Aapam
This is a South Indian favorite pancake lacy around the edges and soft and puffy in the center.
Servings 4 people
Ingredients
For soaking and grinding
- 1 cup ponni par-boiled rice
- 1 cup raw rice (pachari/pacharisi)
- ⅓ cup urad dal
- a handful of poha/aval/beaten rice
- a pinch of methi seeds
For kurukku
- 2 tbsp rice powder
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 cup water
Rest of the ingredients
- ½ cup grated coconut tightly packed(100g)
- warm water as needed
- salt as needed
- sugar as needed
- oil as needed for cooking the aapams(i use sesame oil)
For sweetened coconut milk
- ½ cup grated coconut tightly packed(100g)
- ½-1 cup warm water
- a pinch of cardamom powder
- a pinch of dry ginger powder
- jaggery or sugar as needed
- 1-2 tbsp milk(optional)
Instructions
- Soak all the ingredients mentioned under for soaking and grinding for 2 hours.
- Grind them in a wet grinder or a blender to a smooth thick batter. Add salt as needed. Wash the grinder/mixer with a cup of water and reserve the water.
- Make the porridge or kurukku by mixing up the ingredients mentioned under 'for kurukku' and heating up on stovetop with constant stirring till it cooks and reaches a porridge consistency.
- Let it cool down a bit and add it to the ground batter. Let it ferment for at least 6 hours or overnight.
- Next morning, extract 1 cup of coconut milk by grinding the coconut with warm water and straining it.
- Mix this with the fermented batter and also add the residual rice paste from the grinder-washed water. Add the water too as needed to bring it to a dosa batter consistency.
- Taste test the batter and add salt and sugar as needed. Mix well and let sit for 15 minutes.
- Heat up the aapam pan or aapachatti on medium heat. Wipe the pan with oil. Pour a ladle in the center of the pan. Lift the pan using the handles at the side and gently swirl the pan so that the batter coats the entire pan. Smear oil, cover, and cook for a minute or two.
- Remove from the pan once the centre gets cooked and the edges brown up. Serve with coconut chutney, ishtu, vegetable ishtu, sweetened coconut milk, kadala curry, chicken or mutton curries.
To make sweetened coconut milk
- Grind the coconut with the warm water and strain. Add the ginger and cardamom powders and sugar or jaggery as needed. Add 1-2 tbsp of milk if using. Mix well and serve with the aapam.