My weekend started with a gathering of some rocking people, eating the type of food I love and doing what, as a community, we are good at – grass roots campaigning.

I was too busy to take food shots and I didn’t really want to ask the master chef (K anna) what his secret recipe is. Hopefully the video and the few photos I did take will give you a feel about what hoppers or appam (அப்பம்) is about.

The gathering with 100 or so Sydney Tamils was in support of Greens Senator Lee Rhiannon who will be contesting the federal election. Date still unknown.

Lee has been an unwavering progressive voice for justice for so so many issues. She has spent a lot of time with our community, at our events, weddings and homes.  It was heartwarming to see how much goodwill there was among the community towards Lee.

Our master chef arrived at about 8.30am to a backyard filling up with hungry Tamils who love hoppers + Lee who now loves hoppers.

There are 4 types:
1. Plain
2. Milk (coconut milk)
3. Egg
4. Jaggary (pictured below)

K anna made all 4. Check out the vid:

Hoppers are eaten at breakfast with sambol or seenisambol (delicious caramalised onions and chillies).

The hopper mix is made from white rice flour, dry yeast, sugar, water, coconut milk, baking powder and salt.

To make the Egg hoppers, ‘Recipes’ of the Jaffna Tamils’ says: Pour 2 tablespoons of batter in the hopper pan. Tilt and rotate pan till batter coats the sides. Break an egg into the centre, taking care not to break the yolk. Cover with lid, until cooked. Slide the hopper out of the pan with a wooden spatula. Serve hot.

I was on egg buying duty and I learned a tip: use ‘small’ 50g eggs as they cook faster.

The breakfast was a huge success with a mix of familiar and new faces. Lee’s good work has travelled far and wide. She is quite the hero in our community.

A big thanks to all the helpers who donated their time, gathered the troops and made the sambols. And again a big thank you to K anna for his generosity and delicious hoppers.