Appam Recipe

Delicately sweet and mildly tangy, these appams, also called hoppers, have a soft and spongy texture. Coconut milk adds volume and thickness to the batter that turns into a lacy, springy bread when cooked. Their soft and spongy texture comes from a mix of cooked and uncooked jasmine rice, shredded coconut, sugar, and yeast that is fermented for up to five hours. In this recipe, the appams are cooked in a nonstick 10-inch skillet though they are traditionally made in an appachatti, or appam pan.

Frequently Asked Questions

• What is shredded coconut?

  Shredded coconut is the grated white flesh of mature coconuts, with some moisture retained in the small bits. Available sweetened and unsweetened varieties, the low moisture level in shredded coconut makes it an ideal ingredient for baked goods such as Coconut Macaroons and Pandan and Coconut Cake.

• What is coconut milk?

  
  

Notes from the Food & Wine Test Kitchen

Store appams layered between parchment paper in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to four days.

Make ahead

Rice-coconut mixture can be made up to one week ahead and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator. To cook, bring to room temperature, and add sugar and active dry yeast. Proceed with step 2 as directed.