Kalu Dodol (කලූ දොදොල්)
Kalu dodol is a sweet dish, a type of dodol that is popular in Sri Lanka. The dark and sticky dish consists mainly of kithul jaggery (from the sap of the toddy palm), rice flour and coconut milk. Kalu dodol is a very difficult and time-consuming dish to prepare. The Hambanthota area is famous for the production of this dish.
Ingredients
- 6 cardamom pods (seeds only)
- 2¼ cups thick full-fat coconut milk
- 9 oz. kithul jaggery , finely chopped
- ½ cup raw rice flour
- 1 oz cashews , roughly chopped
Method
Crush the cardamom seeds into a powder, and set aside. Place the coconut milk, jaggery, and rice flour into a large, shallow pan (a kadai is ideal), and stir until the sugar has dissolved. Bring the mixture to the boil, over a medium heat, while continually stirring. After 15 minutes or so, the mixture will be very thick. Stir in the cardamom and cashews.Keep stirring, pushing the mixture away from the edges of the pan, toward the middle. After about 40-45 minutes, you’ll have a thick, glossy, jelly-like mixture, and the oil will start to separate, coating the pan. Start folding the edges in toward the middle.After 55 minutes or so, the oil will have separated enough for you to be able to remove it. This is where it’s useful to have another pair of hands, so they can remove the oil while you push the dodol out of the way.Continue to keep folding and removing as much oil as possible for another 10-15 minutes, then turn out into a shallow baking tray, and set aside to cool.Once it’s cool, cut into squares, rectangles, or diamond shapes.This kalu dodol will keep for a couple of weeks in an airtight container at room temperature.
Notes
A non-stick kadai and a diffuser are perfect, and mean that the kalu dodol is less likely to catch!
