South Indian Coconut Pancakes

Heat the oven to 250°F. Put the rice, chickpea, and tapioca flours in a large bowl. Add the coconut, baking soda, and 3/4 teaspoon salt and whisk to combine. Put the rice milk in a small bowl along with 4 tablespoons oil and the vinegar and whisk to combine. Pour the liquid mixture into the dry mixture and gently stir until just incorporated (it’s ok if there are some lumps). Put the peas and sambar powder in the same small bowl and stir to evenly distribute the powder. Add the peas to the batter and gently fold until they’re just incorporated; let sit.

Trim and peel the shallots; chop them with the curry leaves. Put 2 teaspoons oil in a medium nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the mustard seeds; when they begin to sizzle and pop (almost immediately), add the chopped shallots and curry leaves, the paprika, and a sprinkle of salt. Cook, stirring frequently until the shallots begin to soften, 2 or 3 minutes. Transfer the chutney to a small bowl and wipe out the pan. Rinse the lime and cilantro; cut the lime into wedges; trim and chop the cilantro.

Put 1 teaspoon oil in the same nonstick skillet over medium heat. Pour about a quarter of the batter (a heaping 1/2 cup) into the pan and spread it out to a 6-inch pancake using the back of a spoon. Cook, adjusting the heat as necessary to avoid browning too quickly, until the bottom is golden brown and crisp, 2 or 3 minutes. Flip the pancake over and continue to cook until the bottom is golden and set, 1 or 2 minutes more. Transfer the cooked uttapam to a sheet pan and keep it warm in the oven; wipe out the pan. Repeat with the remaining oil and batter to make 4 pancakes total. Top the hot pancakes with chopped cilantro, and serve with the chutney and lime wedges.