Americans love their pancakes. We like them sweet (and all the sweeter when doused in maple syrup), we like them fluffy, and we like them for breakfast.

Not so in the rest of the world, where a pancake needn’t be eaten in the morning, it doesn’t need to be floury, and it most certainly doesn’t need to be sweet. Essentially, if it’s round and it’s flat, it’s a pancake—and you’ll find some variation on that theme almost anywhere you travel.

In South India, diners do enjoy their uttapam in the morning, but these light little rounds, made of rice and/or lentil flour and studded with diced vegetables, bear little resemblance to an American pancake. While you’re there, you should absolutely try a