Poppadom

These wafer-thin Indian crisps are made with chickpea, lentil, black bean or rice flour, peanut oil and salt, and may additionally be seasoned with chillies, pepper, cumin, garlic or other spices. The ingredients are made into a dough and rolled out to form a very thin round shape, which is then either deep fried or cooked over an open flame, causing the dough to puff up and become crisp.

Once cooked, they may be eaten as a snack or an appetiser, especially with chutneys, salsas and dips such as raita (yoghurt, coriander, cucumber, onion and mint). They may also be served with curried dishes.

Poppadoms are also known by a variety of other names, such as papadam, papadum, poppadam, papad, appalum or appalam.