Athishaya Pathiri !! (Layered Pancake With Chicken) -A Malabar Dish

Athishaya pathiri is a popular cuisine among the muslims of North Malabar and Malabar in Kerala.It is mostly served with tea as a snack. 
I made this delicious Malabar dish for Kerala Kitchen's cook along for this month.When Rafeeda of The Big Sweet Tooth posted this recipe,I decided to try it very early.But I was worried whether the layers would stay together or fall apart.
But when I start preparing it was quite easy for me.I cook the pancakes and layering of the pathiri in the pan simultaneously.I was able to manage assembling and making pancakes at the same time.We really enjoyed this dish and had it for dinner today.

Here is the recipe for Athishaya pathiri

Ingredients:

• Chicken boneless-250g
• Coriander powder-1/2tsp
• Turmeric powder-a couple of pinches
• Black pepper powder-1tsp 
• Salt to taste 

For the filling:

• Onion-2,big,finely chopped
• Ginger-1''piece,finely chopped
• Garlic-4-5cloves,finely chopped
• Green chillies-3,finely chopped (as per your tolrance level)
• Fennel seeds powder-a pinch
• Garam masala powder-1/2tbsp
• Turmeric powder-a pinch
• Coriander leaves-1/4cup,finely chopped 
• Lemon juice-juice of half lemon
• Oil-as required

 

 For the pancakes:

• All purpose flour/Maida-1cup
• Eggs-1
• Milk/coconut milk-1/2cup
• Salt-a pinch 
• Water-1 cup

For egg mix:

• Eggs-3
• Crushed pepper-1/2tsp
• Salt-a pinch 

 

Method:
For the filling(chicken masala):

• Wash and cut the boneless chicken pieces.Cook it with coriander powder,turmeric powder,pepper powder and salt till it turns tender and all the water is evaporated.
• Shred the chicken pieces using your fingers or mince it in a grinder and keep aside.
• Heat coconut oil in a pan, add chopped onions and saute till it turns transparent.Add ginger,garlic,green chillies with a pinch of salt.Saute till the raw smell disappears.
• Add turmeric and pepper powder to this and stir for few seconds.
• Add cooked minced chicken to this and mix well and cook on low heat for few more minutes.Add garam masala to this and mix well.
• Add chopped coriander leaves and stir for few more minutes.Add few drops of lemon juice and stir well.Adjust the salt and switch off the heat.

Egg mixture:

• Whisk the eggs along with the pepper powder and a pinch of salt.

Pancakes:

• Whisk together flour,eggs,milk and enough water to make a smooth thin batter without lumps.
• Heat a flat pan and pour a ladle full of batter and make thin crepe/pancake.Swirl the pan in a circular way to turn a thin pancake.Cook for a minute.
• Do not flip,just cook on one side.Transfer them to a parchment paper or plain paper to avoid sticking to each other.
• You can make around 10 pancakes with this batter.

  Layering:

• Grease a pan or a cake tin in which the pancake fits with ghee and place the first pancake in the pan.
• Make a second pancake and dip it well in the egg mix and place it on the first pancake.Sprinkle chicken masala over it.(around 2tbsp)
• Place another pancake dipped in egg mix on top of the chicken masala.Keep repeating the process till all the pancakes have been used.
• When it reaches the top layer,keep 2 pancakes,just as how we did for the base of this.
• Pour the remaining egg mixture on the top of the layered pancakes.It covers whole assembly of the pancakes by itself.
• Keep the pan over medium-low heat with the lid tightly closed.Cook until the egg mixture is absorbed and golden brown on top for around 15 minutes.
• Now slowly flip this on to a flat plate and flip it back into the pan,the uncooked side is down.cook for another 5-10 minutes.Flip it on to a plate.
• You can also bake it in a pre-heated oven at 180 degree Celsious for about 15-20 minutes or till the top gets baked well.

    NOTES:

• Make sure that the crepes/pancakes are very thin.Thicker crepes won't give the  real taste.
• You can use any vegetable oil instead of ghee.
• Make sure that the flame is low while cooking so that the sides don't get burned. 
• You can cook the chicken masala without adding chopped coriander leaves too.   

Flip it on to a serving plate and cut them into wedges and serve hot..... 

Happy Cooking!!!