Num Plae Ai (recipe)

Glutinous rice dough wrapped around palm sugar balls, boiled until they float, then topped with grated coconut and toasted sesame seeds.

Illustration inspired by Pchum Ben at a Houston temple.

Recipe details
Dish	Num Plae Ai
Recipe language	English
Adapted from	Longteine De Monteiro, The Elephant Walk (1998), published by Asia Society
Instructions	Recipe available
Yield	25 to 30 dumplings
Creator pages	Longteine De Monteiro

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On this page

1. Ingredients
2. Method
3. References

On this page

1. Ingredients
2. Method
3. References

This recipe for num plae ai (នំផ្លែអាយ), sweet rice dumplings, is from Longteine De Monteiro's The Elephant Walk (1998), published by Asia Society. Balls of glutinous rice dough are filled with palm sugar, boiled and then rolled in grated coconut.

In a Khmer legend, a new bride makes the hot, sticky dumplings for her husband, who swallows them too fast and dies. The tale gives them the nickname "kill husband cake." They are sold at street food stalls and markets in Phnom Penh, often in a banana-leaf cone with a toothpick.

Ingredients

• 8 1/2 cups water
• 1/4 pound palm sugar
• 1 1/2 cups glutinous rice flour, plus more if needed
• 2 teaspoons sesame seeds
• A pinch of salt
• 1/2 cup grated fresh coconut, or unsweetened shredded coconut from a package

Method

1. Bring the water to a boil in a large pot over high heat.
2. While it heats, roll small pieces of palm sugar into balls about 3/4 inch across. Make 25 to 30.
3. Take 1/2 cup of the hot water from the pot. Stir it into the rice flour in a small bowl a little at a time until the dough is smooth.
4. The dough should feel like pie dough and not stick to the hands. Add a little water or flour if needed.
5. Roll a rounded teaspoon of dough into a ball and press it into a flat round. Make as many rounds as there are sugar balls.
6. Set a sugar ball on each round, fold the dough over it and pinch it shut. Roll it gently until smooth, to a dumpling about 1 1/4 inches across.
7. Drop about a dozen dumplings at a time into the boiling water. They are done when they rise to the surface, after 2 to 3 minutes. Lift them out with a slotted spoon onto paper towels.
8. Meanwhile, toast the sesame seeds for about 2 minutes in a small heavy skillet set over medium-high heat, shaking the pan all the time, until light brown and crisp.
9. Crush them lightly with a mortar and pestle, or pulse two or three times in a mini chopper, then mix in the salt.
10. Set the cooked dumplings on a plate, scatter the coconut and sesame mixture over them and serve at once.

References 4