Panyalam — Philippines

Panyalam, also called panyam, is a fried rice pancake made from ground glutinous rice flour beaten into a batter with muscovado sugar and coconut milk. Deep-fried rather than baked or griddled, it comes out lacy at the edges and spongy in the middle, with a caramel-brown colour drawn from the unrefined sugar. It is eaten on its own, warm, without garnish or sauce. The dish is associated with Mindanao and the islands nearby, and is particularly linked to Muslim Filipino communities such as the Maguindanao, Maranao, Sama-Bajau and Tausug. It is made for special occasions and religious holidays, Hari Raya among them, when households fry large batches to share with visitors. Christian and animist Lumad communities in the same area, including the Mansaka, prepare comparable pancakes as part of their own occasion cooking. The batter is mixed from glutinous rice flour, water and coconut milk, with muscovado dissolved in to sweeten and colour it, then left to rest so the starch can hydrate fully. A small, deep pan or wok is heated with a generous depth of oil; a ladle of batter is poured in, and hot oil is spooned into its centre as it fries, which is what opens up the pancake's signature lacy structure and central hollow. Each piece is fried until deep golden, then lifted out to drain before the next is started. Because the batter is deep-fried rather than pan-cooked, panyalam holds together more like a fritter than a crepe, and it keeps its texture for a day or two once cooled. Sizes and sweetness vary by household, some frying smaller, more delicate rounds and others a denser, chewier version, but the method of spooning hot oil into the centre of the batter is what most cooks in the area rely on to get the characteristic hole and lace.