Mastering the art of penyaram
Penyaram or pinjaram, depending on the dialect, is a traditional delicacy of the indigenous people of Sabah, Sarawak and Brunei.

Celebrate Gawai Festival with penyaram made with gula apong. — Photos: LOW LAY PHON/The Star

Its name sounds like paniyaram, a savoury South Indian snack made from rice flour.

But that is as far as this resemblance goes because instead of just plain sugar, penyaram is sweetened with gula apong, a form of palm sugar peculiar to the Borneo island that is characterised by its liquid state.

Here’s a shout out to our colleague Carl Lew who brought back gula apong during his travel to Sabah.

The most distinguishing feature of penyaram is the flat sides with a wavy rim and a domed centre, which earned it other names such as kuih UFO, kuih telinga tikus, and Mexican hats.

The typical recipe is quite easy to remember because it calls for equal amounts of each ingredient with twice the water. Then, it is a matter of tweaking the sugar and water levels to achieve the desired sweetness and consistency.

The batter should be thick but still pourable so that as it flows into the oil, scalloped edges form that turn crispy as it is fried.

If the batter is too thick, or the oil too hot, the pancake will clump up without flowing. The oil should also be deep enough so that the batter is submerged as soon as it is poured into the oil, which should be replenished as needed.

Penyaram is traditionally made with gula apong, but may be substituted with soft brown sugar.

Do not be tempted to fry more than one at a time. While some recipes indicate that the pancake can be flipped a few times, I find that it tends to absorb more oil so I would flip just once, and watch until the dome stops rising, then allow the dough to crisp up for about one minute.

Do not fry for too long or it can get tough and leathery.

When done, remove the pancake from the frying pan to drain on paper towels. I also pat dry with a paper towel to soak up any oil caught along the rim of the pancake.

Penyaram is usually eaten on its own for breakfast or during tea-time and is best when served warm while the edges are still crispy in contrast to the soft chewy centre.

Pour boiling water into rice flour, wheat flour and sugar to make a roux before adding gula apong for the batter.

Penyaram

Ingredients

250g all-purpose flour

250g rice flour

600ml boiling water

200g granulated sugar

250g gula apong, if available or palm sugar or soft brown sugar

1 cup cooking oil for frying

Method

Sift the flours and sugar into a large mixing bowl. Drizzle in boiling water while stirring continuously until well combined. Add the gula apong and mix until you achieve a smooth batter. Adjust the consistency by adding more water if needed, ensuring the batter is pourable.

Pour a ladleful of batter into the hot oil and allow it to flow a bit to create a wavy rim as it cooks towards the centre.

Cover the bowl with cling film and let the batter rest for about an hour. For best results, refrigerate the batter overnight. Allow the batter to come back to room temperature before frying, adding water if necessary to maintain a pourable consistency.

Heat the cooking oil in a frying pan and when the end of a chopstick immersed in the oil starts bubbling, turn the heat down to medium.

Pour a ladleful of batter into the oil, allowing it to spread slightly to form a scalloped rim.

The batter will bubble as it cooks towards the centre.

When the bubbling in the centre stops, flip the pancake over and continue frying. The centre of the dough should rise into a dome.

Flip over and fry the penyaram until the dome stops rising and gets crispy along the edges. Remove from the pan and drain excess oil on paper towels.

Fry for about another minute to crisp up the pancake, then remove from the pan and drain excess oil on paper towels.

Pat dry with additional paper towels to absorb any extra oil

Serve the penyaram immediately while the edges are still crispy.

Enjoy as a teatime snack, perfect for the Gawai Festival that is being celebrated today in Sarawak and Kaamatan Festival in Sabah.
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Penyaram or pinjaram, depending on the dialect, is a traditional delicacy of the indigenous people of Sabah, Sarawak and Brunei.