Appam (also known as “palappam”) are tasty, lacy and fluffy pancakes or hoppers from the Kerala cuisine that are made from ground, fermented rice and coconut batter. Thin and crispy around the edges with soft fluffy center appam taste delicious when paired with vegetable stew for a hearty vegetarian breakfast. They also just so happen to be gluten-free and vegan.

Appam is one of our favorite breakfast dishes, so I make them on the weekends at least once a month. The preparation is similar to making Dosa Batter, and needs some prep work beforehand.

Traditionally, appam are fermented with a local alcoholic drink known as toddy – which is a drink made from palm flower or coconut flower. Toddy, which is made from palm flower or coconut flower, is also known as “kallu” in Tamil and Malayalam or “tadi” in Hindi.

To make these appam, I opted to add fresh grated coconut while grinding the batter instead of coconut milk. You can use coconut milk instead of grated coconut – about 1 cup of thick coconut milk will suffice. 

Appams are served with vegetable stew, kadala curry (chickpea curry), potato stew, vegetable korma, coconut chutney or coconut milk sweetened with jaggery.

To make my favorite sweet coconut milk for pairing with palappam, the coconut milk is sweetened with jaggery and flavored with cardamom powder. Pour the desired amount of coconut milk you wish to sweeten into a cup. Add powdered jaggery to taste, along with a bit of cardamom powder. Stir very well until the jaggery is dissolved. Enjoy!