Your account

← Back to recipes
Apam balik

Starter · Malaysia · George Town

Apam balik 🥞

George Town's trumpet pancake: a half-cooked batter folded like a wallet around crushed peanut, sugar and creamed corn — sold by aunties with a wok lid balanced on one hip.

Penang Peranakan-Malay ⏱ 40 min Medium

Method

  1. 1

    Whisk flour, cornflour, sugar, baking powder, salt, egg, water and coconut milk into a lump-free batter; rest 20 minutes.

  2. 2

    Heat a heavy pan or takoyaki-sized skillet, brush with oil, and pour a thin ladle of batter, swirling it pale and translucent.

  3. 3

    When the top loses its shine but the middle is still soft, scatter crushed peanuts, sugar and corn over one half.

  4. 4

    Fold the disc into a loose taco while the edges stay crisp and the center stays tender.

  5. 5

    Dot with butter or cream — the modern Penang way — and eat before the steam escapes.

  6. 6

    Repeat until the batter is gone; apam balik is measured in stack, not in slices.

Comments