Panpole

Panpole (pronounced paan pole-layh) is the aamchi 'neer' (meaning 'water') dosa. Rice and fresh coconut is ground with water to a watery consistency, to make thin and light dosas that have holes all over, making them look like papery lace. I think the consistency of the batter, a hot pan, and the manner of pouring the batter onto the pan is what makes a good panpole (singular: panpolo).

Although Panpole were on my original list of the Raody randap alphabet challenge, both Anushree and I were a bit nervous about them, as they can be a bit of a touch and go. In fact, Anushree was more tense than I was. I have never tried making them before, and so I had no clue about what it entailed, but Anushree said she had tried it a few times, with little or no success. On the day however, after much deliberation, I reminded myself of the "challenge" I had embarked upon and went with my gut to make some panpole.

And guess what? We were pleasantly surprised to see that this time the panpole came out pretty well! Anushree guided me through the recipe especially the manner of pouring of the batter onto the frying plan, and made the pitti chutney to go with the panpole as we are both huge fans it. That said, my in-laws have now said to me that I will have to make the panpole again - it seems making them without "god soyee" (jaggery infused grated coconut) as an accompaniment cannot be counted as a valid entry, haha. If you choose to make the god soyee, use the recipe I have in my "oondlakal".

Of all the recipes I have made so far, this probably had the least ingredients - coconut, rice and water.

All you dosa/polo fans out there - no fermentation needed, which is a huge advantage. Also, one does not cook both sides of a panpolo. Once one side is cooked, simply fold it into half or quarters, so it remains slightly crispy on one side, and soft and melt-in-the-mouth on the other!

Ingredients

2 cups rice

1 cup of fresh or desiccated coconut

2-3 cups of water (but this measurement is very fluid, pardon the pun(pole)!)

5-6 tsp cooking oil

Note: I forgot to add oil to my ingredients photo, but without it your panpole are very likely to stick to your pan!

Method

1. Wash the rice well and soak it for 30 minutes in warm water which is just enough to cover the rice.

2. If you are using desiccated coconut, as I did, soak it also in just enough warm water to cover it, for the same length of time as the rice.

3. Grind the rice, coconut, and salt in a mixer grinder to a very fine consistency. Once ground properly, add 2-3 cups of water to ensure the batter is watery thin in consistency.

4. Heat a pan (Note: We used two pans - one non-stick flat pan, and the other a non-stick coated iron round bottom pan). Once properly hot, add 1/2-1 tsp oil.

5. Pour rapidly one ladle full of batter onto the pan from a slight height, and in a circular manner. Note: Do not take too much batter or your panpole will not come out thin. The heat from the pan, the watery thin batter, and the rapid (as opposed to a gentle) pouring should result in tiny holes appearing in the polo. Pour small amounts of further batter to fill in the gaps (not the holes) so as to get a roughly circular dosa/polo.

6. Cover the pan with a lid and let the panpole cook properly on one side. You might have to reduce or increase the flame to cook the panpole without burning it. Pour 1/2-1 tsp oil along the sides to help lift the cooked panpole.

7. Fold it into half, and then help yourselves to some!