Idli is a traditional breakfast in South Indian households. Idli is a savoury cake that is popular throughout India and neighbouring countries like Sri Lanka. The cakes are made by steaming a batter consisting of fermented black lentils and rice.

Dosa is a type of pancake made from a fermented batter. It is somewhat similar to a crepe but its main ingredients are rice and black gram. Dosa is a typical part of the South Indian diet and popular all over the Indian subcontinent.

Appam is a type of pancake made with fermented rice batter and coconut milk. It is a common food in Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Sri Lanka. It is eaten most frequently for breakfast or dinner.

Oothappam or Uttapam or Uthappa, literally means ‘poured appam’ in Tamil. This is a dosa-like dish prepared by cooking ingredients in a batter. Unlike dosa, which is crisp and crepe-like, uttapam is a thick pancake, with toppings cooked right into the batter. It is a south Indian dish made with rice and urud dal.

Puttu means "portioned". It is made of steamed cylinders of ground rice layered with coconut. It is highly popular in the Indian state of Kerala and is also known as pittu.