papadam

{{Infobox food

| name = Papadam

| image = Roasted Papad - Howrah 2013-11-02 4068.jpg

| caption = Fire-roasted papadam

| alternate_name = {{hlist|Papad|papar|papadum|appadam|pampas|happala|poppadam|poppadom|appalam|pappadam|pampad|puppodum|pappadum|pompadom}}

| creator =

| course = Appetizer or side dish

| served =

| main_ingredient = {{hlist|Flour from lentils|black gram|chickpeas|potato|sago|rice}}

| variations = {{hlist|Rice papad|tapioca papad|sago papad|potato papad|masala papad|garlic papad|ginger paped|jackfruit papad}}

| calories =

| other =

}}

A papadam (also spelled poppadom, among other variants), also known as papad, is a snack that originated in the Indian subcontinent. Dough of black gram bean flour is either deep fried or cooked with dry heat (flipped over an open flame) until crunchy. Other flours made from lentils, chickpeas, rice, tapioca, millet or potato are also used. Papadam is typically served as an accompaniment to a meal in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka and the Caribbean or as an appetizer, often with a dip such as chutneys, or toppings such as chopped onions and chili peppers, or it may be used as an ingredient in curries.

Etymology

Papadam is a loanword from Tamil {{lang|ta|பப்படம்}} {{IAST|pappaṭam}},"poppadom, n." OED Online. December 2006. Oxford University Press..{{cite web | url=http://dsal.uchicago.edu/dictionaries/ | title=Digital Dictionaries of South Asia | date=1962 }} and is likely to be derived from Sanskrit {{lang|sa|पर्पट}} {{IAST|parpaṭa}}, meaning a flattened disc described in early Jain and Buddhist literature.{{Cite web|title=Poppadom - Definition and synonyms of poppadom in the English dictionary|url=https://educalingo.com/en/dic-en/poppadom|access-date=2021-09-22|website=educalingo.com|language=en}}{{Cite web |title=Lip-Smacking Ways to Use Papad: From Masala Papad to Rolls and Chaats |url=https://food.ndtv.com/food-drinks/lip-smacking-ways-to-use-papad-from-masala-papad-to-rolls-and-chaats-1731969 |access-date=2022-09-12 |website=NDTV Food |language=en |quote=According to food historian and author KT Achaya, "The parpata (papad) is first mentioned in about 500BC in Buddhist-Jain canonical literature, and the medical authorities note that they are made from pulses like urad, masoor, chana and the like."}} Papad is known by several names in the various languages of India, e.g. {{lang|hi|पापड़}} {{IAST|pāpaṛ}} in Hindi; {{lang|te|అప్పడం}} {{IAST|appaḍaṁ}} in Telugu; {{lang|ta|அப்பளம்}} {{IAST|appaḷam}} or {{lang|ta|பப்படம்}} {{IAST|pappaṭam}} in Tamil; {{lang|kn|ಹಪ್ಪಳ}} {{IAST|happaḷa}} in Kannada; {{lang|si|පපඩම්}} {{IAST|papaḍam}} in Sinhala; {{lang|ml|പപ്പടം}} {{IAST|pappaṭam}} in Malayalam; {{lang|mr|पापड}} {{IAST|pāpaḍ}} in Marathi;{{cite journal |last1=Khedkar |first1=Renu |last2=Shastri |first2=Pratima |last3=Bawa |first3=Amarinder Singh |title=Standardization, Characterization and Shelf Life Studies on Sandge, a Traditional Food Adjunct of Western India |journal=International Journal of Environment, Agriculture and Biotechnology |date=2016 |volume=1 |issue=2 |pages=237–243 |doi=10.22161/ijeab/1.2.18|doi-access=free}} {{lang|pa|ਪਾਪੜ}} {{IAST|pāpaṛ}} in Punjabi; {{lang|gu|પાપડ}} {{IAST|pāpaḍ}} in Gujarati; {{lang|or|ପାମ୍ପଡ}} {{IAST|pāmpaḍa}} in Odia; and {{lang|as|পাপড়}} {{IAST|pāpaḍ}} in Assamese.{{citation needed|date=August 2017}}

Regional variations

File:RollednRoastedPapads.jpg papadam from Bengaluru |alt=]]

File:Different Papad - Kolkata 2015-10-21 6134.JPG

Papad recipes vary from region to region and from household to household. They are typically made from a flour or paste made from lentils, chickpeas, black gram, rice, or potatoes.{{Cite book |last=Aoyagi |first=William Shurtleff; Akiko |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=q1-IDwAAQBAJ&dq=papadam+history&pg=PA2098 |title=History of Soy Flour, Flakes and Grits (510 CE to 2019): Extensively Annotated Bibliography and Sourcebook |date=2019-02-17 |publisher=Soyinfo Center |isbn=978-1-948436-06-9 |pages=814 |language=en}}

Salt and peanut oil are added to make a dough, which can be flavored with seasonings such as chili, cumin, garlic, or black pepper. Sometimes, baking soda or slaked lime are also added. The dough is shaped into thin, round flatbreads, dried (traditionally in the sun{{Cite book |last=B.Gangwar |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=C-UxFp6cFRwC&dq=papadam+sun&pg=PA197 |title=Solving The Pulses Crisis |date=2013-01-21 |publisher=New India Publishing Agency |isbn=978-93-81450-48-2 |pages=197 |language=en}}), and can be cooked by deep frying, roasting over an open flame, toasting, or microwaving, depending on the desired texture.

In most Indian restaurants around the world, they are served as an appetizer with dips, which often include mango chutney, lime pickle, onion chutney, and raita.{{Cite web |date=2023-05-23 |title=Poppadom Dips Recipe (easy Indian dips) |url=https://www.jcookingodyssey.com/2023/03/23/poppadom-dips/}} Masala papad with sev, onion, tomato and coriander leaves is one of India's most popular appetizers.

Ingredients and preparation

Papadam can be prepared from different ingredients and methods. One popular recipe uses flour ground from hulled split black gram{{cite book|author1=J. Smartt|author2=Emmanuel Nwokolo|title=Food and Feed from Legumes and Oilseeds|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cvfSBwAAQBAJ&pg=PA12|date=6 December 2012|publisher=Springer Science & Business Media|isbn=978-1-4613-0433-3|page=28}} mixed with black pepper, salt, a small amount of vegetable oil and a food-grade alkali, and the mixture is kneaded. A well-kneaded dough is then flattened into very thin rounds and then dried and stored for later preparation and consumption. It may also contain rice, jackfruit, sago, etc., as main ingredients.

Cracked black pepper, red chili powder, asafoetida, cumin or sesame seeds are often used as flavoring agents. Papadam is also made from rice flakes, ragi or horsegram.{{cite web|url=https://udupi-recipes.com/2018/03/poha-papad-rice-flakes-papad.html|title=Poha papad, Rice flakes Papad, Summer Recipe|date=11 March 2018|publisher=Udupi-Recipes|access-date=9 January 2020}}