Dodol

Dodol is a sweet that, in Goa, is made by working rice flour, coconut milk, and palm jaggery together over a long time. The deep brown mixture is glossy, and once cooled and cut it has a soft, sticky chew.

Constant stirring in the pot

In one example from a Goan home cook, jaggery is melted, then coconut milk and rice flour are added. The mixture is stirred constantly in a heavy-bottomed pot and cooked until it thickens and comes away from the sides of the pot. Cardamom, cashew nuts, and ghee are added, and the mixture is spread on a greased plate to cool, then cut into squares or diamonds.

The rice flour absorbs moisture and creates the stickiness, while the coconut milk adds fat and aroma. As cooking progresses, the mixture grows heavier, and stirring takes more strength. Working it while scraping the bottom of the pot prevents uneven cooking, and the cook judges when it is thick enough to cut.

In another method, the jaggery is dissolved in thin coconut milk, and that liquid is mixed with the rice flour before going on the heat. Once it thickens, thick coconut milk is added and the mixture is worked further, until it takes on a deep color and sheen and pulls away from the sides of the pot.

From the Christmas kitchen

At Christmas in Goa, dodol is also one of the items in the consoada, the homemade sweets shared with relatives and neighbors. Local sweet-making culture also passes down the story that if you borrow a large kail pan, you return it with some dodol as thanks.

In Joanna Lobo’s family, relatives gathered to make Christmas sweets and stacked firewood in the kitchen for the dodol. Her great-aunt Micas’s method has been handed down to her aunt Gemma. It is a family recipe that uses coconut milk of different thicknesses in turn, keeps stirring the jaggery and rice flour, and also adds cashew nuts and sesame seeds. In another household, the maker packs cut dodol into small bags and sells them to people who visit before Christmas.

The name dodol is found in many parts of South and Southeast Asia, with differences in the rice, sugar, and flavorings used. In one household in Matara, Sri Lanka, caramelized sugar and rice flour dissolved in milk were added to coconut milk, and the mixture was stirred in turns while the oil that rose to the surface was skimmed off. Cardamom and cashew nuts are added at the end, and the mixture is spread in a tray to cool.

In Malaysia, there is a version made by working glutinous rice flour, coconut milk, and palm sugar together, and durian-flavored dodol is also sold. A similar durian sweet, lempok durian, differs in that it uses durian and sugar without adding glutinous rice flour.

Glossary