Dosa (food)
thin pancakes originating from South India
A dosa (in Indian English) or thosai (in Malaysian English and Singapore English) is a thin, savoury batter bread in South Indian cuisine made from a fermented batter of ground black gram and rice. Dosas are served hot, often with chutney and sambar.
History
The dosa originated in South India, but its precise geographical origins are unknown. According to food historian K. T. Achaya, references in the Sangam literature suggest that dosa was already in use in the ancient Tamil country around the first century CE. However, according to historian P. Thankappan Nair, dosa originated in the town of Udupi in Karnataka. Achaya states that the earliest written mention of dosa appears in the eighth-century literature of present-day Tamil Nadu, while the earliest mention of dosaë in Kannada literature appears a century later.
In popular tradition, the origin of the dosa is linked to Udupi, probably because of the dish's association with Udupi restaurants. The Tamil Nadu dosa is traditionally softer and thicker; the thinner and crispier version of dosa, which became popular across India, was first made in present-day Karnataka. A recipe for dosa can be found in Manasollasa, a 12th-century Sanskrit encyclopedia compiled by Someshvara III, who ruled from present-day Karnataka.
The dosa arrived in Mumbai with the opening of Udupi restaurants in the 1930s. After India's independence in 1947, South Indian cuisine became increasingly popular in North India.
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