Kaya Recipe: How to Make Homemade Kaya

Kaya is a popular jam in many South-East Asian countries, such as Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Indonesia. There are two flavours for the jam, which are coconut and pandan. In this recipe, we will be preparing the coconut flavour. It consists of eggs, coconut milk and caramel.

If you have a sweet tooth, you will definitely enjoy the jam. ‘Kaya’ translates to ‘wealthy’. We can agree that it has a rich taste which can satisfy anyone’s taste buds! Although there are minimal ingredients in this spread, some people assume that the preparation process is challenging. This easy recipe will prove them wrong.

History of Kaya

The history of Kaya can be dated back into the 15^th century. The jam is introduced by the Portuguese when they occupied Melaka. Claims are suggesting that the Portuguese successors of Melaka are the inventors of the jam, as it similar to a Portuguese delicacy called Doce De Ovos

Kaya Recipe

Recipe by LokaTasteDifficulty: Medium

Servings

10

servings

Prep time

30

minutes

Cooking time

20

minutes

Calories

199

kcal

Everyone knows what Kaya is – it is Malaysians’ favourite jam! The sweetness of the jam complements well with any pastries and merely is hard to resist. Try making a homemade kaya instead of buying a jar from the grocery stores.

Ingredients

• 4 or 5 eggs

• ½ cup of coconut cream

• ¾ cup of coconut milk

• 200g of sugar

• 3 pandan leaves (tie into a knot)

• 1.5 tablespoons of corn starch + 1.5 tablespoons of water

• Caramel:

• 50g – 75g of sugar

Directions

• Start by preparing a big bowl or container. Crack the eggs into the bowl. Then, put in the coconut cream, coconut milk and sugar. By using a whisker or an electronic hand mixer, whisk the mixture thoroughly. Once done, use a strainer to filter the mixture.
• Next, take out a non-stick pan and pour the egg mixture into it. Place the pandan leaves into the mix. Turn on the heat to medium-low. Stir the mixture with a wooden spatula or wooden chopsticks for 20 minutes, until the mixture is cooked. Add in the corn starch mixture to thicken the jam. Continue stirring to mix well.
• In the meantime, take out a saucepan and pour in the sugar. Heat it until the sugar melts, forming into caramel. Once the colour changes to golden brown, pour in the caramel to the kaya and stir well. Turn off the heat once the kaya turns golden brown.
• Leave the kaya jam to cool and remember to take out the pandan leaves. After that, transfer the kaya into a blender. Blend the kaya until it becomes silky smooth without lumps.
• Lastly, take out the kaya from the blender and put it into a jam bottle. You can refrigerate it for a week.

Ways to Enjoy The Jam

You can best enjoy kaya the traditional way , which is by spreading it on bread or toasts. The jam will add some sweetness to the blant bread and toasts! Add butter on top of the jam for a better taste. Besides that, you can also use the jam as fillings for your buns, cakes and pastries.

If you enjoy and love Malaysian cuisines, explore Lokataste Recipe for more!