20060309

sago at gulaman

sago and gulaman

one more for the tapioca files: tapioca pearls of various sizes (sago), cooked in coconut milk, palm sugar syrup, and infused with pandan leaves. if you'd like to try a richer, non-vegan version, omit the palm sugar and add a can of condensed milk to this--it's sort of mind blowing. carageenan-based gelatin (gulaman) is boiled with more pandan leaves (discarded before setting), tinted green with food colouring just because it's pretty, then sliced and diced; this, along with strings of young coconut meat are added to the chilled tapioca pearls and served cold.

in the philippines, sago at gulaman is often just a drink made from the tapioca and the gulaman in palm sugar flavoured water and lots of crushed ice; sometimes it comes in this coconut milk enriched form. either way, it is delicious.

on a somewhat related note, i know there is a singaporean/malaysian dessert that is essentially this, but i'm not sure what it's called. is it gula melaka? i thought gula melaka was just (coconut) palm sugar....

8 comments:

good day :)

love the shot! I've always been confused about tapioca and sago, though...

Hi Santos,
what a lovely dessert you made!
Gula melaka is palm sugar indeed. Sometimes it is added to dessert as a sweetener and also to give a richer flavour than sugar.
If I'm not wrong, sago is the Indian name for tapioca pearls. Sago can be used to make non-dessert Indian dishes.

These are some unfamiliar flavors I can't imagine, but that looks fantastic!

the name of the dessert with gula melaka and sago is... sago gula melaka. inventive, no?

recipe and picture here: http://thamjiak.blogspot.com/2006/01/sugar-not-so-high-friday-15.html

of, i can't wait to see what you make. i think i'll go back to the black rice soon, so stay tuned!

hi chika! g'day to you too :) you know, up until about 10 minutes ago, i thought they were the same. the name, sago, can denote both the pearl s and starch from the heart of the sago palm or the pearls and the starch from the tapioca/casava root. gaaaaah. i don't know what the difference is, taste or texture-wise though.

i'm so not reworking this post to differentiate between the two, though.

hi tabehodai, thanks for the info! i'm sure there's more to it, too.

hi cathy, the flavours are very subtle--sort of sweet, grassy, and milky. not that that really describes it, but it's not as bold tasting as it sounds :)

shukumei, it's as inventive as sago at gulaman (sago and gelatin) :D thanks for the link!

Hi Santos,
here's a spicy way to eat sago http://onehotstove.blogspot.com/2005/07/fast-food-my-way-sago-khichdi.html

my favourite sago dessert is sago with milk/coconut milk and cubed pieces honeydew. it's so refreshing when served cold in summer.

tabehodai what a great serving suggestion. i'll try that as soon as good honeydew melons show up in the market. thanks!

Very similar, but not the same.
Sago (from the palm tree pith)is usually the larger, and takes longer to cook. Tapioca (from the cassava root) is smaller. Both are formed into balls (not naturally), and are gluten free.