A post for all my vegan and health-conscious friends out there --this healthier vegan pandan kaya recipe is an absolute game-changer! It makes me so excited to be able to share this with you. Made using less sugar and no egg, no gluten and no dairy, it's a perfect recipe for everyone and tastes even better than the real thing, like how is that even possible? In this recipe, we use tofu to add that characteristic creaminess and richness we all love in a good kaya, so now your favourite breakfast spread doubles up as a great source of plant-based protein, so what's there not to love! Haha if you can't tell, I'm in love with it already, but give it a try, and I'm sure you will fall in love with it too.
Many thanks to my neighbour who inspired me to find a no-egg no-dairy kaya recipe with the same intense pandan coconut fragrance as in my three layered kueh salat (see my other post for more details)!
Recipe has been adapted from morethanveggies; and makes about 900g of vegan pandan kaya.
Ingredients:
600g firm tofu
200ml freshly squeezed pandan juice (or 100ml pandan extract from 200g pandan leaves --see my post on how to obtain pandan extract)
300ml fresh thick coconut milk
200g castor sugar
a pinch of salt to taste (about 1/2 tsp)
3 tbsp gula melaka (optional)
3 tbsp coconut oil (optional)
3-6 pandan leaves, knotted
*if you cannot find firm tofu, silken tofu also works, however due to its higher water content, the cooking time will be longer and you may also want to further reduce the amount of sugar added. Total kaya yield will be about 800g instead.
Method:
Press firm tofu between kitchen towels and squeeze out as much liquid as possible. (You want as little liquid as possible to minimise cooking time.)
In a blender/food processor, add all of your ingredients except the knotted pandan leaves and blend till ultra-smooth. This may take 2-3 minutes depending on your blender. At this stage, the mixture should be a creamy pale green, kind of like an avocado smoothie! Taste and adjust the sweetness if necessary. It will taste rather light, and that's okay, we are going to cook down that mixture and concentrate the flavour more in a bit!
Transfer into a large non-stick wok and add pandan leaves. Remember maximum surface area = faster cooking! (;
Cook your kaya over medium heat, stirring continuously using a hand whisk. Alternatively, you can use a water bath and scrape down the sides occasionally as seen in the original video, but it does take longer, so I prefer using direct flame and doing a bit more arm work. Either way, remember to scrape down at the sides to prevent lumps of kaya from forming.
Cook till thickened, about 45 minutes to an hour. It should have reduced in volume to about half of the original volume at this stage, but still be wetter than spreadable consistency. Remember that it'll firm up when it cools so it's all good to have it a bit on the wetter side. Cook for longer if you want an even thicker consistency or if you are okay with a thinner consistency, you can just stop cooking your kaya a bit earlier than this.
Remove pandan leaves from the pot and pour the kaya into clean jars for storage. Transfer to the fridge and leave to cool for at least an hour or so. Your kaya should have thickened to a nice spreadable consistency by then and is now ready to be enjoyed.
And that's it, homemade healthier vegan pandan kaya coming right up!
P.S. I've reduced the sugar by half that of the original recipe, coupled with the fact that there are zero preservatives and this kaya contains coconut milk, your homemade vegan kaya won't keep for as long as those that are commercially made. Try to finish it within a week --but hopefully it'll all be in your tummies by then haha xp
Drop me a note if you try the recipe and let me know how it went :)
Carina xx
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