View source for Appam

{{Short description|Fermented rice pancake from South India and Sri Lanka}}

{{for multi|the steamship|SS Appam|the court case about the steamship|The Steamship Appam}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2020}}
{{Infobox food
| name             = Appam <!-- Please do not add any Indic script in this infobox, per WP:INDICSCRIPT policy. -->
| image            = Appam - அப்பம்.jpg
| caption          = Appam
| alternate_name   = Hoppers, ãppa, kallappam, vellappam, palappam
| national_cuisine = [[Indian cuisine|India]], [[Sri Lankan cuisine|Sri Lanka]], Southeast Asia
| course           = [[Breakfast]] or [[dinner]]
| type             = [[Pancake]] or [[griddle]] cake
| main_ingredient  = Rice batter
| variations       = Egg hoppers
| calories         = 
}}
An '''appam''' or '''vellayappam''' is a type of thin pancake originating from [[South India]].<ref name="Rude Food"/> It is made with fermented rice batter and coconut milk, traditionally cooked in an ''appachatti'', a deep pan similar in shape to a wok. It's a popular dish in Indian states of [[Kerala]], [[Tamil Nadu]] and in [[Sri Lanka]].<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Sankaranarayanan |first1=A. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=njH3DwAAQBAJ&dq=appam+%22tamil+nadu%22&pg=PA86 |title=Fermented Food Products |last2=Amaresan |first2=N. |last3=Dhanasekaran |first3=D. |date=2019-12-06 |publisher=CRC Press |isbn=978-1-000-76095-8 |language=en}}</ref>. In Sri Lanka, it is popularly known as '''hoppers'''. Appams are most frequently served for breakfast or dinner, often with a side such as a vegetable or egg curry.

==Etymology==
"Appam" (also ''aapa'', ''appe'') may derive from the [[Sanskrit]] word (अपूप ''apupa''), which refers to a type of "fried dainty."<ref>The Bloomsbury Handbook of Indian Cuisine - Page 27-Colleen Taylor Sen, Sourish Bhattacharyya, Helen Saberi · 2023</ref>

==History==
[[File:Making Appam.ogv|thumb|alt=Process of making an appam|Video of making an appam]]
[[Vir Sanghvi]], an Indian journalist, quotes food historian [[K. T. Achaya]] and states that the appam is mentioned in the [[Tamil language|Tamil]] [[Sangam literature]], in works like [[Perumpāṇāṟṟuppaṭai]].<ref name="Rude Food">{{cite book | title=Rude Food: The Collected Food Writings of Vir Sanghvi|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=eK1uGVxmEiUC&pg=PA110| author=Vir Sanghvi| year=2004| page=110| publisher=Penguin Books India| isbn=0143031392 }}</ref><ref name="Gupta">{{cite book | title=Let's Go Time Travelling|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2F9y5MvccaEC&q=Let%27s+Go+Time+Travelling| author=Subhadra Sen Gupta| year=2012| chapter=Always Ready for Appams!| publisher=Penguin UK| isbn=978-8184756784 }}</ref><ref name="The Story of our Food by K. T. Achaya">{{cite book | title=The Story of Our Food|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bk9RHRCqZOkC&pg=PA80 | author=K. T. Achaya|date = November 2003| page=80| publisher=Universities Press| isbn=81-7371-293-X }}</ref> Achaya states that appams were well-established in [[Tamilakam|ancient Tamil country]] as mentioned in [[Sangam literature|Sangam]], with poems also describing appams along with modakam being sold at street markets in ancient city of [[Madurai]].<ref>Food in Pathupattu Part III Maduraikanchi - Achaya, K.T. Indian Food: A Historical Companion. Oxford University Press 1994</ref><ref>Champakalakshmi R. Trade, ideology and Urbanization South India 300 BC to 1300 AD. Oxford University Press India 1996.</ref>

{{blockquote|“At nightfall, the sounds of conch shells cease, and shops are shut, their screens pulled down. Vendors, who sell delicate appams that are like honeycombs and modakam that are made by hand filled with coconut and sugar sweet and pulses, go to sleep."}}

Appams are a close relative of [[Dosa (food)|dosas]]. Early dosas were made from rice batter and later black lentils were introduced, and since then black lentils have become an integral component of dosa.<ref name="Rude Food"/> The recipe of appam unlike dosa has remained unchanged for centuries.<ref name="Rude Food"/> One of the earliest recipes for appams can be found in the elaborately carved recipe on the walls of the [[Ranganathaswamy Temple, Srirangam|Srirangam]] temple, made to be offered to the deity.<ref>{{Citation| last=Gutiérrez| first=Andrea |year=2018|title=Jewels Set in Stone: Hindu Temple Recipes in Medieval Cōḻa Epigraphy. Religions.| doi=10.3390/rel9090270| doi-access=free}}</ref><ref name="shoba">{{cite web| last=Shoba| title= A Divine Treat| date=16 April 2015|url=https://openthemagazine.com/features/living/a-divine-treat/|publisher=Open Magazine}}</ref>

Appams have a rich history in the island nation of Sri Lanka.<ref>{{Cite book| last1=Bullis| last2=Hutton| year=2001| title=Food of Sri Lanka|publisher=Tuttle Publishing.}}</ref> There are multiple styles of fermenting appam, and some Jewish historians have noted that the [[Cochin Jews]] of [[Kerala]] used fresh toddy instead of yeast.<ref>{{Cite book |first=Gil |last=Marks |url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/849738985 |title=Encyclopedia of Jewish food |date=2010 |publisher=Wiley |isbn=978-0-544-18631-6 |oclc=849738985}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |author=Sassoon, Essie, 1936- |url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/1268929164 |title=Spice & kosher : exotic cuisine of the Cochin Jews |date=14 June 2013 |publisher=Tamarind Tree Books Incorporated |isbn=978-1-989242-11-7 |oclc=1268929164}}</ref>

==Variations==
[[File:Appam (hoppers) from Kerala, India.jpg|thumb|An appam being cooked]]
[[File:Appam served with Coconut Milk in Tamil Nadu.JPG|thumb|Appam served with coconut milk in Tamil Nadu]]
[[File:Karandi Appam or Kuzhi Appam.jpg|thumb|[[Paddu|Guli appam]]]]
[[File:Appam with kadala curry from kerala.jpg|thumb|Appam served with chickpea curry from Kerala]]
[[Image:Appam_with_egg.jpg|thumb|right|With egg cooked in middle]]

===Idiyappam===
[[Idiyappam|Idiyappams]] (string hopper or noolputtu) are made from rice noodles curled into flat spirals. They are served for breakfast with a thin curry of fish or chicken, containing only one or two pieces of meat, a dhal (lentil) dish, and a spicy [[sambol]] or fresh [[chutney]]. [[Kiri hodi]] or sodhi, a type of coconut milk curry, is another popular accompaniment to idiyappam. String hoppers are made from steamed rice flour made into a dough with water and a little salt, and forced through a mould similar to those used for pasta to make the strings. They are cooked by steaming. Some people even sprinkle grated coconut on the rice noodles. These hoppers can be bought ready-made. In India and Sri Lanka, string hoppers can be served as both a breakfast meal and as dinner. There are many variations to hoppers, depending on, for example, the type of flour used. This simple dish can be adapted into other foods such as string hopper [[biriyani]], by adding scrambled eggs or vegetables.<ref>{{cite web |author1=Petrina Verma Sarkar |url=http://indianfood.about.com/od/ricerecipes/r/appam.htm |title=Appams - Appam Recipe - Hoppers - Hoppers Recipe |publisher=Indianfood.about.com |date=2011-03-02 |accessdate=2011-11-21 |archive-date=7 January 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160107174456/http://indianfood.about.com/od/ricerecipes/r/appam.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref>

[[File:Idiyappam with Egg Masala Curry.jpg|thumb|Idiyappam with egg masala curry]]

===Achappam===
[[Achappam|Achappams]] are deep-fried rose cookies made with rice.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Menon |first1=A. Sreedhara |title=Social and cultural history of Kerala |date=1979 |publisher=Sterling |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BXluAAAAMAAJ&q=Achappam |language=en}}</ref>

===Kuzhalappam===
Kuzhalappams are a typical [[Syriac Christianity|Syrian Christian]]-[[Saint Thomas Christians]] dish, a fried crisp curled up like a tube.<ref name="Indian Food">{{cite book |author=K.T. Achaya |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CKIJAAAACAAJ |title=Indian Food: A Historical Companion |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=1997 |isbn=0195644166}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Menon |first=A. Sreedhara |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BXluAAAAMAAJ&q=Achappam |title=Social and Cultural History of Kerala |date=1979 |publisher=Sterling |language=en}}</ref>

===Neyyappam===
[[Neyyappam|Neyyappams]] owe their origins to Kerala and have been a traditional offering in Hindu temples for God.<ref name=TOI_APR_10_2010>{{cite web|url=http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2010-04-10/food-reviews/28133133_1_malayali-syrian-christians-rice|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130814174612/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2010-04-10/food-reviews/28133133_1_malayali-syrian-christians-rice|url-status=dead|archive-date=14 August 2013|title=The appam takes on the naan|date=10 April 2010|work=[[The Times of India]]|author=Dileep Padgaonkar}}</ref> They are made with rice flour, [[jaggery]] and clarified butter [[ghee]], which is the traditional method of making Nei appams. The different culture and religious practices introduced variations to the dish.<ref name="TOI_APR_10_2010">{{cite web|url=http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2010-04-10/food-reviews/28133133_1_malayali-syrian-christians-rice|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130814174612/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2010-04-10/food-reviews/28133133_1_malayali-syrian-christians-rice|url-status=dead|archive-date=14 August 2013|title=The appam takes on the naan|date=10 April 2010|work=[[The Times of India]]|author=Dileep Padgaonkar}}</ref>

[[Unni Appam|Unni appams]] are a variation in which mashed [[Plantain (cooking)|plantain]] is added to the batter. The batter is made out of rice flour, jaggery and plantain and is poured into a vessel called ''appakarai'' or ''appakaram'', which has ghee heated to a high temperature. The appams take the shape of small cups and are fried until deep brown.

===Kallappam===
Kallappams are a traditional breakfast item of Kerala. They are made from fermented rice flour and coconut batter. Christians in Kerala prepare them on special occasions like [[Easter]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=തനി നാടൻ കള്ളപ്പം, ഈസ്റ്റർ ദിനത്തിലെ പ്രഭാത ഭക്ഷണം |url=https://www.manoramaonline.com/pachakam/readers-recipe/2022/04/16/kallappam-kottayam-style.html |access-date=2024-05-25 |website=www.manoramaonline.com}}</ref> The name is derived from ''kallu'', Malayalam for [[palm toddy]], the ingredient traditionally used for fermenting the rice flour. In modern preparation of the dish, yeast has replaced toddy.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Recipe of Kallappam, Breakfast dish, Kerala Food |url=https://www.keralatourism.org/kerala-food/kallappam/7 |access-date=2024-05-24 |website=Kerala Tourism |language=en}}</ref>

===Pesaha appam===
[[Pesaha appam|Pesaha appams]] are made by [[Saint Thomas Christians|Nasrani Christians]] in Kerala during [[Pesaha]] (Passover).  This type of appam is dipped in syrup or ''pesaha pal'' (Passover coconut milk) before being served.<ref name=Amprayil>{{cite web |last=Amprayil |first=Kuruvilla Cherian |title=Kerala Nazranee Pesaha Receipes{{sic |nolink=yes}} |url=http://nasrani.net/2008/03/16/kerala-nazranee-pesaha-receipes/ |date=16 March 2008 |publisher=Nasrani Syrian Christians Network |accessdate=22 August 2009}}</ref>

===Vattayappam===
[[File:Vattayappam (2).JPG|thumb|Vattayappam]]
Vattayappams are made from rice flour, sugar, and coconut. They are an oil-free tea-time snack in a majority of households in Kerala.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://food.manoramaonline.com/food/kerala-kitchen/vattayappam-kerala-snack-steamed-rice-cake-recipe.html|title=Vattayappam- an oil free tea time snack - Appam - Palappam - Pesaha Appam - Kerala Cuisines - Cake - Snacks - Steamed}}</ref> The dish is made by steam-cooking the batter and is very similar to the [[bánh bò]] from [[Vietnam]].

=== Burmese ''apon'' ===
Appams called ''apon'' ({{Lang|my|အာပုံ}}) in [[Burmese language|Burmese]] are a common street food in [[Burmese cuisine]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=လှည်းတန်းတစ်ဝိုက်မုန့်စားကြမယ်|url=https://yangonlife.com.mm/mm/article/62410|access-date=2021-01-14|website=Yangon Life|language=my|archive-date=14 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210114235138/https://yangonlife.com.mm/mm/article/62410|url-status=dead}}</ref> They are considered a delicacy of Southern Myanmar, in coastal towns like [[Dawei]] and [[Myeik, Myanmar|Myeik]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=ထားဝယ်ဆိုတာ လူငယ်တွေအတွက်ပါ|url=https://www.mdn.gov.mm/my/thaawychiuttaa-luungytteattkp|access-date=2021-01-14|website=MDN - Myanmar DigitalNews|language=my}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=မြိတ်လို့ခေါ်တဲ့ ကျွန်တော့်ရဲ့ဇာတိမြေ {{!}} MingalaGO မြန်မာခရီးသွားလမ်းညွှန် – မြန်မာနိုင်ငံခရီးသွားဆိုင်ရာ တန်ဖိုးရှိအသုံးဝင်သော သတင်းအချက်အလက်များ|url=https://mingalago.com/my/interest/detail/myeik|access-date=2021-01-14|website=MingalaGO|language=my}}</ref>

===Kue apem===
[[File:Kue apem Pasar Terapung Lok Baintan.jpg|thumb|right|Indonesian ''kue apem'', sold in Lok Baintan floating market, [[Banjar Regency]], [[South Kalimantan]]]]
In [[Indonesia]], a variant of appam is known as ''kue apem'' or ''kue apam'' is a ''[[kue]]'', a traditional cake of steamed dough made of [[rice flour]], [[coconut milk]], yeast and [[palm sugar]], usually served with grated [[coconut]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Kue Apem Kukus |publisher=Sajian Sedap |date=16 December 2010 |url=http://www.sajiansedap.com/recipe/detail/5483/kue-apem-kukus#.VYtFSlK6LIU |language=Indonesian |accessdate=25 June 2015 |archive-date=12 July 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150712093409/http://www.sajiansedap.com/recipe/detail/5483/kue-apem-kukus#.VYtFSlK6LIU |url-status=dead }}</ref> Indonesian households traditionally made kue apem communally for celebration and festivities, such as [[Kraton Ngayogyakarta Hadiningrat|Keraton Yogyakarta]],a traditionally held ''Ngapem'' ceremony, where the royal household communally cooks it as a part of ''Tingalan Jumenengan Dalem'' ceremony.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://jogja.tribunnews.com/2018/04/14/para-puteri-sri-sultan-luwes-membuat-apem-di-prosesi-ngapem|title=Para Puteri Sri Sultan Luwes Membuat Apem di Prosesi Ngapem - Tribun Jogja|date=2018-04-14|work=Tribun Jogja|access-date=2018-07-02|language=id-ID}}</ref> It is quite similar to ''[[kue mangkok]]''.

===Roti jala===
{{see also | Indian_cuisine#Diaspora_and_fusion_cuisines | l1= Influence of Indian cuisine | Greater India | Indianisation | History of Indian influence on Southeast Asia }}

[[Roti jala]], popular in Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore, is inspired from appam and traveled there from India likely in the 15th century.<ref>{{cite web|title=Roti jala: Like a lace doily|url=https://www.malaymail.com/amp/news/eat/drink/2014/07/06/roti-jala-like-a-lace-doily/699257|publisher=Malay Mail|date=6 July 2014|last=Mok|first=Opalyn}}</ref><ref>{{citation|url= https://batam.tribunnews.com/amp/2020/08/07/resep-dan-sejarah-roti-jala-khas-melayu-masuk-ke-indonesia-sejak-abad-ke-17?page=2 |title= Resep dan Sejarah Roti Jala Khas Melayu, Masuk ke Indonesia Sejak Abad ke 17 |work=Tribunews|language=id}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title= Unravelling the Secrets of Roti Jala: A Net of Culture and Flavour in Malaysia|url= https://munchmalaysia.com/traditional-food/unravelling-the-secrets-of-roti-jala-a-net-of-culture-and-flavour-in-malaysia/|work=Munchmalaysia.com|first= Lavanyah |last= Magenthiran}}</ref>

==See also==
*[[Lahoh ]]
*[[Baghrir]]
* [[Apam balik]]
* [[Dosa (food)]] 
* [[Uttapam]]
* [[List of fermented foods]]
* [[List of Indian breads]]
* [[List of pancakes]]
* {{portal-inline|food}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{Pancakes}}
{{Indian Dishes}}
{{Sri Lankan cuisine}}
{{Indonesian cuisine}}
{{Indonesian bread}}
{{Kue}}

[[Category:Fermented foods]]
[[Category:Tamil cuisine]]
[[Category:Sri Lankan pancakes]]
[[Category:Indian breads]]
[[Category:Kerala cuisine]]
[[Category:Articles containing video clips]]
[[Category:Sri Lankan egg dishes]]
[[Category:Indian cuisine]]
[[Category:Indonesian breads]]
[[Category:Indonesian pancakes]]
[[Category:Javanese cuisine]]