Sago Pudding with Coconut Milk (Sago Gula Melaka)

A cup of cooked sago topped with palm sugar syrup and coconut milk.

5 from 4 votes

Sago Pudding with Coconut Milk (Sago Gula Melaka)

This sago pudding with coconut milk makes a perfectly sweet and creamy dessert. With only 3 ingredients, it is quick and easy to make and very addictive!

Prep Time15

Cook Time30

Total Time45

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: Asian

Servings: mini cups

Calories: 119kcal

Author: Priya Maha

Ingredients

200 g sago pearls
200 g palm sugar (gula melaka)
180 ml coconut milk
700 ml water (to cook the sago)
5 tablespoon water (for the sugar syrup)
⅛ teaspoon salt

Instructions

Measure 700ml water into a saucepan. Turn on the heat and bring the water to a boil.
As soon as it starts boiling, add the sago pearls. Stir immediately to prevent them from clumping (see Note 1).
Adjust the heat to low and continue to cook the sago. Keep stirring. As the sago cooks, you will be able to see dots of white in the solution. Continue cooking until the dots become lesser and smaller (see Notes 2 & 3).
Turn off the heat and cover the saucepan. Let the sago rest in the residual heat for about 10 to 15 minutes to turn fully transparent.
Transfer the cooked sago into a large sieve and run cold water through to remove all the excess starch.
Drain out the water and spoon sago into prepared dessert cups. Chill until ready to serve.
To make the syrup, cut the palm sugar into small pieces. Grate it if it is too hard to cut (see Note 4).
Place it in a pan and add 5 tablespoons of water.
Cook the syrup over low heat until it is completely dissolved. Stir to fasten the process.
Once the sugar is all dissolved, remove the syrup from heat (see Note 5) and strain it. Leave it aside to cool completely.
In a separate saucepan, add the coconut milk and salt. Heat up until the milk comes to a light simmer. Stir to dissolve the salt and turn off the heat. Set aside to cool completely.
To serve the pudding, spoon 1 tablespoon of syrup into each sago filled dessert cup.
Top it with 1 tablespoon of coconut milk and serve.

Notes

Always boil the water first before adding the sago. This will immediately cook the outer layer of the sago and prevent the starch from the pearls from dissolving much.
Cook the sago with water over low heat until almost translucent. If the mixture gets too thick, add some hot water and continue to cook.
Also, you would need to continuously stir the sago as it cooks as it has a tendency to stick to the bottom of the pan and burn.
For easy dissolving, cut it into small pieces. Cutting is not easy, as the block can be hard. You can use a knife to grate it.
Overcooking the syrup can result in it becoming too thick and harden. Suffice if you heat it just until the sugar is dissolved. This is because the water I have indicated in the recipe is very little, and if you follow this, your syrup will be in the right consistency as soon as it is all dissolved.

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