# How to Make Dosa: Plain Dosa, Start to Finish

Source: https://howtomakedosa.com/
Updated: 2026-09-25

One batter, one pan. Every weight in grams, every temperature in degrees, every wait in hours. Nothing here says "as needed" or "medium heat".

## At a glance

| | |
|---|---|
| Dry grain | 500 g (400 g idli rice + 100 g urad dal) |
| Makes | 18–20 dosas |
| Hands-on time | 40 min |
| Start to first dosa | 16–30 h (mostly soaking and fermenting) |
| Rice : dal ratio | 4 : 1 by weight |
| Tawa temperature | 200–215 °C (390–420 °F) to heat, 190–200 °C (375–390 °F) when pouring |
| Batter per dosa | 80 ml, spread to 22–25 cm |
| Cook time per dosa | 90–120 s, one side only |
| Batter keeps | 4 days refrigerated |
| Diet | Vegan; the ingredients contain no gluten |

## What goes in

Weigh everything dry, before soaking. A kitchen scale is the one tool this recipe will not work without.

| Ingredient | Amount | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Idli rice | 400 g | Parboiled short grain. Not basmati, not raw sona masoori. |
| Urad dal | 100 g | Whole, skinned, white. Buy it fresh; dal over a year old will not rise. |
| Fenugreek seeds | 5 g | Soaked with the dal, not the rice. |
| Salt | 10 g | Fine, non-iodised. |
| Water for grinding | 325 ml | Cold, filtered. Total across both grinds. |
| Oil for the pan | 80 ml | Sesame or sunflower. Roughly 1 tsp per dosa. |

**Ratio:** Rice to dal is 4 : 1 by weight. If you scale the recipe, scale both, or let the [batter calculator](https://howtomakedosa.com/dosa-batter-calculator/) do it. Measuring by cups breaks this ratio, because a cup of rice weighs roughly twice what a cup of dal does.

## Making the batter

Four stages. The first three take about 40 minutes of attention. The fourth is waiting.

### 1. Rinse and soak

Rinse the rice in cold water three times, until the water runs clear rather than milky. Rinse the dal twice.

Soak them in two separate bowls, water covering the grain by 5 cm. Put the fenugreek in with the dal.

- Soak time: **5 hours** at 25–30 °C
- Below 20 °C: **7 hours**
- Above 32 °C: **4 hours**, or the dal turns slimy

**Ready when:** A soaked grain of rice crushes flat under your thumbnail with no hard core. The dal has roughly doubled and feels soft all the way through.

### 2. Grind the dal first

Drain the dal. Grind it with **150 ml** of cold water added in three parts, never all at once. Dal ground alone and first is what makes the batter rise, so this is the step to be patient with.

- Wet grinder: **20–25 min**, add water every 7 min
- Mixer grinder: **3 bursts of 90 s**, 60 s rest between, ice water
- Batter temperature after grinding: **under 30 °C**

**Ready when:** The paste is white, smooth and visibly aerated, and has roughly doubled in volume. Drop a little into a glass of water: it should float, not sink.

### 3. Grind the rice

Scrape the dal paste into a large vessel. Drain the rice and grind it with the remaining **175 ml** of cold water.

Rice does not need to be silk. A slight grit is what gives a plain dosa its crispness.

- Wet grinder: **25–30 min**
- Mixer grinder: **4 bursts of 90 s**
- Texture: like **fine semolina** between two fingers

### 4. Combine, salt, and ferment

Add the rice batter to the dal. Mix with your clean hand for a full **2 minutes**, lifting and folding rather than stirring flat. Add the **10 g** of salt and mix again.

Transfer to a vessel the batter fills no more than halfway. Rest the lid on top. Do not seal it.

- Consistency: falls off the ladle in a **thick ribbon** that holds its shape for a second
- Vessel: straight-sided, filled to **50% maximum**
- Target rise: **double** the starting volume

| Kitchen temp | Time to double | Tip |
|---|---:|---|
| 20 °C / 68 °F | 22–26 h | Use an oven with the light on |
| 24 °C / 75 °F | 15–18 h | Start it in the morning |
| 28 °C / 82 °F | 10–12 h | Overnight |
| 32 °C / 90 °F | 7–8 h | Check early |
| 36 °C / 97 °F | 5–6 h | Refrigerate the moment it doubles |

**Ready when:** The batter has doubled, the surface is domed and covered in small bubbles, and it smells sour and slightly sweet. Go by the rise, not the clock. A batter that has peaked and collapsed makes flat dosas.

- Keeps refrigerated: **4 days**
- Stir once, gently, before the first use

Kitchen colder than 20 °C? See [fermenting in a cold kitchen](https://howtomakedosa.com/ferment-dosa-batter-in-cold-weather/).

## Making the dosa

Heat is the whole game here. A cast iron tawa holds it best; non-stick works but browns less.

### 1. Bring the batter to pouring consistency

Fermented batter is too thick to spread. Take out what you need, let it sit out of the fridge for **30 minutes**, then thin it with water.

- Water: **40 ml per 500 g** of batter, added a little at a time
- Consistency: coats the back of a ladle, runs off in a **steady stream**
- Stir gently. Beating it knocks out the air

### 2. Heat the tawa

Heat it empty over medium-high until it reaches temperature. Take this seriously: an underheated pan makes the batter stick, an overheated one seizes it before you can spread it.

- Target surface: **200–215 °C** (390–420 °F)
- Without a thermometer: a flicked drop of water **skitters and vanishes in 2 seconds**
- Too hot: the drop disappears instantly with a crack

### 3. Season the surface

Halve an onion, dip the cut face in oil, and rub the whole surface of the tawa with it. Then wipe it back with a cloth until it looks almost dry.

Sprinkle a tablespoon of water on the pan and wipe it off. This drops the surface into the pouring window and is why the first dosa usually fails without it.

- Surface at the moment you pour: **190–200 °C** (375–390 °F)

### 4. Pour and spread

Pour **80 ml**, one ladle, into the centre. Put the base of the ladle on the batter and move outward in one continuous spiral, working from the middle to the edge.

Spread in **10 to 15 seconds** and then stop. Do not go back over a thin patch. The batter has already set there and you will tear it.

- Finished diameter: **22–25 cm**
- Thickness: thin enough to see the pan through the edge

### 5. Oil and cook

Drizzle **1 teaspoon** of oil around the rim, not in the centre. The centre needs to dry out to go crisp.

Cook on one side only. Do not flip a plain dosa.

- Cook time: **90–120 s**
- Done when: edges lift on their own and curl, underside is **evenly golden brown**, top is dry with no wet sheen

**Removing it:** Slide a flat spatula under one edge, fold the dosa in half or roll it, and lift it off in one motion. If it resists, it needs another 15 seconds.

### 6. Reset between dosas

Wipe the tawa with the oiled onion again, sprinkle and wipe water, and give it **20 to 30 seconds** to come back to temperature. Stir the batter lightly before each pour, since the rice settles.

## When it goes wrong

The four failures that account for almost everything.

| Problem | Cause and fix |
|---|---|
| Batter never rose | Old urad dal, or a kitchen under 20 °C. Check the dal first, then move the vessel somewhere warmer. [Full diagnosis](https://howtomakedosa.com/dosa-batter-not-fermenting/). |
| Dosa sticks and tears | Pan too cool, or not seasoned before the pour. Reheat to 200 °C and rub it with the oiled onion. [More fixes](https://howtomakedosa.com/dosa-sticking-to-pan/). |
| Batter seizes before you finish spreading | Pan too hot. Sprinkle water, wipe, wait 20 seconds, then pour. |
| Soft and pale, never crisps | Batter too thick, or oil in the centre. Thin it, and oil only the rim. |

## More from the same kitchen

### Dosas

- [Masala dosa](https://howtomakedosa.com/masala-dosa/): The potato masala in grams, and when to fill and fold so the shell stays crisp.
- [Ghee roast dosa](https://howtomakedosa.com/ghee-roast-dosa/): The same batter spread thinner and roasted slower in ghee until it snaps.
- [Rava dosa](https://howtomakedosa.com/rava-dosa/): The instant one: no soaking or fermenting, and a watery batter poured from a height to make the holes.

### From the same batter

- [Idli](https://howtomakedosa.com/idli/): The same batter, not thinned, steamed for 10–12 minutes. What makes idli soft instead of dense.

### Chutney and sambar

- [Coconut chutney](https://howtomakedosa.com/coconut-chutney/): Fresh, frozen or desiccated coconut, in grams, with a tempering that takes 60 seconds.
- [Sambar](https://howtomakedosa.com/sambar/): Tiffin sambar: toor dal, tamarind and shallots in grams, thinner than the sambar you eat with rice.

### When it goes wrong

- [Batter not fermenting](https://howtomakedosa.com/dosa-batter-not-fermenting/): The seven causes, most likely first, with a test for each and a way to save the batch.
- [Fermenting in cold weather](https://howtomakedosa.com/ferment-dosa-batter-in-cold-weather/): Oven light, proof setting, Instant Pot or a cooler: the temperature each one holds and how long the batter takes.
- [Dosa sticking to the pan](https://howtomakedosa.com/dosa-sticking-to-pan/): Heat, seasoning and batter checks, plus how to re-season a cast iron tawa that has stopped releasing.

### Tools

- [Batter calculator](https://howtomakedosa.com/dosa-batter-calculator/): How many dosas, and how warm is your kitchen? Get every weight in grams and every wait in hours.
- [Dosa equipment](https://howtomakedosa.com/gear/): Scale, tawa, thermometer, grinder: what each recipe here assumes, and what to look for when buying.