Appam chatti

A small wok with a lid: lacy rice pancakes with a thick, soft belly.

Also called appachatti, appam pan · From Kerala and the far south of India

A small iron appam chatti with a lacy rice pancake and a bowl of coconut stew.

The journey

Appam wants a curved, small pan — traditionally iron or earthen — so the fermented rice batter climbs the sides into lace while the center stays thick. Kerala and Tamil kitchens still swirl and cover.

A nonstick skillet can fake the lace. The chatti is the curve that makes it honest.

A botanical plate of rice — the batter Kerala still swirls in an appam chatti. — Franz Eugen Köhler, Köhler's Medizinal-Pflanzen (1887) · Public domain. Source

In the kitchen

Heat, oil lightly, pour, swirl high up the wall, lid for a minute. The center should be set and the rim crisp.

The Indian volume's Kerala pages assume this little wok. Serve with stew or with an egg in the belly.

Used in these ComidaTime kitchens

Find a appam chatti on Amazon