It is made from rice, lentils, potato, fenugreek, ghee and curry leaves, and served with chutneys and sambar. It is popular in South India. It can be found in all other parts of the country and overseas. In South India, preparation of masala dosa varies from city to city. There are variations in Masala dosa like Davanagere Benne masale dosey (butter dosa), Rava masala dosa, Paper masala dosa, Mysore masala dosa etc.

Masala dosa is stuffed dosa. The two parts are the dosa and the stuffing. The dosa is made in the usual way by soaking rice and lentils overnight in water and then grinding it into a batter. The batter will be fermented overnight to make the dosa soft from the inside and crispy from the outside. The stuffing is made from boiled potatoes with a seasoning of mustard seeds and garnishing of grated coconut, a pinch of turmeric powder, coriander leaves, and lemon juice.

Typical ingredients include parboiled rice, husked black gram, poha / puffed rice, chana dal, mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds, salt, vegetable oil, ghee, potatoes, onion, green chillies, curry leaves, and turmeric.