Back in my school days, I still remember when Mom would return from the local market (pasar) every Sunday and brought us various traditional sweets (jajanan passer) which were colourful and delicious. There are some shops or market here in Sydney if we ever crave for some. But you know how cravings work, you just want to say “i want it NOW!” out loud. So I began searching for these snacks recipe. I have few that I wanted to try and the collections are growing but I keep making the sticky rice balls filled with palm sugar and coated with shredded coconut or we simply call it “kelepon”. The chewy and sweet sensation when you bite into it is, how I would say it “heavenly”.
Before I share the recipe, I must warn you that there is no exact measurement on how much water you need to turn the flour into the dough. You just need to make sure that it’s not too wet or dry. You can test by making one ball and boil it before you work on the rest of the ball. Once you get the hang of knowing the right texture, you would want to make them quite frequently just like we do.
Kelepon
Ingredients:
The sticky ball:
250 gram glutinous rice flour
50 gram rice flour
1/2 teaspoon pandan essence
water
Filling : chopped palm sugar
Coating : shredded coconut ( I used the packaged/ instant one from supermarket and steam it for 15 minutes to bring back the moisture on the coconut)
Directions:
- Boil water in a saucepan. Reduce heat so the water is on simmer.
- Put both flour in a bowl. Add pandan essence and water. Mix. Stopped adding water once the dough is pliable (not too wet/dry).
- Weigh the dough between 15-17 grams. Add palm sugar in the middle of these dough (approximately 1/3 teaspoon), make them into balls. Add them into the boiled/ simmering water. The balls will float once they are cooked.
- Take them out from the water, coat with shredded coconut. Serve.
Note: the snack is best made and eaten on the same day. If you ever have left over (which I doubt as they are very addictive), you can steam it prior eating so you will have melted palm sugar and softer ball texture.
