Apom Berkuah with Pengat Pisang

Name: Singaporean Coconut Pancakes with Caramel Banana (Apom Berkuah with Pengat Pisang)
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Singaporean
Ingredients: ¾ teaspoon dried yeast; 220ml water; 1 teaspoon castor sugar; 125g rice flour; 70ml coconut milk; 15g plain flour; 10g glutinous rice flour; Pinch salt flakes; Vegetable oil, for greasing; Pengat Pisang (Caramel Banana): 100g gula melaka, shaved, 270ml coconut milk, Pinch salt, 3 small bananas, peeled and sliced

Apom berkuah with pengat pisang is a popular Singaporean dessert. Apom comes from the word ‘appam’, a southern Indian fermented rice pancake popular in Kerala and Tamil Nadu, and berkuah (also written bokwa or bengkua) means to accompany a thick sauce or gravy, in this case the delicious banana-studded coconut caramel called pengat pisang. Called kuih serabai in Malaysia, these yeasted pancakes look like pale crumpets with their bubbly surface and golden base and are often tinted with a swirl of blue dye from butterfly pea flowers. Egg rings make a good substitute for the traditional apom berkuah pans with hollows for each pancake. If you don’t have time to make the pancakes, quick and easy pengat pisang is delicious poured over ice cream. See video below for another easy Singaporean sweet treat.

Makes about 10 pieces

Ingredients

¾ teaspoon dried yeast
220ml water
1 teaspoon castor sugar
125g rice flour
70ml coconut milk
15g plain flour
10g glutinous rice flour
Pinch salt flakes
Vegetable oil, for greasing

Pengat Pisang (Caramel Banana)

100g gula melaka, shaved
270ml coconut milk
Pinch salt
3 small bananas, peeled and sliced

Method

Combine yeast with 1 tablespoon of the water and a pinch of sugar and set aside in a warm place until frothy.
Meanwhile, place 2 tablespoon of the rice flour and ½ cup of the water in a small saucepan over medium heat and stir until it starts to thicken. Reduce heat to low and stir briskly for a couple of minutes until it’s very thick.
Place remaining rice flour, plain flour and glutinous rice flour and sugar in a mixing bowl. Add coconut milk, remaining water, yeast mixture and the thickened rice flour and whisk to form a batter. Cover and set aside for 1 hour.
Lightly grease a frying pan and egg rings. Place egg rings in the pan.
Heat over medium–high heat.
Stir batter and ladle about 1½ tablespoons into each egg ring.
Cover and cook for 5–6 minutes, until browned on the bottom and set on top.
Transfer to a wire rack to cool and repeat until all batter is used.
Make Pengat Pisang: place gula melaka, coconut milk and salt in a small saucepan over medium–high heat and stir until sugar completely dissolves. Bring to the boil, reduce heat and simmer for 8 minutes, gently stir in banana and simmer for a further minute. Cover and set aside until needed.
Place 2 apom berkuah in each bowl top with pengat pisang and serve.