Traditional idlis are bland, soft and fluffy little things. A popular South Indian dish easily found in any Indian restaurant or saivar kadey here, it's generally had with accompanying sides of chutney, minchi, and saambar.
Adding a bit of spice and a dash of cholesterol to this otherwise healthy meal is the tandoori version of it: a brick red, deep fried version that's tossed with onions and fried curry leaves for added flavour.
I haven't really seen this version in many places, and maybe that's because we've never asked — but my mom got quite a large packet of diced and spiced idli around Hendala in Wattala. She thinks the place was called Sarawavas Villa, but this should be double checked.
This one one had an overpowering saltiness to it, so it was difficult to continue eating a whole lot at one go. It's a pretty good snack though, and interesting to say the least.
Kinita didn't like it because it was mostly just a chockful of spice and salt, but the rest of us didn't mind it (in small doses).
It comes at Rs. 149 a parcel, and it's quite large and enough for two hungry people. Totally worth the price, and would recommend (if you don't mind the strong flavour of tandoori) if you like deep fried, spicy red idlis.
