Kerala Appam – Palappam
Appam is a type of pancake made in Kerala with fermented rice batter & coconut milk. The name itself suggests its a cake made of milk – “pal” stands for milk in Malayalam language & appam is a type of pancake. This dish is also very popular in other states in the south & elsewhere in countries of Southeast Asia. In Srilanka, it is known as rice hoppers. The appams are made in a special pan called appam chattis (usually nonstick) so you don’t need to use oil for preparing it. The shape the palappam resembles a bowl -thin around the edges & soft & fluffy in the middle or centre. In the olden days, toddy or palm wine made from coconut palms was used to ferment the batter. Nowadays of course, people use yeast instead.