Ondeh-ondeh Recipe (椰糖椰丝糯米球)

“Healthy coconut coating sweet potato poppers with its oozing sweet sensation in your palate, it’s my homemade Peranakan kueh!”

[Updates: Recipe in both English & Chinese, also with cooking demo video now] 
This popular Peranakan sweet treat, its traditional kueh (in Malay), looks deceptively complex to make, but in fact, it is easier than you thought. All you need is just some quick practicing to get a hang of it.

Just remember, the dough has to be moist and pliably kneaded to avoid tearing. Look at my recipe, you will be amazed by how easy you could make it to impress your guests during your party or as a treat to yourselves.

And, what else? Take this opportunity to bond with your kids. This easy kueh making session also creates fun and joy for the young ones.

大人玩，小孩也可以玩。玩了还可以学(到东西)。学到了还可以吃，吃了又会饱…… 真好！😄

Yields 25-30 balls of 1-bite sized 
Ingredients
120 gram of sweet potato, peeled and thinly sliced or diced
100 gram of glutinous rice flour (糯米粉)
20 gram of rice flour (粘米粉) 
100ml water (adjustable)

1 tablespoon of cooking oil
A pinch of salt

1/4 teaspoon of Pandan flavor essence or 2 tablespoons of Pandan juice, to add to the water (For some pandan aroma, but it’s Optional)

For pure Pandan ondeh without sweet potato:    
150g of glutinous rice flour    
30g of rice flour
150ml of pandan juice (blend with 6-8 leaves and water)

For filling:
150g of gula Melaka, diced into 5-cent big

For coating:
120 gram of desiccated white coconut
1/2 teaspoon of salt
3 Pandan leaves, tied into knot and lightly bruised

供25-30小球    
材料       
120克 番薯，去皮并切成薄片或切丁    
100克 糯米粉
20克 粘米粉      
150毫升 水

1汤匙 食用油         
1小撮 盐

1/4茶匙香兰精 或2汤匙香兰叶汁 (加进水里，可选不加）

班戟香叶口味(无添加番薯)材料：       
150克 糯米粉
30克 粘米粉         
150克 香叶汁 (由7-8片香叶和水搅成汁）

馅料：        
150克 椰糖，切碎

外裹料：       
120克 白椰丝         
1/2茶匙 盐         
3片 香兰叶，打成结并敲压几下

Method  
1) Heat a dry wok over low fire, place Pandan leaves and let it sauté a little while before adding desiccated coconut. Let both the Pandan leaves and coconut sauté on the heated wok for 2-3 minutes. Stir fry occasionally. Sprinkle salt and continue to sauté till aromas of the coconut releases. Heat off and cover wok with lid to let it stand for a while. Transfer coconut into a large bowl. Set aside. 

2) Steam sliced sweet potato until softened. Finely mashed.

3) Add glutinous rice flour, rice flour and salt into mashed sweet potato. Add in water in batches. Get your child to help adding it a little at a time with a tablespoon while you knead the dough. When the dough is almost done, add in oil. Continue kneadIng until dough turns smooth and pliable. 

4) If you choose to make this ondeh-ondeh with just pandan juice, follow the Pandan ondeh measurement instead. You may also add some green essence or coloring for stronger flavor and more vibrant green color. Continue kneading till well combined with the entire dough.

5) Place a 50-cent big of dough in your palm and roll into a ball. Then flatten the ball and make a well in the centre with your finger tips. Fill a dice of gula Melaka in the well, pinch the opening together to seal it, and then, roll into a ball again.

Enjoy the bonding moment with your child(ren) and repeat step with the rest of the dough.

6) Bring a large pot of water to a boil on high heat. Place ondeh-ondeh balls into the boiling water, one by one. Reduce heat to medium-low fire, simmer the balls till float up once they are cooked. Stir the balls occasionally to avoid sticking.

7) Remove and drain ondeh-ondeh balls from water. You may want to rinse the hot cooked balls with cold water once, to enhance its chewiness.

8) Place slightly cooled Ondeh-Ondeh balls into a bowl of desiccated coconut and gently coat the entire balls. Best served warm and enjoy the oozing sweet sensation of gula Melaka in your bites!

做法        
1)小火热锅，将香兰叶放进锅中，再加入椰丝。将香兰叶和椰子炒香，撒上盐，继续炒至椰丝散发香气。待凉备用。

2)将切好的蕃薯蒸熟，捣碎备用。

3)将糯米粉，粘米粉，盐和番薯泥和在一起。分批加入水揉捏，直快好的时候加入油，继续捏至柔软且不粘手的面团。

4)如果选择做斑斓口味的ondeh，请跟上列的量调整。您还可以添加斑斓香精或绿色剂（让口味更浓，颜色更深)。

5)将5毛钱硬币般大小的面团放在手掌中，滚成一个球。然后将球压平，记得先在指尖涂油。在面皮中心加碎椰糖后，封口。滚成圆形球状。重复步骤。

6)把大锅里的水烧开。将糯米球一颗一颗地放入沸水中。调慢火煮熟后，偶尔轻轻搅拌糯米球。糯米球熟透将会浮起。捞起，沥干。

7)可以用冷水过一过熟糯米球以增强其Q弹韧嚼性。

8）把温热的糯米球盖上一层炒椰丝。即可享受。

This Ondeh-ondeh is a vegetarian food. 1 bite-sized ondeh-ondeh kueh counts about 20kcal.      
1颗椰糖椰丝糯米球约20卡路里。

Tips: To yield bouncy and moist dough, adding of sufficient amount of water during the kneading is important. Use warm water, if possible.
* The amount of water is slightly adjustable, depending on your flour, too. Some old flour tends to absorb more water. 
* Gula Melaka (Palm sugar blocks) is available in major Asian supermarkets and neighborhood provision shops. 
** The Ondeh-ondehs in my photo were not added with food coloring. Its appearance was simply the natural colour of the sweet potatoes. I used orange fleshed sweet potatoes.
***Updated: Made with more colors now! Yellow-fleshed sweet potatoes, purple-fleshed sweet potatoes, and pure pandan leaves juice (for natural pandan flavor), as below photos. 

温馨提示：使面团更加细腻有弹性，必须得逐渐加入足够的水量。可以的话，使用温水.             
 *水量可稍调。一些旧粉比较吃水的。
* Gula Melaka（椰糖块）可在超级市场和邻里商店买得到。      
**我照片中的椰糖糯米球没添加色素。它的外皮仅仅是番薯的天然颜色。我用的是橘色肉番薯。      
***更新：现在有更多的颜色可供选择！黄肉甘薯，紫肉甘薯和纯斑斓汁（天然香兰叶），如下图所示。