As much as the brilliance of Malabar cuisine has started to get its due in the mainstream conversations about regional Indian cuisine, a few recipes continue to be underrated. One of them – the allahuailah – which translates to ‘God only knows’, has been a delight that enjoys appreciation within the community, especially during the time of Ramadan. The labour-intensive preparation, which uses lacy thin ‘pancakes’ to parcel sweet scrambled eggs, is then soaked in a rose water-based syrup, for a preparation that is best enjoyed chilled.
Known more popularly as the panineer petti – by way of reference to the use of rose water to make parcels or pettis, the allahuailah is also fondly referred to as envelop appam. This is because the technique of preparing the parcels involve placing one stuffed pancake within the other, to create layers when cut into. The light and refreshing dessert is best associated with the summers, when a cold, sweet something to finish off a meal sounds perfect.
Typically, traditional methods of preparing the allahuailah involve assembling the parcels or boxes in advance and only soaking them in syrup closer to the time it is ready to be eaten. Consumed as part of the iftar meal or on special occasions, dry fruits like chopped walnuts and raisins are added to the egg filling to give it some texture and added flavour. While the exact origins of the dish remain cloudy, the allahuailah is a solid example of how improvisation in the kitchen can yield delicious results.
Ingredients [For Pancake Parcels]
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1.5 cups water
- 4 + 1 eggs
- 6 tablespoons sugar
- 3 tablespoons chopped walnuts
- 2 tablespoons raisins
- 2 tablespoons ghee
- Chopped pistachios, for garnish
- Rose petals, for garnish
Ingredients [For Syrup]
- ¾ cup sugar
- 1 cup water
- 1 teaspoon rose water
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Method
- Heat a tablespoon of ghee in a kadhai and toast the chopped walnuts until golden-brown.
- Set aside while you heat the remaining tablespoon of ghee in the pan and whisk the four eggs with sugar, until homogenous.
- Cook the eggs to make a soft scramble and once the curds begin to solidify, add the toasted walnuts and raisins.
- Cool for sometime while you make a batter for the pancakes using the flour, egg, water and salt.
- Pour the diluted batter little at a time on a hot pan and make a stack of lacy pancakes that are in increasing order of size.
- Once ready, spoon some of the egg filling into a small pancake and fold over the edges to make a square-shaped parcel.
- Use a slightly larger pancake and spoon the filling in, before you place the smaller parcel within and fold over.
- Repeat the process with as many layers as you like or limit them to two, until you have enough to arrange in a dish with deep walls.
- Dissolve the sugar for the syrup in water and simmer until you have a warm liquid to add the rose water to.
- Ladle the syrup over the parcels and allow it to sit in the fridge for a couple of hours.
- Garnish with chopped pistachios and rose petals and serve chilled.