Name: Easy Homemade Kaya Jam (Malaysian Coconut Jam)
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 25 min
Ingredients: 4 large egg yolks; 500 ml full-fat coconut milk (or 200g of coconut cream); 60 g palm sugar (finely chopped); 60 g light brown sugar; A few pieces of fresh pandan leaves; A pinch of salt

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Easy homemade kaya jam (Coconut Jam)! Kaya Jam is popular in Southeast Asian countries like Malaysia, Indonesia, and Singapore. It’s a delicious spread with no added preservatives that you’ll love with your toast. I think it would also be a great gift. You can make this easy version of kaya jam in less than 30 minutes from scratch. Give it a try, and let me know how it goes!

Easy Homemade Kaya Jam (Malaysian Coconut Jam)

Learn to Make
Kaya Jam (Coconut Jam)

Kaya Jam, also called Kaya or Srikaya, is a thick and creamy sweet spread. It is traditionally spread on toast to make kaya toast topped with a slice of butter. Kaya toast is super popular in Southeast Asian countries like Malaysia and Singapore.

”KAYA” in the Malay language means “RICH”.

Different varieties available include the Nyonya kaya, which is lighter green. The Hainanese kaya is a darker brown.

Kaya is traditionally made with thick coconut milk and whole eggs. It is sweetened with palm sugar which gives jam a unique caramel taste.

Brown Kaya is flavored with fresh pandan leaves. Fresh pandan juice or pandan extract is used to make the green-colored kaya jam.

Making traditional Kaya jam is a time-consuming process. You need to stir constantly to get the right consistency. You can make this easy version of kaya jam in less than 30 minutes.

This pandan-flavored brown kaya jam is made with coconut cream and egg yolks instead of coconut milk and whole eggs. It is sweetened with palm sugar and light brown sugar.

You’ll find an easy-to-follow recipe with a step-by-step guide, helpful info, and top tips here. Make it for yourself. it also makes a great gift.

Kaya Toast

Kaya jam is traditionally spread on toast to make kaya toast topped with a slice of butter. Kaya Toast is eaten for breakfast with a soft-boiled egg and soy sauce. Kaya toast tastes great on toast with cheese also.

Similar Recipes to Try!

Learn to make Watalappan (Sri Lankan Coconut Custard or Coconut Custard Pudding)! Watalappan is a traditional Sri Lankan dessert typically served on special occasions and celebrations. It is said that the Watalappan is, more likely, derived from a Malay dish called Srikaya. (Kaya Jam is also called Srikaya)

Watalappan (Sri Lankan Coconut Custard)

Ingredients

Coconut Cream
Palm Sugar
Light Brown Sugar
Egg Yolks
Pandan (screwpine) leaves
Salt

Useful Tips

If available, use coconut cream. It’s thicker and richer in flavor than coconut milk.
If you use coconut milk, it will take more time to thicken it because coconut milk has water.
If you use freshly squeezed coconut milk, use the first extraction from grated coconut meat.
Coconut milk tends to separate when chilled in the fridge, leaving a hard layer of coconut cream on top. So, I highly recommend chilling it to separate the cream.
For authentic taste and intense molasses flavor, use palm sugar. You can also use jaggery. Palm sugar and jaggery are available in Asian grocery stores.
You can also use light or dark brown sugar like muscovado sugar or cane sugar.
The color of the jam will depend on the sugar you use.
Brown Kaya is traditionally flavored with pandan leaves.
For making green-colored pandan kaya, you can use pandan juice or pandan extract. If you use pandan juice, you need to cook it a bit longer to get to this consistency. This is because of the extra liquid added.
Adding a pinch of salt enhances flavors.
You need to stir the jam mixture regularly to prevent lumps and sticking it to the bottom of the pan.
The jam will thicken more as it cools.

Storing Suggestions

Once the kaya has cooled down completely, transfer to a glass jar and secure the lid.

You can keep it at room temperature for a few days. But, I usually keep it in the fridge. The reason is that it has egg yolks. It keeps in the fridge for one week or so. This kaya jam is also freezable and can be kept for about 3 months.

The kaya tends to harden a bit after refrigeration and become hard to spread. Leave it to come to room temperature before serving. They’ll soften.

Easy Homemade Kaya Jam
Step-by-Step Guide with Photos

(Check out the printable recipe card at the end of the post)

Course: Jam and Spread
Cuisine: Malaysian, Singaporean
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time: 15 to 20 minutes

Ingredients

4 large egg yolks
500ml full-fat coconut milk (see the notes)
60 g palm sugar, finely chopped
60 g light brown sugar
A few pieces of fresh pandan leaves
A pinch of salt

Notes

I used coconut milk packed in a paper box. You can also use canned coconut milk.
You can use about 200g of coconut cream instead of coconut milk.
You can find palm sugar and pandan leaves in Asian stores/amazon.
You can also use light or dark brown sugar instead of brown sugar.
Use the amount of sugar to your taste
If you can’t find pandan, skip it and use vanilla extract if desired.

Instructions

Use coconut cream (about 200g) if you can find it. If you use coconut milk, keep it in the fridge overnight to separate the cream. After refrigerating, do not shake the can/box before opening it. The top is cream and the bottom has some water. Separate the water from the cream. I got 360g of cream using 1000ml coconut milk. If you use 500ml coconut milk, you will get around 180 of the cream.

Cut the hardened coconut cream (about 180 to 200g) into small pieces.

I used palm sugar and light brown sugar. You can also use light or dark brown sugar instead of palm sugar.

If you use a palm sugar block, use a grater or knife to shave off manageable pieces of the sugar.

I used fresh pandan leaves. You can find fresh or frozen pandan leaves in Asian stores; skip them if you can’t find them.

Heat coconut milk together with sugar, pandan, and salt in a double boiler. Fill a medium-sized pot with about 3 inches of water and leave it at a simmer. Then, place a heat-proof bowl over the pot with coconut cream, sugars, pandan, and salt. (You can also heat the ingredients in a saucepan. Heat to warm it until the sugar melts. Do not boil.)

Stir constantly with a spoon as the coconut milk gets hotter.

After the mixture becomes warm and the sugar melts, remove the pot from the heat. Set aside.

Separate the yolks from the white. Beat the yolks gently with a fork until mixed. Do not beat too long otherwise, they get foamy.

Gradually pour half of the warm coconut mixture into the egg yolks with a spoon.

Stir the yolk mixture constantly while adding the coconut mixture, otherwise, the yolks curdle easily.

Now pour the yolk and coconut mixture into the remaining coconut mixture while stirring to mix everything.

Add the prepared mixture into a saucepan. Gently cook over medium-low heat. Don’t cook it over high heat, as the yolks will curdle. Continue to stir until the mixture thickens. It will prevent making lumps and sticking the jam to the bottom of the pan.

At around 2 minutes, the jam can coat the spatula but is still runny.

When the kaya is getting thick enough (at about 8 minutes), remove the saucepan from the heat. It should coat the back of the spatula thickly but with a spreadable consistency. The kaya will continue to thicken once it cools down completely. So don’t cook it until it’s too thick.

The kaya will still get thicker when it cools. Discard the pandan leaves. If you see any lumps or curdled egg, press the curd through a strainer.

Once the kaya has cooled down completely, transfer to a clean glass jar and secure the lid. Keep it refrigerated and use within 1 week.

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