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Indonesian · Malaysian · Singaporean

Es cendol

Vegetarian

Soft green rice-flour jelly drops in chilled coconut milk with dark palm sugar syrup and ice — a sweet, refreshing street drink-dessert across Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore.

Es cendol is an Indonesian dessert, ready in about 1 hour 5 minutes and made with rice flour, jaggery / palm sugar and coconut milk. It serves 4 and is rated intermediate to cook.

Start cooking
A serving of Cendol
Representative photo. Wiki Farazi / Wikimedia Commons · CC0-1.0
Prep
20 min
Cook
15 min
Rest
30 min
Total
1 h 5 min
Serves
4
Level
Intermediate
Calories
300

Ingredients

4 servings

For the cendol

For the palm sugar syrup

To serve

Equipment

Method

  1. Step 1

    Blend the pandan (opens in a new tab) with the water and strain through a fine sieve. Whisk in the rice flour (opens in a new tab), cornflour (opens in a new tab) and salt.

  2. Step 2

    Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture turns thick, glossy and translucent.

  3. Step 3

    While hot, press the mixture through a colander or a sieve with large holes into a bowl of iced water to form short drops. Leave to firm up, then drain.

    • 10 min
    Liquid being strained through a sieve
    How it looks · Photo: Katerina Holmes on Pexels

  4. Step 4

    Simmer the palm sugar (opens in a new tab) with the water until dissolved and syrupy; cool. Stir the salt into the coconut milk (opens in a new tab) and chill.

    • 5 min
    • medium-low heat

  5. Step 5

    Put cendol drops and ice in glasses, pour over coconut milk (opens in a new tab) and drizzle with palm sugar (opens in a new tab) syrup. Stir before drinking.

    • 2 min

About this dish

Origin
Not attributed to one place · Origin disputedClaimed by Indonesia (where Javanese dawet is old), Malaysia and Singapore.Also popular in Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore
Dish
Snack · Dessert · Desserts · Cold drinks
Cooking method
Boiled, Simmered
Taste
sweet, creamy, refreshing
Diet
Vegan · No gluten ingredients · Dairy-free · No nut ingredients
All labelsVegan · Plant-based · Vegetarian (lacto-ovo) · Eggetarian · Lacto-vegetarian · Ovo-vegetarian · Pescatarian · Flexitarian-friendly · No gluten ingredients · Dairy-free · Egg-free · No nut ingredients · Alcohol-free · Pork-free · Beef-free · Low-sodium
Worked out from the ingredients. How labels work
Good for
Street food · Make-ahead
Cook more with
Rice flour · Jaggery / palm sugar · Coconut milk · Pandan leaves · Cornstarch
Techniques
Boiling · Simmering · Reduction

Allergens

None of the 14 major allergens appear in the listed ingredients.

Based on typical versions of these ingredients and not verified allergen-free. Brands differ and cross-contact happens, so always check labels. For severe allergies, follow your clinician’s advice.

Nutrition

300 kcal per serving

Estimated

1 serving ≈ 323 g · recipe makes 4

Where the energy comes from

  • Protein 3%
  • Carbohydrate 51%
  • Fat 46%
Nutrition per serving and per 100 g
NutrientPer servingPer 100 g*
Energy300 kcal93 kcal
Protein2.3 g0.7 g
Carbohydrate40 g12.4 g
Net carbohydrate——
Sugars——
Added sugars24.3 g7.5 g
Fibre——
Fat15.9 g4.9 g
Saturated fat14 g4.3 g
Trans fat——
Cholesterol0 mg0 mg
Sodium312 mg97 mg
Salt equivalent0.8 g0.2 g
Vitamins & minerals per serving
Potassium
205 mg
Calcium
56 mg
Iron
2.7 mg
Magnesium
45 mg
Vitamin A (RAE)
0 µg
Vitamin C
1 mg
Vitamin D
0 µg
Vitamin B12
0 µg
Folate (DFE)
11 µg

How these numbers were made

  • Calculated from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) per-100 g values and the listed quantities.
  • *Per 100 g of combined raw ingredients; the cooked dish may weigh more or less.
  • Not counted (tiny amounts or “to taste”): pandan leaves.
  • Jaggery / palm sugar: Brown sugar (FDC 168833) used as a stand-in for unrefined cane jaggery and palm sugar.
  • Ice: Frozen water; same composition as water.
  • “—” means the value isn’t known for enough of the ingredients; it is never zero by default.
  • Values are estimates for guidance, not for medical dosing. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. fdc.nal.usda.gov.

Good to know

Tips

  • Without pandan, the cendol is pale but tastes almost the same; a drop of green food colouring is a common shortcut.

Common mistakes

  • Undercooking the batter — it must turn translucent or the drops will not hold their shape.

Serve with

  • Add sweet red beans, jackfruit or durian, as many stalls do.

Storage

  • Keep the components separately in the fridge for up to 2 days.

Variations

  • Es dawet (Indonesia): The Javanese version, often with jackfruit and sometimes made with sago or arrowroot.

Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added · Updated

Recipe DNA

How this dish is built

Customise in Sip & Blend

Built from the recipe’s own sections. Each band’s width is its share of the dish by weight. Choose a component to see what it does.

The body of the dish

For the palm sugar syrup

Used in steps 1, 4

Less sweet, dairy-free, caffeine-free or for more people — the original stays as it is.

Customise in Sip & Blend

Reviews & corrections

Reviews come from signed-in cooks and appear after a moderator checks them. We never show made-up ratings.

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