Klepon [ Sticky Rice Balls with Palm Sugar Filling ]

Klepon (pronounced Klê-pon) is a traditional rice cake, popular in Indonesia and Malaysia. It is a boiled rice cake, stuffed with liquid gula jawa (palm sugar), and rolled in grated coconut. Klepon is green because it is flavored with a paste made from the pandan or dracaena plant whose leaves are used widely in South East Asian cooking. In other parts of Indonesia, such as in Sumatra and in neighboring Malaysia, klepon is called as onde-onde. However, in Java onde-onde refers to the Chinese Jin deui, a rice cake ball coated with sesame seeds and filled with sweet greenbean paste. Although popular across Southeast Asia, klepon may have originated in Java. Klepon, along with getuk and cenil, are often eaten as morning or afternoon snacks. One must take care when consuming klepon, because a freshly boiled one usually contains hot palm sugar liquid.
In the 1950s, klepon was introduced by Indo immigrants to the Netherlands and is readily available in Dutch or Chinese Indonesian restaurants and supermarkets throughout the country.

Ingredients

• yields 27 pieces
• 250 gr sticky rice flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 175-200 ml water
• pandan paste (optional)
• 100 gr palm sugar
• 100-200 gr shredded coconut and a pinch of salt, to serve

How to Make

1. Cut the palm sugar into small cubes or better yet, grate and crumple them into small balls.
2. Mix flour and salt in a bowl. Add 175 ml water and pandan paste, and knead until a pliable dough is formed. If you need to add more water, do so carefully (1 Tbsp at a time). The dough is good to go when it does not crack too easily and sticks into the bowl/your palm a little bit.
3. Take a small amount of dough, flatten and put a bit of palm sugar on top. Enclose the palm sugar completely (you want it to ooze out on your plate, not on the boiling water) and form into a ball. Place on a sheet of foil. Repeat with remaining dough and palm sugar until all is used up. (I usually reserve a bit of dough - approximately enough to make 1 more ball, just in case I spot palm sugar leaking in any of the rice balls before boiling them)
4. Fill a medium or large stockpot 3/4-full with water and bring to a boil. Using a slotted spoon, drop the rice balls into boiling water. Cover completely, simmer on low heat and bring it back to a full boil. From memory this is where I usually fail on dumplings: I tend to get worried of overcooking that as soon as they float on top, I regard them as done. But this time I left the floating balls cooking until they were boiling, and it seemed to do the trick.
5. While the rice balls are cooking, toss shredded coconut with salt and spread evenly on a plate. When the rice balls are done, fish them out using a slotted spoon and transfer into the same plate. Roll in coconut to prevent them sticking to each other. Do not be tempted yet into pop one into your mouth since the filling can be very hot. Cool and serve with more salted coconut.

Categories: Sweet Desserts