Also known as

Sabudana wafers, Sabudana chips

Description

Sago is a starch extracted from the pith of sago palm stems, Metroxylon sagu. In the Indian grocery stores sago is usually called "sabudhana" in Hindi and it is traditionally cooked and eaten in various forms, such as rolled into balls, mixed with boiling water to form a paste, or as a pancake. Sago wafer refers to a crisp, very thin, flat cake made up of sago flour. The dried sago flour is treated with water to make paste which is flattened in to thin cakes and then dried under the sun or a dehydrator to get sago wafers. The dried sago wafers or papads are deep fried in oil and consumed as an accompaniment, with meals or as snacks. Ready to eat wafers are also available in the market.

How to select

Sago wafers are available in the market under many shapes and sizes. Spiced wafers like garlic wafers, pepper wafers and plain salted are most common sago wafers available. The sago wafers can be sold as roasted, baked or fried. Check the expiry date before buying.

Culinary uses

" Dried sago wafers or papads are most often deep fried in oil and seved as accompaniment to main meals. They can also be roasted or baked.

" The ready to eat sago wafers are served as snacks with tea or coffee

" Sago wafers can be crumbled and used in chaat preparations with puffed rice or rice flakes and spices.

Health benefits

" Sago flour (from Metroxylon) is nearly pure carbohydrate and has very little protein, vitamins, or minerals
" One hundred grams of dry sago yields 355 calories, including an average of 94 grams of carbohydrate, 0.2 grams of protein, 0.5 grams of dietary fiber, 10 mg of calcium, 1.2 mg of iron, and negligible amounts of fat, carotene, thiamine, and ascorbic acid.
" It is better to opt for roasted or baked variants of sago wafers instead of fried ones as they are lower in calories and fat content.