Appam (Rice & Coconut Pancake)

Appam is my hubby's favourite street food in Penang. He can devour ten appam at one go; he is very fond of appam with its soft, tender centre and crispy edges. I have been researching for a suitable recipe and was lucky to have my best friend share her mum's basic recipe with me. Her mum used to sell appam in the good old days. Unfortunately, she used the "agak agak" method for measuring out the ingredients. So we had several trial and error attempts with the proportions and with the help of my dear hubby's taste test, I now have a recipe that I am happy to share.

Note: I use a small Appam wok to make my Appam. You can use any pan that has a round bottom.

VIDEO LINK: https://youtu.be/jA6Usr1yMYY

INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup of rice flour
1 cup of boiling water
1 cup of coconut milk
1 tsp baking powder
2 tbsp sugar
Dash of salt
2 eggs (beaten)
Coconut oil (for greasing pan)

METHOD

1. Place flour in a bowl. Add boiling water, a little at time. Stir until rice flour is fully dissolved.

2. Add coconut milk and keep stirring to a smooth batter.

3. Add sugar, salt and baking powder and stir to dissolve.

4. Cover and store in the fridge for several hours (preferably overnight).

5. The next day, stir through the batter and add beaten eggs. Mix well. Strain through a sieve to remove any remaining lumps.

6. Heat a wok on low. Grease with a little coconut oil using paper towel.

7. Sprinkle a few drops of water into the wok. The wok is hot enough if the water droplets sizzle immediately.

8. Pour 1/4 cup of the batter into the centre of the wok.

9. Lift the wok and swirl the batter to the edge of the wok.

10. Cover the wok and allow the batter to cook for 3 minutes.

11. When the centre is cooked, turn up the heat to brown the edges.

12. Gently lift the appam and slide it off to a serving plate or roll up the appam in the pan to facilitate eating with hands. Appam is best eaten immediately.