Here’s your step-by-step guide on how to make a classic Sri Lankan sweet snack also known as pani pol.

What is pani pol?

Pani pol is the Sinhalese term used to describe these coconut milk pancakes stuffed with sweet jaggery and coconut filling.

Is it crepes or pancakes?

Not to confuse with the American fluffy pancakes, most Sri Lankans use the word”pancakes” to describe these thin pancakes but yes they are crepes.

Keep in mind, that these crepes are also different from your regular paper-thin crepes because we use coconut milk as the liquid base.

The coconut milk gives much softer and tastier pancakes than the usual crepes made with milk and flour.

Tips to make pani pol

• Have all the ingredients ready.
• The batter for the coconut milk crepes should not be too thin or thick but smoothly coat the back of the spoon.
• A well-used, nonstick pan makes it easy to flip and remove the pancakes.
• Make sure to stir the batter before pouring it into the pan.
• Instead of using the usual ladle, I like to use a flat serving spoon to pour in the batter.
• It makes pouring the batter and handling the much easier than a ladle spoon.
• Place the pan over medium heat for 20 to 30 seconds heating the pan, removing it from the fire, pouring the batter on the corner of the pan and swirling it around.
• If you find the batter is not adequate to spread around, add a tablespoon to cover the gaps and swirl until you have perfectly rounded pancakes.
• Now that you know how much batter is needed to make a single pancake without any gaps, repeat the process.

Making the sweet coconut filling

• Use a non-stick pan to make the coconut filling.
• Constantly stirring to avoid the coconut and palm sugar burning or over-caramelising will make the sweet coconut filling hard and bitter.
• While making the coconut palm sugar filling, keep the heat at a low medium.

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FAQ: PAni pol pancakes(crepes)

• What is pani pol pancake sweet filling made with?
  • The filling is made with jaggery which is a hard block of natural sugar obtained from a particular sugar palm tree.

• What can I substitute jaggery with?
  • If you are unable to find Sri Lankan jaggery, try any grocery shops that sell Thai ingredients, though lighter in colour, Thai palm sugar blocks can be used as well.
  • Although golden syrup has been mentioned as a substitute, I would personally recommend using it as a last resort which means when brown sugar is not available.
  • Why? Simply because of the taste, there’s an undertone of bitterness to the syrup as you cook it.
  • Or you can use brown sugar as a substitute to make the sweet coconut filling.
• Can I substitute freshly scraped coconut with dessicated coconut?
  • Yes, if you are unable to find scraped coconut replace it with dessicated coconut. you can also use shredded coconut or coconut shavings.
  • If you are using coconut shavings, make sure torun them through a blender to shred them into smaller pieces, avoid adding liquid when you do this.

• Ideas to make natural food coloring for the panipol pancakes.
  • Here are a few natural additives you can use to replace food coloring when you want to make these pol pani pancakes for festive occasions.
  • Yellow can be infused by adding turmeric which we have done in this recipe.
  • Green can be infused by adding pandan powder or paste.
  • Red try adding a few tablespoons of beetroot juice.

Workflow to make Sri Lankan pani pol pancakes.

• make the grated coconut-jaggery sweet filling, and set aside to cool.
• Make the thin coconut pancakes.
• Assemble both components.

More Sri Lankan snacks.

• RIBBON SANDWICH(rainbow sandwich)CHINESE ROLLS(fish rolls).
• Deep fried-curried fish patties(Sri Lankan).
• Deep fried-curried fish patties(Sri Lankan).

utensils and appliances needed.

• Large bowl to combine ingredients.
• Medium-sized nonstick frying pan.
• A large flat serving spoon.
• Non-stick pan to make the filling.
• Plate to hold the crepes.
• A coconut scraper(optional).

recipe difficulty-little care needed

Ingredients to make pani pol pancake

The ingredients mentioned below are used in standard measuring cups and spoons.

For the pancake/crepe batter

1 cup of plain flour
1 cup of thick coconut milk
2 eggs
1/2 a teaspoon of turmeric powder
Salt to season
1 cup of water

To make the sweet coconut filling

2 cups of freshly scraped coconut(or dessicated coconut, shredded coconut, see notes above)

1 cup of shaved kitul jaggery(read above notes for substitutes)

1 tablespoon of sugar

3 cardamom pods slightly bruised(substitute with 1/2 a teaspoon of vanilla)

If you are using brown sugar instead of jaggery(palm sugar).

Use 1 and 1/2 cups of brown sugar instead of the jaggery and follow the recipe instructions as given below.

How to make Sri Lankan pani pol pancakes.

Please make sure to read the recipe instructions carefully to avoid mistakes.

How to make the sweet coconut filling.

Place a pan over low fire, add jaggery(1 cup), combine well with sugar(1 tbsp)and cardamom(3). heat over low fire.

Once the jaggery melts, add coconut to palm sugar syrup and maintain low heat.

Continue to stir and reduce until the coconut and jaggery combine well till you have a slightly wet filling.

You should not leave the palm sugar filling at any point while it cooks or it might burn.

How to make the coconut milk pancake batter.

Into a large bow, add flour(1 cup), coconut milk(1 cup), eggs(2), turmeric powder(1/2 tsp)and water(1 cup).

Combine all ingredients well with a whisk until you have a thin batter and season with salt.

Making pol pani pancakes(crepes).

Lightly brush the frying pan with oil and place the pan over medium heat.

Once the pan is heated, with one ha

Lightly brush the frying pan with oil and place the pan over medium heat.

Once the pan is heated, with one remove it from direct fire and with the other quickly give a stir to the batter then tilting the pan slightly pour the batter into a corner and then quickly swirl the pan to cover the base to make the crepes.

If you see any gaps forming pour a little batter and swirl to even the crepes out.

Place the pan over low medium fire and let the crepes cook until the edges come loose.

Flip and cook the other side for 10 to 20 seconds and immediately transfer the coconut milk pancake to a plate.

Repeat until the batter is over.

How to roll the pani pol crepes.

Place the pancake on a flat surface, the pancake side with tiny holes must be underneath, so when you roll out the pancakes, this side will be visible.

Having the first cooked side of the pancake facing down also makes the rolling easy and reduces any tearing.

Remove any cardamom from the sweet coconut filling and add a tablespoon to one corner of the pancake.

Avoid adding too much filling as you don’t want to make the pain pol too sweet.

Roll once covering the filling then fold half an inch of the left and right side of the pancake inwards then continue rolling from the bottom to the top.

Serve warm. if there are any leftovers cover them with cling film and refrigerate, I find they taste even better when slightly cold.

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