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For the 2009 film, see Papadom (film).
"Appalam" redirects here. For the 2011 film, see Appalam (film).
Jackfruit papadums from Bangalore, India
Alternative names
Papad, papar, pampad, happala, poppadam, appalam
Place of origin
India, Pakistan
Main ingredients
Lentils, black gram, chickpeas, rice flour
Variations Rice or potato papad
Cookbook:Papadum  Papadum

Papadam, pronounced as poppadum (Hindi: पापड़म; also known as Papad in Northern India or Appadam in Telugu, Appalam in Tamil, Appalla in Kannada and Pappadum in the rest of South India; spellings vary) is a thin, crisp disc-shaped Indian food typically based on a seasoned dough made from black gram (urad flour), fried or cooked with dry heat. Flours made from other sources such as lentils, chickpeas, rice, or potato, can be used. Papadams are typically served as an accompaniment to a meal in India, or as an appetizer or snack, sometimes with toppings such as chopped onions, chopped carrots, chutneys or other dips and condiments. In certain parts of India, papadums which have been dried but not precooked are used in curries and vegetable dishes.


Papadum is a loanword from Tamil பப்படம் pappaṭam.[1][2]

The food is called Appadam in Telugu. In the Tulu language, spoken in coastal Karnataka, and appala and happala in Kannada language.[clarification needed] It is often made with black gram, jackfruit, and tapioca.

Alternative names for papadum
pāpaṛ pappad papparde pappadom
pappadum popadam pompadum poppadam
poppadom appadum appalum appala
appoll papari pamporo puppodum
pampad happala "popper"


Rolled spicy papadums India.


In Kerala, guruvayoor pappadums are very popular as an ingredient of Kerala Sadhya. In Kerala, people from the Pandaaram caste prepare pappadums. In North India, the lentil variety is more popular and is usually called 'papad'.

Salt and peanut oil are added to make a dough, which can be flavored with seasonings such as chili, cumin, garlic, or black pepper. Sometimes baking soda or slaked lime is also added. The dough is shaped into a thin, round flatbread and then dried (traditionally in the sun), and can be cooked by deep frying, roasting over an open flame, toasting, or microwaving, depending on the desired texture.

In most curry houses in the United Kingdom and Australia, they are served as an appetiser with dips which often include mango chutney and lime pickle.

Ingredients and preparation[edit]

Papad can be prepared from different ingredients and methods. Arguably the most popular recipe uses urad dal or blackgram. Blackgram flour is mixed with black pepper, salt and then mixture is kneaded together. A well-kneaded mixture is then flattened into thin rounds and kept for sun-drying. Once dried, papad can be stored for later consumption. Papad may also contain rice, jackfruit, sabudana, etc. as main ingredients. Cracked black pepper, red chilli powder, asafoetida, or cumin or sesame seeds are often used as flavouring agents.


Papad is often associated with the empowerment of women in India.[3] Many individual and organized businesses run by women produce papad, pickles, and other snacks. This provides them regular income from minimal financial investments. Shri Mahila Griha Udyog Lijjat Papad is an organization owned and run solely by women that produces large quantities of papadums on the open market which started as a small business in the late 1950s,[4][5] with an annual income in 2005 of about Rs.6.5 billion, or US$100 million. However, with the recent growth of modern trade in India and the growing consumer awareness, modern culinary brands like Happy Times have been gaining in popularity within this category.[6]


Some divergence of transliteration may be noted in the third consonant in the Hindi/Urdu word pāpaṛ. The sound is the retroflex flap [ɽ], which is written in Hindi with the Devanagari letter ड़, and in Urdu script with the Perso-Arabic letter ڑ. Although in IAST the Hindi letter ड़ is transliterated as <>, popular or nonstandard transliterations of Hindi use <d> for this sound, because etymologically it derives from ड /ɖ/. The occurrence of this consonant in the word pāpaṛ has given rise to two alternative spellings in English: papad, which reflects its etymology, and papar (anglicized as "popper"), which reflects its phonology.

In Media[edit]

The British science fiction sitcom Red Dwarf, often brings up papadums after the series 7 episode Tikka to Ride, where all the Indian food supplies have been destroyed to the point where not even a single papadum survived.



  1. ^ "poppadom, n." OED Online. December 2006. Oxford University Press.<>.
  2. ^
  3. ^ World Bank. "Empowering Women in Urban India: Shri Mahila Griha Udyog Lijjat Papad" (.pdf). Empowerment Case Studies. World Bank. Retrieved 2012-09-23. 
  4. ^ Malathi Ramanathan. "Grassroots Developments in Women's Empowerment in India: Case Study of Shri Mahila Griha Udyog Lijjat Papad (1959–2000)". Retrieved 2007-01-15. 
  5. ^ "organization - The Beginning". Lijjat. Retrieved 2006-02-04. 
  6. ^ "Happy Times Pappadam". 

External links[edit]