Thosai 
From Singapore Hotels & Singapore Lifestyle
|
Thosai is a South Indian pancake. Baking begins with a batter of rice flour and pulses which needs to be fermented for at least eight hours. A ladleful of batter is scooped onto a flat griddle and quickly spread out by moving the ladle in a circular motion starting from the middle. The batter is left to cook until little holes begin to appear and the underside is a golden brown. Thereafter, it is folded in half, removed from the griddle and served.
This is the thin and crispy version (sometimes known as paper thosai) that tends to be more popular with the Chinese. Others prefer the thicker version called "uthappom" that is better at soaking up hot gravy such as mutton or chicken curry. Thosai is usually eaten with a coconut chutney and "sambar".
A version called "masala thosai" has boiled and seasoned potatoes spread onto the batter while it is cooking on the griddle. The sides are then lifted in to wrap around the filling. This version can be eaten on its own without gravy. Some places also make egg thosai, adding an egg onto the pancake while it is on the griddle. More adventurous cooks serve it with meat, cheese, and even ice-cream. Again, you can find meatless thosai in most of the vegetarian shops in the Little India area.
