What is Appalam?
An apalam is made from rice, potato or lentil flour and is a popular crispy Indian cracker. It is made from a dough that is deep fried and puffed into a large, hollow, round disk that has a crispy and airy texture. Its color is a pale gold-white.
What does Appalam Taste Like?
...Salty is one of the five main tastes. It has a satisfying and addictive quality with hints of sourness. Salty foods include cheeses, cured meats, chips, and olives. It is used in almost every dish and prepared food. Salt is added to enhance flavor and offer a distinctly salty taste.
...Sour is one of the five main tastes. It is tart and bright, sometimes with a mouth-puckering quality. Sour is a naturally occurring flavor found in many foods, including citrus, vinegar, various dairy products, and certain fruits. Sour is used to enhance a dish or drink and is used as both a main and complimentary flavor.
...Spicy is a flavor that brings heat and fire to food by creating a burning sensation in the mouth or sinuses. Spicy flavors come from hot peppers, horseradish, and wasabi. Spicy adds a kick and sometimes complexity to a dish and releases endorphins, creating a mildly addictive quality.
Ingredients
...Rice is a grain that is used across the world. It is roughly 5mm in length and white. Some varieties of rice are thin, while others are more rounded and fat. Rice is a starch and when uncooked it is dry and hard. Many of these tiny grains are needed to make one serving size. White rice has the hull, bran and cereal germ removed. When cooked, rice becomes soft while still holding its form. The flavor of rice is mild, and bland. It goes well as a side dish to spicier items and is incredibly versatile as an appetizer, main course and even dessert.
...Potato starch is a fine, white powder obtained from the tuberous vegetable. The potatoes are crushed and the starch is released and then dried. It has a similar consistency and feeling to cornstarch. Potato starch is bland and flavorless. It is used in food items as a binder and thickening agent.
...The green chili pepper is a spicy vegetable by culinary standards, but botanically it's a fruit. Green chili peppers have thin, green bodies with a tapered bottom. They are 2-3 inches in length with a one inch diameter. Their skin is a medium shade of green and is shiny and very thin. The flesh of the pepper is thin too and contains hot seeds in its center. It is an extra hot chili with a wonderful flavor and used in many dishes to add heat.
...Lemon juice is made from the flesh of the pulpy yellow lemon fruit. The juice is squeezed from the flesh of the lemon and is a pale yellow color. The flavor is very sour and bright. Lemon juice is used in multiple cuisines around the world to brighten and enhance the flavors of the other ingredients. Lemon juice is used to make lemonade and goes well on fish. It has many uses.
...Salt is a mineral composed mostly of sodium chloride. It is the main flavoring used in food and is naturally occurring in certain foods, such as cheese, beets, meat and celery, plus many others. Salt is white and has finer granules than sugar. Many commercial salts include iodide, while others exclude it. Most salts are white, while some are naturally pale pink with minerals. Salt brings out the flavor of something and can create a tangy mouthfeel, if used in excess.
...Coconut oil is usually made from the meat of the coconut. It is a clear oil when heated and when exposed to cooler temperatures it hardens and becomes white. It is a thin oil with the sweet aroma of coconuts and tends to impart a coconut flavor to whatever it is cooked in. Coconut oil is a good option for high heat cooking methods that require oil.
...Asafoetida is a spice, commonly used in Indian cuisine. Asafoetida is sold as a powder and sometimes as a paste. Its smell is pungent and and its color is a pale yellow. The flavor lends to dishes and creates a satisfying taste that is similar to the effect that garlic and onions give in boosting the flavor of a dish.