Appa

The night before, combine rice flour, thin coconut milk, sugar, yeast, and salt in a bowl. Mix to a smooth batter the consistency of heavy cream. Cover and leave at room temperature overnight to ferment. The batter should be bubbly and slightly sour by morning.

In the morning, stir in the thick coconut milk to enrich the batter. Adjust consistency with water if needed. The batter should flow easily but not be watery.

Heat a small, deep-sided hopper pan (appachatti) over medium heat. Add a drop of coconut oil and wipe with a cloth.

Pour a ladleful of batter into the center of the hot pan, then immediately swirl the pan in a circular motion so the batter coats the sides in a thin layer while pooling thicker at the bottom.

Cover with a lid and cook for 2-3 minutes. The edges should turn golden, lacy, and crispy while the center remains soft and spongy. For egg hoppers, crack an egg into the center after the first minute and cover again.

The hopper is ready when the edges pull away from the pan and are deeply golden, and the egg white is set but the yolk is still runny. Use a thin spatula to ease it out.

Serve immediately with lunu miris (a spicy sambol of chili, onion, Maldive fish, and lime), coconut milk gravy, and a selection of curries. Tear off the crispy edges and use them to scoop up the accompaniments.