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Wedang ronde
Rice balls in ginger syrup
Wedang ronde: chewy rice balls hiding peanut and palm sugar, in hot ginger and pandan broth
Wedang ronde came to Java with Chinese tangyuan, eaten at the winter solstice, and in Yogyakarta it has become an all-year evening treat: sellers set up on the Alun-Alun Kidul and along Malioboro, and families sit on mats eating it as the night cools down. Soft, chewy balls of glutinous rice, some white and some pandan green, are filled with crushed peanuts and palm sugar, and floated in hot ginger syrup scented with pandan and lemongrass, sometimes with roasted peanuts and kolang-kaling on top. Bite one and the filling oozes warm and sticky against the clean burn of the broth. The common mistake is making the dough too dry: it cracks as you shape it and the filling leaks out during boiling. Add water until the dough feels like soft earlobe and smooth any cracks with a wet finger. The balls are done when they float, then stay at the top for two more minutes. Make the broth first so it is ready as soon as the balls are cooked. Chef's tip: chill the filling into little balls before wrapping; firm filling is much easier to seal.
- Total time
- 65 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
For the ginger broth
- 3 ½ oz fresh gingerunpeeled
- 3 pandan leavesknotted
- 4 ¼ cups water
- 2 ⅞ oz palm sugar (gula jawa)shaved
- 1 ¾ oz white sugar
- 1 pinch salt
For the filling
- 2 ⅛ oz roasted peanuts, skins off
- 1 ⅜ oz palm sugar (gula jawa)finely shaved
For the rice balls
- 5 ½ oz glutinous rice flour
- ½ cup warm waterabout
- 1 tbsp pandan juicefrom blended pandan leaves; or 2 drops pandan extract
To serve
- 1 oz roasted peanuts (optional)
- 2 ⅞ oz kolang-kaling (palm fruit), sliced (optional)
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Method
0/9 doneStep 1: Char 3 ½ oz fresh ginger over a flame or in a dry pan over high heat until blackened in spots, then smash it.
5 minStep 2: Put the ginger, bruised 1 lemongrass stalk and 3 pandan leaves in a pot with 4 ¼ cups water, 2 ⅞ oz palm sugar (gula jawa), 1 ¾ oz white sugar and 1 pinch salt. Bring to a boil, then simmer over low heat until golden-brown and spicy.
20 minStep 3: Meanwhile, crush 2 ⅛ oz roasted peanuts, skins off in a mortar until coarse and sandy, then pound in 1 ⅜ oz palm sugar (gula jawa) until the mixture clumps when pressed.
5 minStep 4: Roll the filling into 16 small balls the size of a hazelnut and chill them while you make the dough.
5 minStep 5: Put 5 ½ oz glutinous rice flour in a bowl and add the ½ cup warm water gradually, kneading, until the dough is smooth, soft and does not crack at the edges.
5 minStep 6: Split off a third of the dough and knead in 1 tbsp pandan juice until evenly green.
2 minStep 7: Divide all the dough into 16 pieces. Flatten each into a cup in your palm, set a filling ball inside, pinch closed and roll smooth.
12 minStep 8: Bring a pan of water to a rolling boil, drop in the balls and cook over medium-high heat until they float, then 2 minutes more.
6 minStep 9: Lift them out with a slotted spoon straight into bowls, ladle over the strained hot broth and top with 1 oz roasted peanuts and 2 ⅞ oz kolang-kaling (palm fruit), sliced if you like. Serve at once.
2 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 330 kcal
- Protein
- 6 g
- Carbs
- 64 g
- Fat
- 6 g
- Fibre
- 2 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does wedang ronde take?
- About 65 minutes in total: 35 minutes to prepare and 30 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 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 fresh ginger?
- ¼ tsp ground ginger per tbsp fresh (add it with the spices).
- What can I use instead of palm sugar (gula jawa)?
- Caster sugar, same amount.
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