Nei Appam
Veg
Rice and jaggery pancakes fried in ghee — a thick, pillowy batter of soaked rice, jaggery, ripe banana, and cardamom, poured into the paniyaram pan and cooked in a pool of ghee until golden and fragrant. A temple prasad sweet and Karthigai Deepam offering across Tamil Nadu.
Cuisines
Chettinad
Tamil Brahmin
Kerala
Best for
Breakfast
Snacks
Recipe
Prep: 30 min
Cook: 20 min
Total: 50 min
2-3 servings
Ingredients
| 1 cup | raw rice |
| 1/4 cup | urad dal |
| 1 cup | jaggery |
| 1/4 cup | grated coconut |
| 1 teaspoon | cardamom powder |
| 1 tablespoon | ghee |
| 1 pinch | salt |
| as needed | water |
| as needed | ghee for frying |
Instructions
- 1 Wash and soak the rice and urad dal together in water for 3-4 hours.
- 2 Drain the soaked rice and dal, and grind them into a smooth batter using a little water.
- 3 Melt the jaggery in a small amount of water over low heat until fully dissolved, then strain to remove impurities.
- 4 Add the melted jaggery, grated coconut, cardamom powder, and a pinch of salt to the batter and mix well.
- 5 Let the batter rest for about 30 minutes.
- 6 Heat an appam pan and add a little ghee in each cavity.
- 7 Pour a small amount of batter into each cavity, filling it about 3/4 full.
- 8 Cook on low heat until the edges turn golden brown, then flip and cook the other side.
- 9 Remove the nei appams from the pan and repeat with the remaining batter.
Tips
For a richer flavor, you can add a few pieces of ripe banana to the batter before mixing.