However, not many people know about the origin of Rava Idli. What most people don’t know is the history of World War II. Let’s know the details –

Various delicacies like Idli, Dhosa, Bara are now available all over India. People are now also aware of many forms and flavors of idli. A special item among these is Rava Idli. But this rava idli has nothing to do with the traditional idli. Its history is not very old. It is not even close to 100 years old. This special recipe was first created at the very famous ‘Mavalli Tiffin Room’ in Bangalore.

This tiffin service in Bangalore is known as MTR. This eatery was started in 1924 by Parampalli Yajnarayana Maia and his brothers. Next year will mark the centenary of the shop. This is where Rava Idli was made for the first time.

In fact, this rava idli has a turbulent history. Japanese invasion and occupation of Burma led to a rice crisis. Burma is a rice producing country. Moreover, during the Second World War, there was a rice famine in the whole of India.

In this situation rice substitute is needed to make idli. To keep the MTR Tiffin service running, the authorities started thinking of other ideas. And that’s when Rava or Suji comes up as an alternative.

In an interview to The Hindu, Vikram Maia, managing partner of MTR, said, ‘My great-grandfather Yajnarayana Maia invented this recipe, which still holds a place in people’s hearts. He was the first to make rava idlis with curd, cashews and chutney.’