Protein-packed pillowy soft steamed quinoa idli with lentils and flattened rice. With a subtle nutty and sweet taste, these idlis have a light ivory color from the quinoa. Serve with coconut chutney, red chutney, or piping hot sambar, this hearty meal is sure to be on your repeat menu.
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Last month I shared my no-ferment quinoa dosa recipe and I am thrilled to see all the positive feedback from you guys. It is gratifying to see so many of you trying out the instant dosa recipe with added proteins and enjoying it as much as the traditional dosa recipe.
Many of you asked if the same batter can be used to make idli, and my answer was no because to make soft and airy idli you need fermented idli batter.
And since I know you guys are looking for more quinoa recipes, I have the best quinoa idli recipe here for you!!
Ingredients
Note: A recipe card with exact ingredient measurements and instructions is available at the end of this post. The ingredient photo and details included here are just to give you a clear visual reference of what you'll need for the recipe, ensuring you know exactly what to gather before you start.
I am super excited to share my tried and tested idli recipe that uses quinoa instead of rice. Here are the 4 ingredients to make super soft idli:
- Organic white Quinoa - I recommend buying organic quinoa from Costco. Although it is pre-washed I highly recommend washing it at least 3 times. Place the quinoa in a fine-mesh strainer and rinse it under cold running water for a few minutes to remove the bitter smell and taste
- Poha - Flattened rice that makes fluffy soft idli.
- Urad Dal - Adds the traditional earthy dosa taste and a creamy texture.
- Fenugreek Seeds - Optional, but recommended as "methi dana" help with the fermentation process.
How to make Quinoa Idli
Here is my recipe with step-by-step photos to show how to make quinoa idli
Step 1 - Soaking & blending
- Rinse the quinoa, poha, lentils & fenugreek seeds.
- Drain out the water and then soak with 3 cups of water for 6 to 8 hours.
- Drain out all the water, add to the blender, add salt, and water, and blend until smooth (photos 1 - 4).
Step 2: Fermenting
- Add the batter to the Instant Pot insert. Set the Instant Pot to Yogurt(normal mode) for 8 hours.
- Place a non-locking lid on the Instant Pot as you do not need any pressure to be built. Depending on the temperature in your kitchen you may need to ferment it anywhere between 8 to 12 hours (photos 5-6). Note: If you do not have an Instant Pot, simply place the batter container in a warm place or inside the oven with lights on.
Step 3: Steaming
- Evenly spread 2 to 3 drops of ghee or oil to the idli mold plates and grease them well.
- Then pour the batter in each section, about ¼ cup to ⅓ cup depending on the size of your idli plate.
- Stack the plates and get the idli stand ready.
- Add 1 cup of water to the Instant Pot insert and heat it on sauté mode. Once the water gets hot and starts to steam, place the idli stand inside the Instant Pot. Close the lid with the pressure valve to venting.
- Press the steam option and set an EXTERNAL timer for 15 minutes. NOTE: The Instant Pot timer does not work with the pressure release valve to venting so make sure to set an external timer (photos 7 - 10).
Step 4: Removing
- Once the timer goes off, press Cancel on the instant pot and allow a 10-minute natural pressure release.
- Open the lid and carefully take out the Idli stand. Separate each plate and allow it to cool down for 5 mins.
- Run a butter knife carefully from under each idli and remove the idlis (photos 11 - 14).
Serving
Enjoy hot idli with coconut chutney or cilantro chutney and sambar. I have a super easy and delicious sambar recipe in The Essential Indian Instant Pot Cookbook. To make a perfect meal serve with a sweet and tangy mango lassi, cooling ginger lemonade, or refreshing watermelon juice!
Variations
- To make vegan quinoa idli simply use neutral oil instead of ghee to grease the idli mold
- You can also use this batter to make a thick pancake-like uttapam. Simple stir in finely chopped onions, green chili, cilantro, etc. to the batter and make the savory protein-packed pancakes
Tips
- Use Organic white/ivory quinoa and make sure to massage and rinse quinoa at least 2 to 3 times
- Make sure the idli batter is not too thin or too thick. It's almost like pancake batter.
- Make sure to grease the idli mold well with ghee or oil so that the idli can be removed easily
- To make fluffy and airy idli, it's important to cook it with pressure release valve to venting.
- Have water heating in the Instant Pot when you place the idli stand and start cooking.
How To Store Quinoa Idli and Batter
- Fermented Idli batter can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 5 days
- Leftover cooked idlis can also be refrigerated for up to 5 days. To reheat, place the idlis in a microwave-safe dish covered with a wet paper towel and microwave for a short amount of time. Or re-steam in the Instant Pot for 5 minutes in an oven-safe container.
More South Indian Recipes You'll Love
★ Tried this recipe? I'd love to hear how it turned out! Leave a comment and let me know, or snap a quick pic and upload it-I love seeing your creations. If you're on Instagram, tag @ministry_of_curry so I can check it out. Your feedback means so much to me and makes all the time I spend perfecting each recipe totally worth it. Thank you!
Recipe
quinoa Idli
Equipment
- Instant Pot Pressure Cooker Don't have an Instant Pot? See notes for stovetop instructions.
Recipe Video
Ingredients
- 1 cup white organic quinoa
- ⅓ cup urad dal
- ½ cup poha falttened rice flakes
- ¾ teaspoon fenugreek seeds
- ½ cup water for blending
- 1½ teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon ghee
Instructions
- Rinse the quinoa 2 to 3 times. Add poha & lentils and rinse again. Drain out the water and then soak with 3 cups of water for 6 to 8 hours.
- Drain out all the water and add to a blender and blend with salt & water. The idli batter consistency will be like pancake batter.
- Add the idli batter to the Instant Pot insert. Set the Instant Pot to Yogurt(normal mode) for 8 hours. Place a non-locking lid on the Instant Pot as you do not need any pressure to be built. Depending on the temperature in your kitchen you may need to ferment it anywhere between 8 to 12 hours. If you do not have an Instant Pot, simply place the batter container in a warm place or inside the oven with lights on.
- Evenly spread 2 to 3 drops of ghee or oil to the idli mold plates and grease it well. Then pour the batter in each section, about ¼ cup to ⅓ cup depending on the size of your idli plate. Stack the plates and get the idli stand ready. Add 1 cup of water to the Instant Pot insert and heat it on sauté mode. Once the water gets hot and starts to steam, place the idli stand inside the Instant Pot. Close the lid with the pressure valve to venting. Press the steam option and set an EXTERNAL timer for 15 minutes. NOTE: The Instant Pot timer does not work with the pressure release valve to venting so make sure to set an external timer.
- Once the timer goes off, press the Cancel button on the Instant Pot and allow a 10-minute natural pressure release. Then open the lid and carefully take out the Idli stand. Separate each plate and allow to cool down for 5 mins. Then run a butter knife carefully from under each idli and remove the idlis.
- Enjoy hot with some coconut chutney or cilantro chutney and sambar. I have a super easy and delicious sambar recipe in The Essential Indian Instant Pot Cookbook.
Notes
- To make vegan quinoa idli simply use neutral oil instead of ghee to grease the idli mold
- Make sure to grease the idli mold well with ghee or oil so that the idli can be removed easily
- To make fluffy and airy idli, it's important to cook it with the pressure release valve to venting
- Have water heating in the Instant Pot when you place the idli stand and start cooking
- You can also use this batter to make thick pancake-like uttapam. Simple stir in finely chopped onions, green chili, cilantro, etc to the batter and make the savory protein-packed pancakes
- Bring one and a half cups of water to a gentle simmer in the steamer pot or pressure cooker
- Place the Idli stand inside. Place the lid on top for teh steamer and if you are using stovetop pressure cooker take the whistle out.
- Cook for 20 minutes on medium heat.
- Check for the doneness using a toothpick, making sure that it comes out clean from the middle of the idli
- Turn the heat off and take out the idli stand after 10 minutes.
Nutrition
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Gowthami says
Thank you for the wonderful and healthy idli recipe! I was doubtful if it will come out good because my idlis never come well but this is magical. I followed exact recipe and it was fluffy. Little sweet but with podi it was perfect. Thanks again!
LeonaWestbrook-Chilcott says
My Indian friends taught me about Attapam and Idli because I cannot have gliadin. I’m very allergic to gliadin. Today 5/9 was my first time to prepare these foods. I really like the Attapam. I made it like a breakfast pizza. It is very filling and gives me a fermented food to bolster my immune system and get a complete protein. This will become my staple bread replacement. Thanks for the online recipe. The texture is dense, but I liked German bread already so no problem for me. My husband always says, “ If it’s good for me, I like it.” So no problem there.
Lee says
What if I added too much water by accident while blending?
Archana says
You can add some rice flour to it.
Shweta says
Why is it to ferment quinoa idli for 8 hours, but not for quinoa dosa recipe you have on your website ?
Archana says
Quinoa Dosa is an instant recipe and does not require fermentation. While for Idli to become fluffy and light it needs fermenting batter
Sara Vaninetti says
I made it 2 times .
First very fluffy. Second dense .
Though i used same ratio
I can't understand
Archana Mundhe says
Is it possible that the Instant pot as sealed instead of being on venting mode? That is one reason for the idlis being dense.
Sara Vaninetti says
Ii don't have instant pot..I used regular steamer for idlis . Steaming pot with idlis trail. Pls clarify how shall I cook exactly and how long
Today I am trying again .. because i love your recipe ..just i feel there is some detail I need to understand
Archana Mundhe says
Hi Sara, the regular steamer actually is even better! Make sure to heat up the water in the steamer before you put the idli rack insdie. And I am assuming that the batter is fermenting well for you? And thank you, I do want this for you to work every single time.
Geeta says
Hi Archana,
Just a request- please amend the ingredients list to urad whole gota instead of urad dal.
I used Urad dal( the split one) and the batter didn’t come out well even though it fermented; the idlis didn’t cook well at all. It was uncooked and sticky. I had to throw it all. Couldn’t fix it to make anything else of it.
Though I did put rice flour in the remainder unused batter and made small uttapams and that worked.
Archana says
Hi Geeta, URad Gota as well as split-skinned urad dal should work well for this recipe. Quinoa Idlis take a bit longer to steam and set than regular rice idlis. Next time you can keep the Instant Pot closed for 5 more minutes after the steaming cycle completes.
Shruti says
Thanks for the wonderful, healthy, yummy recipe Can we replace Quinoa with other millets like Foxtail or Browntop with the exact measurements above?
Archana says
yes!
Lohaz says
Hi,
I followed the recipe to the dot, but my idlis came out flat and sticky. What do you suggest I try different? Is it the steam time or fermenting time you think? I love all the other recipes from your blog. Have tried most of them and it was always fool-proof. Please help.
Archana says
Hi! Thank you for your kind words. Was the batter fermented properly? It could also be steaming. If you are using Instant Pot make sure the pressure knob at venting and not sealing. I have a feeling it may have been on sealing which is default in the newer Instant Pots.
Nitin says
Likewise for me - the batter seemed to have fermented properly but the idlis didn't come up right - uncooked inside and a bit goo-ey. So that lot of idlis was lost. Saving grace - it does make very good dosas.
Archana Mundhe says
Thank you for sharing your experience! Did you cook them in the Instant Pot or stovetop steamer? In my experience stove top take longer than Instant Pot. I’d suggest steaming them for a few extra minutes, and letting them rest in the molds for 5 minutes before removing. I’m glad you enjoyed the dosas, though—that’s my favorite backup plan too!
Pia says
Hi, any substitute for urad dal? TY
Archana Mundhe says
Hi Pia, Mung Dal can be used instead of urad dal.