Klepon

Klepon (Pandan-Stuffed Glutinous Rice Balls with Palm Sugar and Coconut)

A classic Indonesian kue basah from Java and Bali: chewy jade-green glutinous rice balls that burst with molten palm sugar when bitten, coated in fresh grated coconut. Traditionally served as a snack or light dessert with tea.

Prep

25 min

Cook

15 min

Total

40 min

Serves

5 (makes about 20 pieces)

Difficulty

Easy

Recipe ingredients

• •200 g (7 oz / about 1½ cups) glutinous rice flour (tepung ketan), must be glutinous (sweet) rice flour, not regular rice flour, or the balls will be hard
• •30 g (¼ cup) tapioca starch (or cornstarch), gives a slight bounce; can be replaced with more glutinous rice flour if unavailable
• •200 ml (¾ cup + 1 tbsp) pandan-infused water, made by blending 4–5 fresh pandan leaves with 200 ml water, then squeezing through a sieve; substitute with ½ tsp pandan extract + 200 ml water if fresh leaves are unavailable
• •100 g (3½ oz) gula merah / palm sugar, chopped into ~5 mm pieces, Indonesian palm sugar (gula kelapa) is the traditional choice; dark muscovado sugar is the closest substitute
• •150 g (1½ cups) fresh grated coconut (kelapa parut), must be fresh, not desiccated; desiccated coconut lacks the moisture and fat needed to coat the balls
• •fine salt, ¼, for the coconut coating
• •500 ml (about 2 cups) water, for boiling

Steps

1. 1 Make the pandan water: roughly chop 4–5 pandan leaves, blend with 200 ml water until finely shredded, then strain through a fine sieve, pressing the pulp to extract all the green liquid. You should have 200 ml of fragrant green juice.
2. 2 Steam the coconut: place the 150 g grated coconut in a small steamer or sieve over boiling water for 3–5 minutes with the pinch of salt. This is the traditional step that softens the coconut, brings out its aroma, and prevents it from going rancid quickly. Set aside to cool.
3. 3 Make the dough: in a bowl, whisk together 200 g glutinous rice flour, 30 g tapioca starch, and ¼ tsp salt. Slowly pour in the 200 ml pandan water while mixing with a spoon, then knead by hand for 3–4 minutes until you have a smooth, pliable, green dough that does not crack at the edges. If it cracks, add water 1 tsp at a time; if sticky, add a little more glutinous rice flour.
4. 4 Shape the balls: pinch off about 15 g (1 tbsp) of dough and roll between your palms into a smooth ball. Flatten it into a disc about 5 cm across, place 1 piece of chopped palm sugar (about 5 g) in the centre, then fold the edges up and over the sugar, pinching to seal completely. Roll again into a smooth ball. Repeat with all the dough and sugar. Important: make sure no sugar is exposed or it will leak out during boiling.
5. 5 Bring 500 ml of water to a full, rolling boil in a wide pot. Lower the klepon into the water gently (do not overcrowd; cook in two batches if needed). They will sink at first.
6. 6 Boil for 3–5 minutes total: once the balls float to the surface, allow them to cook for another 2 minutes so the sugar inside fully melts into a liquid caramel. Test one by carefully removing it and cutting in half — the sugar should pour out molten, not stay solid.
7. 7 Drain the cooked klepon in a slotted spoon and immediately roll each one in the steamed grated coconut until evenly coated on all sides. Serve warm in small paper cups or on a banana leaf. Eat the same day — they are at their best within 4 hours of cooking, when the outside is still tender and the sugar inside is fully liquid.