Unniappam

Unniappam or Nei Appam is a sweet made on most of the festivals and important functions at home. In Tamil or Malayali feasts this is a must have dish.

Ingredients  

• 2 cups Raw rice flour or soak idli rice for 4-5 hrs and grind it in a mixer to form a batter
• 2 small ripe bananas
• 1 cup Jaggery
• A pinch of Cardamon powder
• Oil or ghee- For deep frying  

Method

1. Melt the jaggery in little water(around 1/2 - 3/4 cup) and strain to remove any impurities.
2. Mix the rice flour, mashed banana, cardamom powder, fried coconut bits, melted jaggery and salt together to form a thick batter. (Its best to use a blender for mixing.)
3. If the batter is too thick add little water or milk. Consistency should be similar to that of an idli batter.
4. Heat the unniyappam pan (Paniyaram pan) and fill it with oil.
5. When the oil gets hot, fill  3/4th of each depression with the batter and fry them at medium heat, uncovered. When one side is cooked, flip over using a fork and fry until golden brown on both sides.
6. Remove and drain onto a tissue paper. Serve warm.

Suggestions/ Notes

1. If you dont have a Unniappam pan, you may heat the oil in a wok and drop the batter with a spoon. The taste is the same but the colour and shape is good if you use the pan.