What deep pan is traditionally used to cook appam?

An appam is traditionally cooked in an appachatti, a deep pan shaped somewhat like a wok. The pan’s curved sides help the fermented batter spread thinly around the edges while leaving the center thicker and softer.

Appam is a South Indian pancake made from fermented rice batter and coconut milk. It is especially associated with Kerala and Tamil Nadu, and is also widely eaten in Sri Lanka, where it is commonly called a hopper. The dish is often served for breakfast or dinner with vegetable, meat, or egg curry.

The appachatti should not be confused with a tawa, the broad, mostly flat griddle used for dosa. A karahi is mainly a deep vessel for frying or simmering, while a tagine is a North African cooking pot with a conical lid. Appam’s distinctive bowl-like shape comes from both its batter and its specialized pan.

Appam has an unusually old culinary history: food historian K. T. Achaya linked it to Tamil Sangam literature, and references also occur in the history of Kerala cuisine. Its name may derive from the Sanskrit apupa, meaning a fried delicacy.