Es Cendol — Print Recipe — The Culinary Codex

A refreshing iced dessert drink of bright green pandan-flavored rice flour jelly worms swimming in creamy coconut milk with dark palm sugar syrup — tropical refreshment in a glass.

Ingredients

100g rice flour
30g tapioca starch
400ml pandan juice (from blended pandan leaves and water)
400ml coconut milk
Pinch of salt
200g palm sugar (gula Jawa)
100ml water (for syrup)
Crushed ice

Instructions

1 Blend pandan leaves with water, strain to get 400ml bright green pandan juice.
2 Cook rice flour and tapioca starch with pandan juice over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens into a smooth, glossy paste.
3 Press the hot paste through a cendol press (or colander with large holes) directly into a bowl of ice water. The droplets will form into short, worm-like jellies.
4 Make palm sugar syrup: dissolve grated palm sugar in water over low heat. Strain and cool.
5 Mix coconut milk with a pinch of salt.
6 To serve: fill glasses with crushed ice, add a generous spoonful of cendol jelly, pour coconut milk over the top, and drizzle with palm sugar syrup.

Did You Know?

UNESCO has listed cendol as an Intangible Cultural Heritage item, and both Indonesia and Malaysia claim it as their own, sparking a friendly but passionate culinary rivalry.