Predominantly a south Indian dish, Dosa finds mention in ancient Indian texts like Manasollasa, a 12th century Sanskrit manual compiled by King Someshwara of modern-day Karnataka. There’s also evidence of dosa or crepes like dosa being a popular choice of snack in South Indian regions since the first century AD.
Dosa is now a nationwide sensation and its popularity is no more limited to South India, in places like Mumbai too, you would find many variations of Dosa in one single shop. People also sell dosas and idli on cycle, remember the Mumbai man who went viral on social media recently for selling close to 100 varieties of dosa for 25 years, on his cycle and makeshift stall? Mumbai loves its dosas, and one of the most peculiar dosas you would find on the streets here is the Jini dosa.
Mumbai is renowned for its wide and eclectic street food fare that also contributes immensely to the city’s ‘cosmopolitan’ vibe. In addition to the tantalising Maharashtrian snacks such as Pav Bhaji and misal, noodles, momos, dosas and sandwiches seem to have their own loyal fan following here in the city of dreams.
What is Jini Dosa
Jini Dosa are stuffed dosa that are chopped up and turned into these mini Dosas that are about 3-4 inches in height. These mini roll-ups are all placed together and garnished with cheese, chutney and herbs.
Jini Dosa is actually a fairly modern recipe, which is why you often see addition of schezwan sauce, capsicum and cheese in the recipe. The dosas are exceptionally crisp, which helps them stand erect too.
The fusion dosa recipe is a hit among people of all age groups, which is perhaps why it is such a hotseller on the streets of Mumbai. It can be served with our without a chutney. The dosa is so flavourful on its own, it barely requires any accompaniment. You can use your regular Dosa batter to whip up this recipe, you do not need to ferment and prepare a special batter for this dosa.
It is said that the Dosa originated in the Ghatkopar area of Mumbai. The word ‘Jini’ actually mean ‘small’ in Gujarati. Since the whole idea is to chop up the dosa in mini versions of dosa, the name seems rather apt.
It is fairly easy to make at home too, and we bet it will definitely amp up your breakfast experience. All you need is a good quality dosa batter, pour it on a hot tawa, then add capsicum, tomatoes, onions, chillies, sauces, cheese etc and spread it across the crepe. Make sure the mixture is nicely spread across the dosa, adding some additional scoops of butter may help in the task.
Once the edges start to lift. Roll up the dosa and with the help of the spatula itself, cut into pieces. Here is the complete step-by-step recipe of the Jini Dosa. Try it soon and let us know how you liked it.