THE MAKING OF APAM BALIK

There are two types of Apam Balik or Crispy Malaysian Peanut Pancake, thin and crispy or thick and cakey. The one that I bought from the hawker above is  the crispy, crepe-like pancakes.

Here in Malaysia, we can just buy this delicious food from the night markets or food stalls and so there is really no great need to make them.

For my visitors who are from other countries, you may wish to try making it on your own.  Here is a recipe for this dish that I took from another blog.

RECIPE FOR APAM BALIK

Ingredients


170g plain flour
100g rice flour
30g cornflour
2 tsps baking powder
1/2 tsp bicarbonate soda
1/2 tsp salt
150g caster sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 C (250ml / 8oz) of water

Filling
200g unsalted, roasted peanuts
120g caster sugar
120g melted butter

Method
Filling - in a food processor, pulse the nuts and sugar until finely ground (but not too fine that it's powdery).
For the pancake, place all the dry ingredients in a bowl and give it a quick mix.
Mix the 3 liquid ingredients in a separate bowl or jug. Make a well in the flour and pour the liquid mix in and whisk until smooth and lump-free.
Cover it with clingwrap and stick it in the fridge for 3 hours (or overnight).
Heat a crepe pan or a small nonstick pan on medium-low heat (you could use the traditional apam balik pan but I much prefer the ease of non-stick cookware!). Before each pancake you could give it a light spray of cooking oil or a dab of melted butter (for extra flavour and greasing).
Pour in a small ladle of batter and swirl the pan so that the batter covers the entire surface and coats the edge. Once bubbles have formed, sprinkle the peanut filling over the entire surface of the pancake and drizzle a bit of the melted butter over one half.
Cook till the bottom of the pancake is golden brown.
With a palette knife or spatula, flip one side of the pancake over the other to fold in half and remove from pan to cool on a plate or wire rack. Cut in half or into small wedges and serve immediately.
Source of recipe: http://www.citrusandcandy.com/2009/09/malaysian-favourites-apam-balik.html