Appam

{{Short description|Fermented rice pancake from South India and Sri Lanka}}

{{for multi|the steamship|SS Appam|the court case about the steamship|The Steamship Appam}}

{{Infobox food

| name = Appam

| image = Appam - அப்பம்.jpg

| caption = Appam

| alternate_name = Hoppers, ãppa, kallappam, vellappam, palappam

| national_cuisine = India, Sri Lanka, Southeast Asia

| course = Breakfast or dinner

| type = Pancake or griddle cake

| main_ingredient = Rice batter

| variations = Egg hoppers

| calories =

}}

An appam or vellayappam is a type of thin pancake originating from South India. It is made with fermented rice batter and coconut milk, traditionally cooked in an appachatti, a deep pan similar in shape to a wok. It's a popular dish in Indian states of Kerala, Tamil Nadu and in Sri Lanka.{{Cite book |last1=Sankaranarayanan |first1=A. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=njH3DwAAQBAJ&dq=appam+%22tamil+nadu%22&pg=PA86 |title=Fermented Food Products |last2=Amaresan |first2=N. |last3=Dhanasekaran |first3=D. |date=2019-12-06 |publisher=CRC Press |isbn=978-1-000-76095-8 |language=en}}. In Sri Lanka, it is popularly known as hoppers. Appams are most frequently served for breakfast or dinner, often with a side such as a vegetable or egg curry.

Etymology

"Appam" (also aapa, appe) may derive from the Sanskrit word (अपूप apupa), which refers to a type of "fried dainty."The Bloomsbury Handbook of Indian Cuisine - Page 27-Colleen Taylor Sen, Sourish Bhattacharyya, Helen Saberi · 2023

History

File:Making Appam.ogv

Vir Sanghvi, an Indian journalist, quotes food historian K. T. Achaya and states that the appam is mentioned in the Tamil Sangam literature, in works like Perumpāṇāṟṟuppaṭai.{{cite book | title=Rude Food: The Collected Food Writings of Vir Sanghvi|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=eK1uGVxmEiUC&pg=PA110| author=Vir Sanghvi| year=2004| page=110| publisher=Penguin Books India| isbn=0143031392 }}{{cite book | title=Let's Go Time Travelling|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2F9y5MvccaEC&q=Let%27s+Go+Time+Travelling| author=Subhadra Sen Gupta| year=2012| chapter=Always Ready for Appams!| publisher=Penguin UK| isbn=978-8184756784 }}{{cite book | title=The Story of Our Food|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bk9RHRCqZOkC&pg=PA80 | author=K. T. Achaya|date = November 2003| page=80| publisher=Universities Press| isbn=81-7371-293-X }} Achaya states that appams were well-established in ancient Tamil country as mentioned in Sangam, with poems also describing appams along with modakam being sold at street markets in ancient city of Madurai.Food in Pathupattu Part III Maduraikanchi - Achaya, K.T. Indian Food: A Historical Companion. Oxford University Press 1994Champakalakshmi R. Trade, ideology and Urbanization South India 300 BC to 1300 AD. Oxford University Press India 1996.

{{blockquote|“At nightfall, the sounds of conch shells cease, and shops are shut, their screens pulled down. Vendors, who sell delicate appams that are like honeycombs and modakam that are made by hand filled with coconut and sugar sweet and pulses, go to sleep."}}

Appams are a close relative of dosas. Early dosas were made from rice batter and later black lentils were introduced, and since then black lentils have become an integral component of dosa. The recipe of appam unlike dosa has remained unchanged for centuries. One of the earliest recipes for appams can be found in the elaborately carved recipe on the walls of the Srirangam temple, made to be offered to the deity.{{Citation| last=Gutiérrez| first=Andrea |year=2018|title=Jewels Set in Stone: Hindu Temple Recipes in Medieval Cōḻa Epigraphy. Religions.| doi=10.3390/rel9090270| doi-access=free}}{{cite web| last=Shoba| title= A Divine Treat| date=16 April 2015|url=https://openthemagazine.com/features/living/a-divine-treat/|publisher=Open Magazine}}

Appams have a rich history in the island nation of Sri Lanka.{{Cite book| last1=Bullis| last2=Hutton| year=2001| title=Food of Sri Lanka|publisher=Tuttle Publishing.}} There are multiple styles of fermenting appam, and some Jewish historians have noted that the Cochin Jews of Kerala used fresh toddy instead of yeast.{{Cite book |first=Gil |last=Marks |url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/849738985 |title=Encyclopedia of Jewish food |date=2010 |publisher=Wiley |isbn=978-0-544-18631-6 |oclc=849738985}}{{Cite book |author=Sassoon, Essie, 1936- |url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/1268929164 |title=Spice & kosher : exotic cuisine of the Cochin Jews |date=14 June 2013 |publisher=Tamarind Tree Books Incorporated |isbn=978-1-989242-11-7 |oclc=1268929164}}

Variations

File:Appam (hoppers) from Kerala, India.jpg

File:Appam served with Coconut Milk in Tamil Nadu.JPG

File:Karandi Appam or Kuzhi Appam.jpg]]

File:Appam with kadala curry from kerala.jpg

Image:Appam_with_egg.jpg

=Idiyappam=

Idiyappams (string hopper or noolputtu) are made from rice noodles curled into flat spirals. They are served for breakfast with a thin curry of fish or chicken, containing only one or two pieces of meat, a dhal (lentil) dish, and a spicy sambol or fresh chutney. Kiri hodi or sodhi, a type of coconut milk curry, is another popular accompaniment to idiyappam. String hoppers are made from steamed rice flour made into a dough with water and a little salt, and forced through a mould similar to those used for pasta to make the strings. They are cooked by steaming. Some people even sprinkle grated coconut on the rice noodles. These hoppers can be bought ready-made. In India and Sri Lanka, string hoppers can be served as both a breakfast meal and as dinner. There are many variations to hoppers, depending on, for example, the type of flour used. This simple dish can be adapted into other foods such as string hopper biriyani, by adding scrambled eggs or vegetables.{{cite web |author1=Petrina Verma Sarkar |url=http://indianfood.about.com/od/ricerecipes/r/appam.htm |title=Appams - Appam Recipe - Hoppers - Hoppers Recipe |publisher=Indianfood.about.com |date=2011-03-02 |accessdate=2011-11-21 |archive-date=7 January 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160107174456/http://indianfood.about.com/od/ricerecipes/r/appam.htm |url-status=dead }}

File:Idiyappam with Egg Masala Curry.jpg

=Achappam=

Achappams are deep-fried rose cookies made with rice.{{cite book |last1=Menon |first1=A. Sreedhara |title=Social and cultural history of Kerala |date=1979 |publisher=Sterling |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BXluAAAAMAAJ&q=Achappam |language=en}}

=Kuzhalappam=

Kuzhalappams are a typical Syrian Christian-Saint Thomas Christians dish, a fried crisp curled up like a tube.{{cite book |author=K.T. Achaya |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CKIJAAAACAAJ |title=Indian Food: A Historical Companion |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=1997 |isbn=0195644166}}{{Cite book |last=Menon |first=A. Sreedhara |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BXluAAAAMAAJ&q=Achappam |title=Social and Cultural History of Kerala |date=1979 |publisher=Sterling |language=en}}

=Neyyappam=

Neyyappams owe their origins to Kerala and have been a traditional offering in Hindu temples for God.{{cite web|url=http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2010-04-10/food-reviews/28133133_1_malayali-syrian-christians-rice|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130814174612/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2010-04-10/food-reviews/28133133_1_malayali-syrian-christians-rice|url-status=dead|archive-date=14 August 2013|title=The appam takes on the naan|date=10 April 2010|work=The Times of India|author=Dileep Padgaonkar}} They are made with rice flour, jaggery and clarified butter ghee, which is the traditional method of making Nei appams. The different culture and religious practices introduced variations to the dish.{{cite web|url=http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2010-04-10/food-reviews/28133133_1_malayali-syrian-christians-rice|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130814174612/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2010-04-10/food-reviews/28133133_1_malayali-syrian-christians-rice|url-status=dead|archive-date=14 August 2013|title=The appam takes on the naan|date=10 April 2010|work=The Times of India|author=Dileep Padgaonkar}}

Unni appams are a variation in which mashed plantain is added to the batter. The batter is made out of rice flour, jaggery and plantain and is poured into a vessel called appakarai or appakaram, which has ghee heated to a high temperature. The appams take the shape of small cups and are fried until deep brown.

=Kallappam=

Kallappams are a traditional breakfast item of Kerala. They are made from fermented rice flour and coconut batter. Christians in Kerala prepare them on special occasions like Easter.{{Cite web |title=തനി നാടൻ കള്ളപ്പം, ഈസ്റ്റർ ദിനത്തിലെ പ്രഭാത ഭക്ഷണം |url=https://www.manoramaonline.com/pachakam/readers-recipe/2022/04/16/kallappam-kottayam-style.html |access-date=2024-05-25 |website=www.manoramaonline.com}} The name is derived from kallu, Malayalam for palm toddy, the ingredient traditionally used for fermenting the rice flour. In modern preparation of the dish, yeast has replaced toddy.{{Cite web |title=Recipe of Kallappam, Breakfast dish, Kerala Food |url=https://www.keralatourism.org/kerala-food/kallappam/7 |access-date=2024-05-24 |website=Kerala Tourism |language=en}}

=Pesaha appam=

Pesaha appams are made by Nasrani Christians in Kerala during Pesaha (Passover). This type of appam is dipped in syrup or pesaha pal (Passover coconut milk) before being served.{{cite web |last=Amprayil |first=Kuruvilla Cherian |title=Kerala Nazranee Pesaha Receipes{{sic |nolink=yes}} |url=http://nasrani.net/2008/03/16/kerala-nazranee-pesaha-receipes/ |date=16 March 2008 |publisher=Nasrani Syrian Christians Network |accessdate=22 August 2009}}

=Vattayappam=

File:Vattayappam (2).JPG

Vattayappams are made from rice flour, sugar, and coconut. They are an oil-free tea-time snack in a majority of households in Kerala.{{cite web|url=http://food.manoramaonline.com/food/kerala-kitchen/vattayappam-kerala-snack-steamed-rice-cake-recipe.html|title=Vattayappam- an oil free tea time snack - Appam - Palappam - Pesaha Appam - Kerala Cuisines - Cake - Snacks - Steamed}} The dish is made by steam-cooking the batter and is very similar to the bánh bò from Vietnam.

= Burmese ''apon'' =

Appams called apon ({{Lang|my|အာပုံ}}) in Burmese are a common street food in Burmese cuisine.{{Cite web|title=လှည်းတန်းတစ်ဝိုက်မုန့်စားကြမယ်|url=https://yangonlife.com.mm/mm/article/62410|access-date=2021-01-14|website=Yangon Life|language=my|archive-date=14 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210114235138/https://yangonlife.com.mm/mm/article/62410|url-status=dead}} They are considered a delicacy of Southern Myanmar, in coastal towns like Dawei and Myeik.{{Cite web|title=ထားဝယ်ဆိုတာ လူငယ်တွေအတွက်ပါ|url=https://www.mdn.gov.mm/my/thaawychiuttaa-luungytteattkp|access-date=2021-01-14|website=MDN - Myanmar DigitalNews|language=my}}{{Cite web|title=မြိတ်လို့ခေါ်တဲ့ ကျွန်တော့်ရဲ့ဇာတိမြေ {{!}} MingalaGO မြန်မာခရီးသွားလမ်းညွှန် – မြန်မာနိုင်ငံခရီးသွားဆိုင်ရာ တန်ဖိုးရှိအသုံးဝင်သော သတင်းအချက်အလက်များ|url=https://mingalago.com/my/interest/detail/myeik|access-date=2021-01-14|website=MingalaGO|language=my}}

=Kue apem=

File:Kue apem Pasar Terapung Lok Baintan.jpg, South Kalimantan]]

In Indonesia, a variant of appam is known as kue apem or kue apam is a kue, a traditional cake of steamed dough made of rice flour, coconut milk, yeast and palm sugar, usually served with grated coconut.{{cite web |title=Kue Apem Kukus |publisher=Sajian Sedap |date=16 December 2010 |url=http://www.sajiansedap.com/recipe/detail/5483/kue-apem-kukus#.VYtFSlK6LIU |language=Indonesian |accessdate=25 June 2015 |archive-date=12 July 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150712093409/http://www.sajiansedap.com/recipe/detail/5483/kue-apem-kukus#.VYtFSlK6LIU |url-status=dead }} Indonesian households traditionally made kue apem communally for celebration and festivities, such as Keraton Yogyakarta,a traditionally held Ngapem ceremony, where the royal household communally cooks it as a part of Tingalan Jumenengan Dalem ceremony.{{Cite news|url=http://jogja.tribunnews.com/2018/04/14/para-puteri-sri-sultan-luwes-membuat-apem-di-prosesi-ngapem|title=Para Puteri Sri Sultan Luwes Membuat Apem di Prosesi Ngapem - Tribun Jogja|date=2018-04-14|work=Tribun Jogja|access-date=2018-07-02|language=id-ID}} It is quite similar to kue mangkok.

=Roti jala=

{{see also | Indian_cuisine#Diaspora_and_fusion_cuisines | l1= Influence of Indian cuisine | Greater India | Indianisation | History of Indian influence on Southeast Asia }}

Roti jala, popular in Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore, is inspired from appam and traveled there from India likely in the 15th century.{{cite web|title=Roti jala: Like a lace doily|url=https://www.malaymail.com/amp/news/eat/drink/2014/07/06/roti-jala-like-a-lace-doily/699257|publisher=Malay Mail|date=6 July 2014|last=Mok|first=Opalyn}}{{citation|url= https://batam.tribunnews.com/amp/2020/08/07/resep-dan-sejarah-roti-jala-khas-melayu-masuk-ke-indonesia-sejak-abad-ke-17?page=2 |title= Resep dan Sejarah Roti Jala Khas Melayu, Masuk ke Indonesia Sejak Abad ke 17 |work=Tribunews|language=id}}{{cite web|title= Unravelling the Secrets of Roti Jala: A Net of Culture and Flavour in Malaysia|url= https://munchmalaysia.com/traditional-food/unravelling-the-secrets-of-roti-jala-a-net-of-culture-and-flavour-in-malaysia/|work=Munchmalaysia.com|first= Lavanyah |last= Magenthiran}}