Neyyappam (

Malayalam Malayalam (; , ) is a Dravidian language spoken in the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry (Mahé district) by the Malayali people. It is one of 22 scheduled languages of India. Malayalam was des ...

: നെയ്യപ്പം) is a sweet

rice Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice) or less commonly ''Oryza glaberrima ''Oryza glaberrima'', commonly known as African rice, is one of the two domesticated rice species. It was first domesticated and grown i ...

-based fritter fried in

ghee Ghee is a type of clarified butter, originating from India. It is commonly used in India for cooking, as a traditional medicine, and for religious rituals. Description Ghee is typically prepared by simmering butter, which is churned from c ...

. Neyyappam has its origins in the southern

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

n state of

Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...

and coastal Karnataka. The name is derived from the words ''neyy'' ( നെയ്യ്) meaning "

" (clarified butter) and ''

appam Appam is a type of thin pancake originating from South India. 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 is common in the cusine of Kerala and Tam ...

'' ( അപ്പം) meaning "

pancake A pancake (or hotcake, griddlecake, or flapjack) is a flat cake, often thin and round, prepared from a Starch, starch-based batter (cooking), batter that may contain eggs, milk and butter and cooked on a hot surface such as a griddle or fryi ...

". Neyyappam is typically made of rice flour (alternatively, with

semolina Semolina is coarsely milled durum wheat mainly used in making couscous, and sweet puddings. The term semolina is also used to designate coarse millings of other varieties of wheat, and sometimes other grains (such as rice or corn) as well. Etymo ...

), jaggery, ghee-fried coconut (pieces or grated), ghee, cardamom and milk. It is served as a tea time snack usually in the evenings. Neyyappam is also served as offering in Hindu temples in Kerala. This practice has also been adopted by some sections of Christians in Kerala. Unni appam is a variant in which mashed ripe

plantains Plantain may refer to: Plants and fruits * Cooking banana, banana cultivars in the genus ''Musa'' whose fruits are generally used in cooking ** True plantains, a group of cultivars of the genus ''Musa'' * ''Plantaginaceae'', a family of flowerin ...

or bananas are added to the batter and fried to result in a ball-like shape. Neyyappam became a topic of discussion as its name was shown on the home page of the Android N naming campaign. The official video of Google about naming Android N also shows a glimpse of neyyappam and Kerala tourism made a tweet about this naming campaign.

Origins

Neyyappam traces its origin to the southern Indian state of

Preparation

Utensils

In traditional Kerala cuisine, Neyyappam is cooked in a bronze pan called ''appakara'' ( :ml:അപ്പക്കാര) (also known as Paniyaram Pan in Tamil Nadu), about 8 inches in diameter, having three or more large cavities and thereby giving the dish a tortoise-like shape. Recipes vary from place to place, especially the ingredients chosen to prepare the batter. Many cuisines use variations on this pan for similar dishes. A substitute for an appakara is the special pan used to prepare

Æbleskiver Æbleskiver (, ingular: ''æbleskive'' are spherically-shaped Danish snacks made from fried batter. The name literally means "apple slices" in Danish, although apples are not usually an ingredient in present-day versions. The crust is similar in ...

, the Danish puffy ball-like pancake dessert. In the absence of these special utensils, neyyappam may be cooked on a

griddle A griddle, in the UK also called a girdle, is a cooking device consisting mainly of a broad, usually flat cooking surface. Nowadays it can be either a movable metal pan- or plate-like utensil, a flat heated cooking surface built into a stove or ...

or a small cooking pan (

skillet A frying pan, frypan, or skillet is a flat-bottomed pan used for frying, searing, and browning foods. It is typically in diameter with relatively low sides that flare outwards, a long handle, and no lid. Larger pans may have a small grab ha ...

A typical method (directly using rice)

* Rinse the white rice in water and keep it soaked for 3–4 hours. ** Skip this step if using rice flour or rava/semolina. * Drain the water and grind the rice (using a mixer-grinder) with ripe banana and

jaggery Jaggery is a traditional non-centrifugal cane sugar consumed in the Indian Subcontinent, Southeast Asia, and Africa. It is a concentrated product of cane juice and often date or palm sap without separation of the molasses and crystals, and can ...

to form a thick paste. * Fry dry coconut slices (or grated coconut) in ghee until golden-brown. * Add the ghee-fried coconut, cardamom seeds and cumin seeds. Also add a pinch of dry ginger powder and mix well. Keep the batter for 30 minutes. * Heat ghee or cooking oil in a bottom-deep pan and pour a ladle full of batter into the pan, and fry till it becomes a golden-brown color. * Keep the fried Neyyappams aside to drain off the excess oil and let it cool down before savouring.

References

{{commons category, Neyyappam Snack foods Indian desserts Kerala cuisine

Origins

Preparation

Utensils

A typical method (directly using rice)

See also

References