Appum & Stew

Appum has always been a favorite dish at home. I still remember how my kid brother & I would stand in line as kids waiting for our Appum. Mom used a heavy Appum "Chatti" (wok) made out of cast iron specially for making Appums. Well I dont use an authentic one, but use a non-stick wok instead. And the Appums do turn out great. The receipe I have posted here is a variation from my mother's, a few tips from a colleague at work and a secret from my Mother in law that gives me this perfect Appum recipe, with brown and crispy sides and a wonderfully fluffy center. My MIL would make a special paste called "Kanji" for AapDosa. I have used the same technique in the recipe below.

Ingredients:

2 cups raw Basmati rice
1/4 cup cooked rice
1 cup coconut milk
1-2 tsp salt
2 tbsp sugar
1/4 tsp dried yeast
100 ml water

Method:
1. Wash and then soak the raw Basmati rice in a large bowl for 4-5 hours.
2. Once soaked, mix the raw and cooked rice together along with salt in a food processor/Grinder.
3. Grind to a nice and smooth paste.

4.Warm 100ml of water till tepid add 2 tbsp of sugar and yeast and stir allow to set aside for 10mins.
5. Now take 1tbsp of ground mixture in a cooking pan, add 1/3rd cup water and mix well and cook on low. Stir continuously till it forms a thick glutenous paste. Keep aside and allow to cool.

6. Now add the cooked paste to the ground mixture in the grinder and blend well adding coconut milk. The batter should be thin and runny. Add water if necessary.
7. Add the yeast and give it one last blend.8. Pour the batter into a large bowl and leave overnight at room temperature. The bowl should be large enough for the batter to ferment and rise sometimes double/triple in amount. Cover and keep a large plate below the bowl to avoid cleaning if the batter spils over.

9. When you are ready to make the Appams, heat a small non-stick kadhai (wok) on medium flame and pour a ladle of batter into the center.
10. Quickly swirl the kadhai to spread the batter thinly on the walls.
11. Batter that has not stuck to the walls of the kadhai should settle and pool in the bottom.
12. Cover the kadhai and cook for 3-4 minutes or until the Appam is golden and crispy on its thin edges and cooked and fluffy at the bottom.
13. Gently run a spatula under the Appam to release it from the kadhai and serve hot with stew.

Chicken & Vegetable Stew
Ingredients:
1 pound chicken cut small
1 cup mixed vegetables
1 sprig curry leaves
1tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp ginger paste
1 Large Onion sliced thin
4 - 5 green chilies sliced
2 Tbsp oil
1 tsp coriander powder
1 tbsp black crushed pepper
270ml coconut milk
500ml water
salt to taste

Method:
Heat oil in a pressure cooker. Now splutter mustard seeds & curry leaves.
Add in the sliced chilies, onion & ginger paste. Fry till the onions turn transparent.
Add the chicken, salt, pepper, coriander powder and stir for a few minutes.
Add the vegetables & the coconut milk and bring to a boil.
Add water and pressure cook for 10mins.
Garnish with coriander leaves and serve with hot appum.

Stew is a great combination for Appums but I always like to finish my last appum with a bowl of freshly cut bananas, coconut milk and jaggery. (powdered brown sugar). This sweet concoction was an all time favorite when we were kids and is a definite must for my daughter when I make appums. Enjoy!