Vellayappam
Start your day with a taste of South India! Vellayappam, also known as Kerala Appam, are soft and lacy rice pancakes that are simply irresistible
Ingredients
- 3 cups raw rice preferably a short-grain variety like idli rice
- 1 cup cooked rice parboiled rice works well. If you don't have cooked rice you can replace with Aval or flattend rice
- 1 1/2 cup grated coconut
- 1 Tablespoon sugar
- 1 ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon Yeast
- Water for grinding
Instructions
Soak the Rice:
- Wash and soak the raw rice for at least 6 hours or overnight, keeping the last 2 hours in the fridge to prevent heating during grinding.
Prepare the Batter:
- In a blender or food processor, add the drained, soaked raw rice, yeast, cooked rice, grated coconut, sugar, and salt.
- Start blending with ice-cold water, adding more gradually as needed until you get a smooth, thick batter with a pourable consistency—neither too thick nor too thin.
Fermentation:
- Cover the batter and leave it in a warm, undisturbed place for about 6-8 hours or overnight. The batter should double in volume and become slightly bubbly.
Prepare the Vellayappam:
- After fermentation, give the batter a good stir to deflate any excess air bubbles.
- Heat a non-stick appam pan or a regular frying pan with a flat bottom over medium heat. If using a regular frying pan, make sure it has a lid.
- On a flat pan, pour a ladle of batter in the center, spread slightly thick with the back of a ladle.
- Cover and cook until bubbles form on top and the underside is golden. cook over low to medium heat for 2-3 minutes or until the center is set and golden underneath.
Serve
- Carefully remove the vellayappam from the pan using a spatula and place it on a serving plate.
- Repeat the process with the remaining batter.
Enjoy
- Serve vellayappam hot with your favorite side dishes, such as coconut milk, vegetable stew, egg curry, or chicken curry.
Notes
If it is active dry yeast, dissolve 1 teaspoon of active dry yeast in a little warm water (about 1/4 cup) along with a pinch of sugar. Allow it to froth for about 10 minutes. Mix the yeast mixture into the rice batter and combine well.
Kerala appam is cooked only on one side. The batter steams through under the lid, so there’s no need to flip it. But some people prefer to cook on both sides, then you can do that.