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Bubur gandum (wheat pudding with coconut milk and palm sugar)
Malaysian Ramadan pudding of pearled wheat in pandan coconut milk
In Malaysia bubur gandum belongs to Ramadan: it is ladled out at the bazaars that open before sunset and cooked in giant pots at mosques for breaking the fast, and it appears again at Hari Raya open houses. Pearled wheat is simmered until the grains burst and turn chewy, then cooked with gula Melaka, pandan and coconut milk into a thick, toffee-brown porridge. The texture is somewhere between rice pudding and soft barley, with a sweet, smoky, coconut flavour. Serve it warm, or at room temperature on a hot evening. The pudding has always been egg-free, because the starch released by the wheat thickens the coconut milk as it simmers, so nothing else is needed to bind it. Chef's tip: cook the wheat in water until fully soft before adding the sugar and coconut milk; the common mistake is adding them too early, which keeps the grains hard however long you cook them.
- Total time
- 130 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 6
Ingredients
- 7 oz pearled wheatrinsed
- 6 ¼ cups waterplus more for soaking
- 3 pandan leavesknotted
- 6 ½ oz palm sugar (gula Melaka)chopped
- 1 oz sugar
- 1 ¾ cups coconut milk
- ½ tsp salt
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Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Soak 7 oz pearled wheat in plenty of cold water for at least 1 hour, or overnight, then drain.
60 minStep 2: Put the wheat, 6 ¼ cups water and 3 pandan leaves in a large heavy pot and bring to the boil over a high heat.
8 minStep 3: Lower to a steady simmer, partly cover and cook for 35–40 minutes, stirring now and then, until the grains are swollen, many have split, and they are soft right through with a little chew.
38 minStep 4: Add 6 ½ oz palm sugar (gula Melaka) and 1 oz sugar and stir over a low heat for 5 minutes, until dissolved and the porridge turns caramel brown.
5 minStep 5: Stir in 1 ¾ cups coconut milk and ½ tsp salt and simmer gently for 8–10 minutes, stirring so it doesn't catch, until it is thick enough to coat a spoon and slowly drop from it. Add a splash of water if it gets too stiff.
9 minStep 6: Remove the pandan and serve warm. It thickens as it cools; loosen with a little water when reheating.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 340 kcal
- Protein
- 5 g
- Carbs
- 56 g
- Fat
- 12 g
- Fibre
- 4 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does bubur gandum (wheat pudding with coconut milk and palm sugar) take?
- About 130 minutes in total: 70 minutes to prepare and 60 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 6 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.
- Can I make it ahead?
- Yes. It keeps well, so you can cook it earlier in the day or the day before and reheat it.
- What can I use instead of palm sugar (gula melaka)?
- Caster sugar, same amount.
- What can I use instead of sugar?
- Caster sugar, same amount.
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