

  1. Thin the batter a little more

    Let the batter stand out of the fridge for 30 minutes, then stir in water until it runs a little faster than plain dosa batter: a thin, steady stream off the ladle that levels itself in the bowl within 2 seconds.

  2. Heat and season the tawa

    Heat the tawa to 200–215 °C (390–420 °F). Rub it with the oiled onion, sprinkle and wipe off a tablespoon of water, then pour at 190–200 °C, exactly as for plain dosa.

  3. Spread wide and thin

    Pour 90 ml in the centre and spread it in a spiral out to 28–30 cm. Use lighter pressure than for plain dosa and more turns. The edge should be thin enough to see the pan through.

    Batter · 90 ml
    Diameter · 28–30 cm
    Spread in · 15–20 s

  4. Ghee over everything, then lower the heat

    Spoon 10 g (2 teaspoons) of melted ghee over the whole surface, and spread it with the back of the spoon. Turn the heat down to medium-low.

    This is the difference from a plain dosa. The lower heat lets the whole dosa dry out and crisp before the edges burn, and keeps the ghee's milk solids from turning bitter.

  5. Roast until it lifts

    Roast · 2½–3 min, one side only
    Done when · deep golden brown all over, edges curling up by 1–2 cm, the whole dosa slides freely
    RollingLift one edge with the spatula and roll it into a tube, or fold it into a cone, then lift it off. It should feel stiff, like a thin cracker. Turn the heat back up and wait 45 seconds before the next pour.
    • Crisp at the edges, soft in the middleSpread too thick in the centre, or roasted too fast. Spread lighter, lower the heat, and give it 30 seconds more.
    • Ghee smokes and tastes bitterHeat too high. Turn it down as soon as the ghee goes on.
    • Cracks when rollingRoasted a little too long. Roll it 15 seconds earlier.

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