Surnoli (Coconut-Rice Pancakes) Recipe (2024)

The British crumpet bears some resemblance to these in texture and might provide a more useful reference point than the pancake.

Pancakes, so apropos 'cause we're seeing lots of flipping.

Yes, you can, in the same way that yoghurt keeps in the fridge (the sourness is due to fermentation by lactic-acid bacteria). I grew up eating these myself, and once my mom made a batch of the batter, it would last several days.

In my experience the food processor does not produce a fine enough texture from the ground rice. In modern Indian kitchens an electric grinding mill is used - in our kitchen we process it in batches in the Vitamix blender until it is a thick batter with a slightly grainy texture.

@Steve - you're absolutely right about the texture issue. For texture sticklers who don't want to invest $300+ in a Vitamix, use rice flour (available in Indian stores) instead of whole rice.

I believe a basic fermented dosa batter could be used as the basis for these - we make dosas beginning with a rice-based sourdough mother, the soaked and ground-up idli rice and urad dal, and after a night's fermentation can repurpose it into dosas, idlis or hoppers. (Surprised the article didn't mention these kissing-cousins of sunoli.) Adding coconut milk and baking powder (and perhaps a little jaggery) to the dosa mix would produce a very close facsimile to sunoli batter.

According to Consumer Reports, "A blender is better at mixing drinks and whipping up smoothies, while a food processor is ideal for chopping, slicing and shredding. You can puree foods in either appliance." Since pureeing is what's involved here, it will work fine.

The surnoli is similar to the kerala’s famous aapam, the lacy pancooked cakes that are traditionally fermented with coconut water and yeast.

@Prakash great suggestion to try rice flour. I'm thinking it may need a little less than the 2 cups of rice, given that rice flour will measure up more compactly than grains of rice.

This recipe does sound amazing! Can you make these in a food processor or will the mix just fly out of the sides and not be processed fully and finely enough?

I wonder if you can store uncooked fermented batter in the fridge for a few days and cook some up every day or so.

When we make a similar batter for dosas, idlis and hoppers - naturally fermented, without the yogurt - it can actually survive in the fridge a couple of weeks. For longer storage we freeze it.

I don't think it will alter the texture very much, if at all. Actually I was thinking savory version as well! You can add cumin seed, perhaps mustard seeds, ginger root, curry leaves, green chillies, and tiny bit of chilli powder. The savory version will go well with South Indian coconut chutney (also called idli chutney).

My diabetic mom made these sugar-free: we individually added sweet toppings such as homemade orange marmalade. The fermentation process, by lactic-bacteria (yielding sourness) and natural-yeast (producing sponginess due to carbon dioxide) is similar to that used for Ethiopian Injera batter.Srini's suggestion below for an utthappam-style savory pancake is excellent. (Utthappam uses dosa batter but is thicker, spongier, smaller in radius and less tricky to make than a good, crisp dosa.)

Lisa, I use light brown sugar. The color and taste comes close to jaggery and is much more convenient to use

Cooking 16-20 pancakes individually in a skillet for 3-4 min each would take an hour! Why not divide among a standard 12-well muffin pan (sprayed with cooking oil (or ghee) and bake all at once (I'd suggest 350 F for 15-20 min).

Tejal you are doing tremendous service by introducing folks to these regional cuisines. Especially for those seeking vegetarian options, these recipes are eye opening. Thanks for your continued efforts. Diversifying and expanding people’s palates, for a better and wholesome experience!

I liked these! They a pain to grind in the blender, but by the time I got around to cooking them (the next day) the pain had faded and the frying was easy. They were ever so mildly sour, with a pleasant spongy texture and a gentle flavor. I served with a coconut-milk-based fish curry, and also had one with honey for dessert. I will be trying them in other applications as the week progresses, as I have about half the batter left over. BTW, these did NOT please my 12-year-old.

The flavor of the single crispy layer beneath the pile of mush was delicious. I don’t think it fermented properly overnight bc I didn’t get bubbles throughout the pancake during cooking. I will try again soon.

Can someone translate this part of the recipe? I think some words got left out or cut in editing. Should the word ‘with’ be.....; add 1 cup of water to blender. And mix on high.In a blender, combine all ingredients except the salt and ghee, butter and honey with 1 cup water, and mix on high speed.

Just soaked the rice this morning. I’m making a savory version of this with chilis, curry leaves, cumin, etc to have with spicy red chutney.Expecting it to be delicious

I'm eating this right now. So good. I was wary about the texture, after the comments below. I used basmati rice, and soaked the raw rice for several hours. They are not gritty at all; like a delicate, slightly sour crepe.

A stickey mess. I think you omited an ingredient or three. This didnt come close to staying together as a "cake". Please try your recipes before foisting them on unsuspecting non-Indian cooks. I bake a lot and this was a disaster.

You can substitute jaggery with light brown sugar. It works well.

If a philistine were to try to have these for dinner instead of breakfast, what simple dishes might go well with them?

What can you use as a substitute for jaggery?

Never thought I will see the word 'Surnoli' on NYTimes... I got to pester my mother to make this.

Tejal, Thanks for bringing attention to Konkani food! This delightful cuisine is from the Southwestern coast of India, heavy with coconut, pepper, cashew, and other local produce.Hope you'll be able to write about other Konkani foods.From a Konkani home cook

Can you cook several of these at a time? The recipe seems to say only one at a time - which would take all day, no?

The flavor is quite nice. I struggled with the pureeing of the batter. It still maintained a crunchy texture that I didn't care for. Doing it again, maybe using rice flour instead of raw soaked rice would give a nicer texture.