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Jaja uli (Balinese pounded sticky rice cake)
Coconut-steamed glutinous rice pounded smooth with fresh coconut, sliced and served with palm sugar syrup
Jaja uli is one of the rice cakes that Balinese families make in the days before Galungan, when the island celebrates the victory of dharma over adharma and the ancestors come home; it is stacked into the towering banten offerings and then shared and eaten. Glutinous rice is steamed, soaked in hot salted coconut milk, steamed again and then pounded until the grains break down into a dense, smooth, chewy block with a gentle coconut flavour. Slice it thickly and pour over warm palm sugar syrup, or toast the slices in a dry pan until crisp at the edges. A tall cup of tea or coffee is the perfect partner. Chef's tip: pound while the rice is still hot; once it cools, the grains won't knit together.
- Total time
- 90 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 8
Ingredients
For the cake
- 1 ⅛ lb glutinous (sticky) ricesoaked in cold water for 4 hours
- 1 ¼ cups coconut milk
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 pandan leavestied in a knot
- 3 ½ oz freshly grated coconutor desiccated coconut soaked in 4 tbsp warm water
- 1 tsp coconut oilfor the tin
For the palm sugar syrup
- 5 ½ oz palm sugarchopped
- ½ cup water
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Method
0/8 doneStep 1: Drain the 1 ⅛ lb glutinous (sticky) rice and steam it over a high heat on a cloth-lined steamer for 20–25 minutes, until the grains are translucent but still a little firm.
25 minStep 2: Meanwhile, heat 1 ¼ cups coconut milk with 1 tsp salt and one of the 1 pandan leaves leaves in a pan over a medium heat until steaming, without letting it boil hard.
5 minStep 3: Tip the half-cooked rice into a bowl, pour over the hot coconut milk and stir. Cover and leave 10 minutes until the liquid is absorbed.
10 minStep 4: Return the rice to the steamer and steam for 15 minutes more, until completely soft and sticky.
15 minStep 5: While still very hot, tip the rice into a large mortar (or a stand mixer with a dough hook), add the 3 ½ oz freshly grated coconut and pound or beat hard for 8–10 minutes, until the grains are mostly broken and it forms one smooth, stretchy mass. Common mistake: stopping too early; you get a crumbly cake that falls apart when sliced.
10 minStep 6: Press into a 20 cm square tin brushed with 1 tsp coconut oil, smooth the top with an oiled spatula and leave to cool and firm for at least 1 hour.
5 minStep 7: Simmer 5 ½ oz palm sugar, ½ cup water and the other 1 pandan leaves leaf in a small pan over a medium heat for 6–8 minutes until syrupy. Strain.
8 minStep 8: Turn out the cake and cut into thick slices. Serve with the warm syrup, or toast the slices in a dry frying pan for 2 minutes a side until speckled brown first. Keep wrapped at cool room temperature for 2 days.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 340 kcal
- Protein
- 5 g
- Carbs
- 62 g
- Fat
- 9 g
- Fibre
- 2 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does jaja uli (Balinese pounded sticky rice cake) take?
- About 90 minutes in total: 30 minutes to prepare and 60 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 8 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 coconut milk?
- Single cream, same amount (not dairy free).
- What can I use instead of palm sugar?
- Caster sugar, same amount.
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