This traditional “cake” from Indonesia called is called klepon. They are made of glutinous rice flour AND rice flour, and they are filled with compressed coconut palm sugar. I gotta tell ya, when you have them while still warm, they are the bomb, sooooo good with the oozing melted sugar.
The Indonesian descendants in Malaysia introduced these cakes to Malaysia (even before I was born ?) but somehow along the line, they changed the name to onde-onde, so don’t be surprised should you go to Indonesia and Malaysia, and you would find these cakes exactly the same but with differ names ? I believe you can also find them in Singapore, but am not quite sure what they are called over there.
Indonesian klepon (recipe today!)
That being said, Indonesian onde-onde is very much different to Malaysian onde-onde, as our onde-onde (not klepon) is Chinese influenced sesame balls. They are the bomb too ? Yum!
Indonesian onde-onde
Anyhoo, let’s go back to these glutinous rice balls a.k.a klepon ?
Ingredients
- 125 g glutinous rice flour
- 25 g rice flour
- Enough water (about 50-60 ml)
- Pandan paste and Cocopandan paste (available online, or use food color and add other paste flavoring)
- Desiccated coconut, unsweetened
- salt
- Compressed coconut palm sugar (usually Thai or Indonesian brand in the market, here in Canada – subs with coconut palm sugar granules, from Costco or healthfood store, if not dark brown sugar), roughly chopped/cubed – if you are using substitute, get brown sugar cubes! Even much easier and less messier ?
- More water, for boiling
How To
- Moist enough desiccated coconut with a couple tbsp water, mix in a pinch of salt, just enough to taste, steam until coconut soften, set aside.
- Mix flour and a pinch of salt in a bowl
- Stir in enough water until dough is pliable, not too wet, not too dry.
- Divide dough into two, knead in pastes into each.
- Bring enough water in a pot to boil
- Take enough dough, flatten on your palm, place chopped coconut palm sugar, seam to seal, shape into a ball. Repeat this step until dough is used up.
- Drop balls in boiling water and once they are floating, take them out with slotted spoon
- Roll balls in steamed coconut
Ta-daaaaa
Note: Filling (sugar) shouldn’t be too big/too much, or balls might popped while boiling. If you store them in the fridge, balls will harden, you can microwave them before serving, but they are very best served fresh!
Klepon
Ingredients
- 125 g glutinous rice flour
- 25 g rice flour
- Enough water about 50-60 ml
- Pandan paste and Cocopandan paste available online, or use food color and add other paste flavoring
- Desiccated coconut unsweetened
- salt
- Compressed coconut palm sugar usually Thai or Indonesian brand in the market, here in Canada – subs with coconut palm sugar granules, from Costco or healthfood store, if not dark brown sugar, roughly chopped/cubed – if you are using substitute, get brown sugar cubes! Even much easier and less messier ?
- More water for boiling
Instructions
- Moist enough desiccated coconut with a couple tbsp water, mix in a pinch of salt, just enough to taste, steam until coconut soften, set aside.
- Mix flour and a pinch of salt in a bowl
- Stir in enough water until dough is pliable, not too wet, not too dry.
- Divide dough into two, knead in pastes into each.
- Bring enough water in a pot to boil
- Take enough dough, flatten on your palm, place chopped coconut palm sugar, seam to seal, shape into a ball. Repeat this step until dough is used up.
- Drop balls in boiling water and once they are floating, take them out with slotted spoon
- Roll balls in steamed coconut
