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Make this delicious vegan eggless kaya jam using sweet potato or pumpkin puree with only 5 ingredients. The eggless kaya jam is creamy and equally satisfying. Perfect for that toast in the morning!
Smooth creamy and rich kaya jam is one of the quintessential jams loved by many in Southeast Asia. Traditional rich creamy kaya is usually made with eggs and involved hours and hours of stirring unless you have tried my Easy Authentic 10-minute Kaya Jam, which will change your kaya experience forever 🙂 This eggless kaya jam is very satisfying with that smooth creamy texture.
ONLY 5 INGREDIENTS
1. SWEET POTATOES
I used sweet potatoes to make this eggless kaya. You can also use pumpkin, purple sweet potatoes, ube yam, or similar tubers
2. COCONUT CREAM
Use canned coconut cream and not the one for drinking as beverage. Coconut cream is much thicker than coconut milk. You can use coconut milk too, but it will be runnier
3. PALM SUGAR / COCONUT SUGAR
Palm sugar gives a nice aroma. Coconut sugar is a great substitution too. If you can’t find either one, brown sugar is perfectly fine too
4. PANDAN LEAVES
Pandan leaves add a nice aroma. It’s like the vanilla of Southeast Asia 🙂 Simply omit if you don’t have any
5. SALT
A small pinch of salt brings out the flavor of the overall kaya, even in a sweet creamy jam like this
HOW TO EASILY MAKE EGGLESS KAYA FROM SCRATCH
1. Peel the sweet potato or pumpkin and cut into large chunks. Steam over high heat for 15-20 minutes or until fork-tender
2. Put this in a blender along with the rest of the ingredients, except for pandan leaves. Blend into a smooth consistency
3. Pour this into a saucepan and add pandan leaves
4. Cook over medium-low heat and keep stirring until sugar melts. It will turn watery a bit when this happens. Don’t worry and continue to stir until the mixture thickens slightly
5. Remove from the heat. It may seem runny at first, but you will see when you put it in the fridge it will thicken considerably because the coconut milk will solidify and thicken it. Transfer to a jar and let it cools down completely and then secure with a lid and store in the fridge for up to 2 weeks
How simple is that 🙂 This may seem runny at first, but as it cools down it will thicken further. It will be even thicker once you put it in the fridge because the coconut cream has solidified. So, it’s a great start to cook it to a consistency that is still a bit runny.
DID YOU MAKE THIS GOLDEN CRISPY SALTED EGG YOLK RECIPE?
I love it when you guys snap a photo and tag to show me what you’ve made 🙂 Simply tag me @WhatToCookToday #WhatToCookToday on Instagram and I’ll be sure to stop by and take a peek for real!
Creamy Eggless Kaya Jam (Eggless Vegan Coconut Jam)
Ingredients
- 500 gr mashed sweet potatoes or pumpkin, about 2 cups
- 200 ml coconut cream about 3/4 cups
- 150 gr coconut sugar or use brown sugar, about 3/4 cups or more to taste
- 5 pieces pandan leaves knotted
- Small pinch of salt
Instructions
- Peel the sweet potato or pumpkin and cut into large chunks. Steam over high heat for 15-20 minutes or until fork-tender
- Put this in a blender along with the rest of the ingredients, except for pandan leaves. Blend into a smooth consistency. It will be quite thick at this point
- Pour this into a saucepan and add pandan leaves. Cook over medium-low heat and keep stirring until sugar melts. It will turn watery a bit when this happens. Don't worry and continue to stir until the mixture thickens slightly. Don't cook it until too thick because it will thicken further when you refrigerate. It should coat the back of your spatula but still a pourable thick consistency, about 8-10 minutes
- Remove from the heat. It may seem runny at first, but you will see when you put it in the fridge it will thicken considerably because the coconut milk will solidify and thicken it
Storage:
- Transfer to a jar and let it cool down completely and then secure with a lid and store in the fridge for up to 2 weeks
RECOMMEDED TOOLS
If you want a richer version of traditional kaya, you will like this:
11 comments
Can I ask why my Kaya taste a bit sour / more pumpkin/ sweet potato flavor instead?
Hi Hana, is there any chance that the pumpkin you used was over ripen or no longer fresh? That “could” be the reason it taste sour.
hi marvellina!! wanted to ask you about your sweet potato kaya recipe – why did you not blend the pandan together with the other ingredients? i tried blending them all together but the end product had a really “smelly” coconutty smell / aftertaste. i’m not sure if it was because i blended the pandan… but i know that many asian recipes also blend pandan leaves with the milk to get a stronger taste and colour.. so i was wondering if you know why? thanks!!
Hi JY, I think what happened was the “heat” from the blending process may “break/separate” the coconut milk, just like how if we hardboil coconut milk, it separates and you will have that very “oily” coconut smell.
hello! what if i blend the pandan with all the ingredients then sieve the mixture? would the pandan taste be stronger? or is this not recommended?
Hi! I’m not sure if the pandan leaves will make the jam bitter or not that way.
Made this today, very easy and simple. Love the aroma once the sugar resolves, house smells of lovely caramelized coconut yummy-ness. Thank you for the recipe. ❤️
I’m so glad you enjoy 🙂
You are a genius! Love it! I am a vegan so this soooo great! I cannot wait to make it!
Hi Lily, I hope it’s up to your standard 🙂