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Thursday, January 28, 2010

Malaysian Coconut Candy

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Of all of the hundreds of candy recipes, this coconut candy will be the most satisfying for every sweet tooth in your household.  This home-made candy recipe has never been easier.  Sure you could buy candy from the store, but what would be the fun of that? Experience the nostalgic fun of making this candy as it has a totally unique texture  and sure paradise for kids of all ages Send them all to candy heaven with this Coconut Candy .

Ingredients:

1 lb grated white coconut
2 1/2 cups granulated sugar
3/4 cup evaporated milk
1/4 tsp salt
4 tbsp butter
1/2 tsp rose essence
Red  food coloring

Method:

Line a 9″ tray with aluminium foil and grease the foil.

Put the coconut, sugar, salt and evaporated milk in a large microwave safe bowl and mixrowave on high, for 15 minutes, stirring after every 5 minutes.  Cook until mixture thickens.  Cooking time is only an estimate as wattage of microwave differs.

Add in butter and continue to cook 1 or 2 minutes at a time and stir.

When the mixture is really thick, quickly add in rose essence and coloring.

The candy is ready when the mixture leaves the sides of the bowl, almost like a lump. Also, the mixture will lose some of its shine, almost going matte. To test for doneness, roll a small piece into a ball and put ball into a glass of water, if the ball does not disintegrate, it is done.

Working quickly, pour out the hot mixture into the greased tin and flatten top with the back of a clean rubber spatula.

Let cool ten minutes and cut into squares whilst warm with a pizza cutter. Let cool completely.  Lift the aluminium foil from the tray and using a sharp knife, complete the cutting the edges, where the pizza cutter could not reach. Break off the cut squares and serve or store in an air-tight container.
 


Serves

44 comments:

  1. The pink gives it a yummy colour. I am not a fan of coconut candy though. Too sweet for my taste.

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  2. Wow Lily! This really brings back childhood memories. I still remember the Coconut Candy recipe printed at the back of the Ideal Evaporated Milk label.

    Vivien

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  3. Lily, this looks really wonderful. I love the color you were able to develop. Take care. Blessings...Mary

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  4. This has come at a superb time!
    I was at an Asian grocery store yesterday and saw packets of "grated coconut" for the 1st time. Owner said it was like desicated coconut. Can I use those?
    I can't find any fresh coconuts here, grated, or even whole to grate myself.

    My late mum used to make great coconut candy and I thought of it when house cleaning & wiping her pics last weekend.

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  5. Looks very sweet, but of course candy has to be sweet. Can't wait to try some at your party.

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  6. Hi Lily, awesome dessert. Do you use fresh grated white coconut (that I think I might be able to get frozen) or do you use unsweetened or sweetened dried shredded coconut?

    Please tell me I'm super interested in making this. (I really love anything coconut)

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  7. my mom used to make this. I loved it! Maybe i should make some. She used to make it with cocoa flavor too.

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  8. wow I defitely love this one since I was young! :) DELICIOUS!

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  9. nathan

    i used frozen grated coconut - the brand that has a coconut tree.

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  10. This was my fave snack at school...5c for a piece(back in the day..). I am so gonna make this! Thanks Lily!!

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  11. so pretty kids will love it

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  12. vin cain

    i suppose dessicated coconut can be used. I would suggest reconstituting the dessicated coconut with coconut milk or evaporated milk before using.

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  13. Lily,
    This is similar to Sugar Cake found throughout the Caribbean.

    I must try your recipe.

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  14. Hi Lily,
    Thanks for the recipe. I love this since I was in school. Gonna to have a try but I don't have a microwave. Can I cook them directly on the stove?
    Pls advise. My email is chuaklcc@yahoo.com

    Chua

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  15. My grams used to make these colourful coconut candy.....hmm very nostalgic!

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  16. chua

    absolutely, cook on the stovetop, that is the conventional way. i just like cooking in the microwave, it gives me time to do something else while it is cooking in the microwave, while for stovetop cooking, attention has to be given, stirring so that the bottom does not get burnt.

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  17. The 1st batch I made with the square frozen coconut from the Phil was way too wet and I spent abt an hour in front of the microwave. The red colour got brown! 2nd batch I made with Mdm Wong frozen coconut in a rectangular pkg of 500g; it was drier and went better. Still, it was not dry like your pics here..mine were misshapened after cutting!

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  18. chris

    i just made this recipe using the same frozen shredded coconut, the brand i used and it took only 17 mins total for the candy to be ready.

    you would have to press it down on to the baking tray and let it cool slightly before cutting. do not remove the candy until it is set and cooled.

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  19. I found another recipe online but it wasn't as specific and I spent a lot of time stirring it in a wok. It was looking - and tasting - pretty good till I added melted butter. Then, it burnt! So I'm going to give this microwave recipe a try. It looks so good!

    Once made, what is the shelf life in the fridge? Will it turn moldy if not eaten up within a week or two?

    Thanks for posting this terrific recipe. The other coconut candy I love are the coconut pieces you buy from Petaling Street hawkers. They're brownish in color so probably they're roasted or toasted and dipped in gula melaka. I LOVE those. If anyone has that recipe, please, please post it for all of us.

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  20. choo choo love rosenbloom

    i have no idea how the other coconut candy looks like. Anyone, help!!!

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  21. Lily:

    Guess what? I followed your microwave method and it worked! I've made some really delicious coconut candy! I think mine may not be as hard as it should be because it doesn't look as hard as the ones in your pictures but it tastes really, really good and looks good enough for me.

    I can post a photo of how the other coconut candy looks like but I don't know how to post to your blog.

    Thanks so much once again for sharing this recipe with everyone.

    Choo
    Winnipeg, Canada

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  22. choo

    good job in your success in making this candy. Cook it a little bit longer and it will be more dry and it will harden better.

    you can send me the pic through my email lilyng_2000@yahoo.com

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  23. I made a second batch, cooked it a bit longer and it's terrific! Looks just like yours now and it's so delicious!

    I also wanted to share a great Malaysian shopping website with all of you:

    http://www.malaysianmart.com/

    They ship to me via surface mail and it takes 6-7 weeks. Their customer service is superb and the quality of their products is excellent. They're based in Penang. They ship all over the world and their prices and shipping rates are very reasonable. If you're looking for something they don't carry on their website, you can ask them to include it and often, they will. I've asked them to include many items.

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  24. yummylicious...I loveeee coconut candy and your recipe is so easy to make. Mine is cooling in the tray now. Thank you

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  25. Hi Lily,

    Thanks so much for this recipe..I just made your coconut candy, modified for dried coconut, and it turned out beautifully! Took some of it out to a playdate today and five kids inhaled it!

    Check it out at tastyculture(dot)com.

    PS. BTW you and my mom know each other!

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  26. celine

    i would like to say hi to your mom, how do i get in contact with her. btw what's your mom's name?

    my regards to her and your family

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  27. Hi Lily,

    What is your email? or how can I get in touch with you via private message? I'll pass you the contact information that way.

    Best,
    Celine

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  28. celine

    my email address is lilyng_2000@yahoo.com.

    thanks and have a good weekend

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  29. Thks so much for sharing this yummy coconut candy recipe, Lily! :) I remember making this delicious sweet with my younger brother when we kids - green pandanus flavour, chocolate n of course, red rose flavoured!When I saw ur coconut candy pics yesterday, i couldn't resist making a batch today! They taste as wonderful as I remember them - really wished tht I could eat as many as when I was a kid! :)

    Susanna, Perth

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  30. What about using Splenda instead of suger for diabetics like me - possible you think? I have a sweet tooth but can't eat anything sweet anymore - even durian limited to 2 seeds (1 serving) :-(

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  31. anonymous

    substituting splenda for sugar is possible if it is a must for you. Just as advised to eat 2 seeds of durian, i would suggest to eat one tiny piece at a time, than eating several pieces made with splenda

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  32. Hi Lily.. Tried this out today. Had to scale down the recipe as I had only 135g of grated coconut. I have a couple of questions, would most appreciate it if you could help me out here :)

    1. The candy ended up a little dry and crumbly in the end. Even when I poured the ev. milk into the coconut mix, it seemed not enough. (I used about 1/4 to 1/3 cup of ev. milk.) So it was dry throughout. I'm not sure how the consistency should be when cooking in the microwave? Should it be wet or dry?

    2. The strands of my grated coconut were too long.. haha.. Is there an easy way to shorten them? I'm afraid if I pulse it in my blender, I'll extract coconut milk instead!

    3. I subbed butter with ghee, and i didn't have rose essence.. But it tasted really good, although super sweet! Would reducing the sugar affect the end product?

    Thanks so much for the recipe!

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  33. nasrin

    this is a candy so it should be sweet besides the sugar is there to bind the candy together. Since your strands of coconut is long, therefore it must be drier and it should need more liquid. you could pound it until the strands are smaller, yes the blender will not work if there is no liquid. rose essence is for flavor only, use whatever flavor you desire and using ghee is perfect.

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  34. Hi Lily,I always wanted to make yummy coconut candy,tried a few times and gave up until I came across your recipe!I immediately made a batch and my family loved it!Mine is slightly wet but the shapes hold when cut.I used margarine.Thanks a million!
    Ling

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  35. anonymous

    the next time you make, cook a little bit longer to dry it out.

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  36. Hi Lily, thanks. I found though, when the candy cooled down, it dried a little. BTW, where I am, we don't get glutinous rice flour, any substitute for it? So many yummy recipes(reminding me of my childhood days in Pg!)and I cannot make as I cannot get glutinous rice! TC

    Ling

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  37. ling

    please tell me which part of the world are you in, perhaps readers can help and guide you to where glutinous rice flour can be found.

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  38. Hi I tried your recipe today and used the conventional stove top method. It turned out beautifully. Thank you!

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  39. I remembered making these coconut candies during Home Science class way back in my secondary school days. Used to make and enjoy eating them. Anyway, lost the handwritten book now.
    Good to see your recipe,brings me back the nostalgic feelings and happiness making the candies then.

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  40. I am searching for a recipe that doesn't use the microwave & Wow Lily I found this.
    http://cookbook-recipes.org/malaysian-coconut-candy/

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  41. flo

    thanks for the link. this recipe is a carbon copy of my recipe. if you do not wish to use the microwave, just cook it on the stovetop and keep on stirring until it is ready

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  42. I tried this, and after leaving it for 3 minutes, everything boiled over in the microwave. I spent the night cleaning it out. Thanks :) !

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  43. samsam

    i am so sorry, your microwave's wattage must be very high.

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