Unniyappam Recipe | Unni Appam

Ingredients

for soaking rice

• 1 cup rice or 200 grams rice – use any type of short grained rice
• water as required

for frying coconut

• ½ tablespoon oil for frying coconut
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh coconut

other ingredients for unniyappam

• 2 medium sized banana or 175 grams bananas (with their peels) or ¾ cup chopped bananas
• 1 teaspoon black sesame seeds
• ½ cup jaggery powder or add as required
• ¼ cup water or add as required
• 3 to 4 green cardamoms
• ½ teaspoon cumin powder
• ½ teaspoon dry ginger powder
• ¼ teaspoon baking soda – you can also add ⅛ teaspoon baking soda (about 2 pinches)
• ½ to 1 teaspoon coconut oil or ghee for each mould

Steps

soaking rice

1. For 1 cup rice, rinse with water a couple of times, then soak in enough water for 3 to 4 hours. An overnight soak is also possible.
2. After soaking, drain off all the water and put the rice into a grinder jar.
3. To the rice, add ¾ cup chopped bananas, ½ cup powdered or grated jaggery, and the seeds of 3 to 4 green cardamoms.
4. If a sweeter result is wanted, the jaggery amount can be ¾ cup.
5. Pour in ¼ cup water, or use as much as required.
6. Grind the rice until its grains resemble fine rava, leaving the batter with a semi-fine texture.
7. Pour this batter into a separate bowl or pan and set it aside.

frying coconut

1. In a small pan or tadka pan, heat ½ tablespoon coconut oil or ghee. Add 3 tablespoons coconut chopped into small pieces.
2. Fry the coconut, stirring frequently, until the pieces turn golden.

making unniyappam batter

1. Put the fried coconut into the batter together with the oil left in the pan.
2. Add 1 teaspoon black sesame seeds, ½ teaspoon cumin powder, ½ teaspoon dry ginger powder and ¼ teaspoon baking soda. A pinch of salt is optional. The baking soda may also be left out, although including it gives the appams a soft texture.
3. Combine the batter thoroughly.

making unniyappam

1. Heat an appe chatti pan, putting ½ to 1 teaspoon coconut oil into every mould. Keep the heat low.
2. Once the oil is hot, use a spoon to pour batter into the chatti moulds, filling each to ¾ of its capacity.
3. Cook over low to medium-low heat until the underside turns golden and crisp.
4. Use a wooden skewer or stick to flip each unniyappam over.
5. For even cooking, the appams can be turned a couple more times.
6. After the appams are golden and crisp on every side, put them on kitchen paper towels. Use the remaining batter to make more in the same way. If oil is still present in the moulds, adding extra oil is unnecessary.
7. Offer the unniyappam as a sweet snack, either warm or at room temperature. They can also be put in a casserole, where they will remain warm for some time.
8. This quantity yields 28 unniyappam. They keep at room temperature for 1 to 2 days, and refrigeration is another option.