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Aasmi
ආස්මි (aasmi): lacy fried rice flour nests set with davul kurundu leaf, drizzled with pink and white sugar syrup
Aasmi is the most delicate sweet on the Sinhala New Year table, a crisp, cream-coloured nest of tangled rice threads drizzled with pink syrup, and making it is a skill that village women in the Kandy and Kurunegala districts are rightly proud of. The batter gets its unique, almost glassy crispness from the slippery sap of davul kurundu leaves, a wild relative of laurel sometimes sold dried or frozen in Sri Lankan shops, which binds the rice flour and coconut milk. It is poured in a fine stream into hot oil to form a lace, folded while still soft and fried until crisp but still pale, then decorated with lines of thick sugar syrup. If you cannot find the leaves, a little tapioca starch helps the batter hold, but the lace will be softer. The usual error is frying until golden: aasmi should stay pale cream, so keep the oil moderate. Chef's tip: test the batter with one thread first; it should fall in a smooth, unbroken stream.
- Total time
- 100 min
- Difficulty
- hard
- Serves
- 12
Ingredients
For the batter
- 20 davul kurundu leavesfresh, or dried and soaked
- ¾ cup water
- 9 oz very fine white rice floursifted
- ¾ cup thick coconut milk
- 1 pinch salt
- 2 tbsp tapioca starch (optional)only if you have no leaves
For frying
- 4 ¼ cups coconut oilfor deep-frying
For the syrup
- 9 oz sugar
- ½ cup water
- 2 drops pink food colouring (optional)
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Method
0/8 doneStep 1: Crush 20 davul kurundu leaves with ¾ cup water in a bowl and squeeze and rub them for several minutes until the water turns thick, green and slippery. Strain through a cloth.
10 minStep 2: Mix 9 oz very fine white rice flour, ¾ cup thick coconut milk, 1 pinch salt and, if using, 2 tbsp tapioca starch with the leaf water, a little at a time, into a smooth batter that pours in a steady, unbroken stream, like thin honey.
5 minStep 3: Heat 4 ¼ cups coconut oil in a wide pan to 325°F.
5 minStep 4: Pour a stream of batter through a squeeze bottle with a small nozzle, or a coconut shell with a few small holes, in a quick circular motion over the oil to make a round lace about 12 cm across.
3 minStep 5: As soon as the lace firms but is still pale, fold it in half with two skewers and fry for 1–2 more minutes until crisp but still cream-coloured. Drain upright on a rack.
2 minStep 6: Repeat with the rest of the batter.
35 minStep 7: For the syrup, boil 9 oz sugar and ½ cup water for 6–8 minutes until thick, 225°F, when a drop falls in a heavy thread. Colour half pink with 2 drops pink food colouring.
8 minStep 8: Drizzle the white and pink syrups in thin lines over each aasmi with a spoon and leave to set. Eat within 2–3 days.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 200 kcal
- Protein
- 2 g
- Carbs
- 34 g
- Fat
- 7 g
- Fibre
- 1 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does aasmi take?
- About 100 minutes in total: 40 minutes to prepare and 60 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 12 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of thick coconut milk?
- Single cream, same amount (not dairy free).
- What can I use instead of sugar?
- Caster sugar, same amount.
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