Green rice-flour jellies in iced coconut milk sweetened with dark palm sugar syrup.

Where does Es Cendol come from?

Es Cendol is a Indonesian dish from Yogyakarta (Java), Indonesia.

Can Es Cendol be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?

Yes. This Es Cendol recipe includes ingredient substitutions to make it vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, or egg-free — including several of those at once, such as gluten-free and dairy-free together.

How long does Es Cendol take to make?

About 35 minutes total (20 minutes prep, 15 minutes cooking), serving 4.

Es Cendol — a Yogyakarta (Java), Indonesia recipe

Name: Es Cendol
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 35 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Indonesian
Ingredients: 3/4 cup rice flour; 2 tbsp a little tapioca starch; 1 tsp pandan extract (or juice); 2 cups coconut milk; 3/4 cup palm sugar (gula melaka); to serve shaved or crushed ice

Asia → 🇮🇩 Indonesia → Yogyakarta (Java)

Es Cendol

Indonesian · medium · serves 4

prep 20 min · cook 15 min

~515 cal · 4g protein · 65g carbs · 29g fat (estimated, per serving)

🍽️

Green jellies in coconut milk with palm sugar and ice

🇮🇩 Yogyakarta (Java)

Es cendol is a beloved Indonesian icy treat, worm-like green jellies of pandan-scented rice flour swimming in coconut milk and sweetened with gula melaka (palm sugar). Ladled over shaved ice from street carts, it is half drink, half dessert, and wholly refreshing in the tropical heat.

Sign in to save recipes to your book and leave reviews.

Make it yours

Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.

🥕 Vegetarian

🌱 Vegan

🌾 Gluten-Free

🥛 Dairy-Free

🥜 Nut-Free

🥚 Egg-Free

Ingredients

Serves 4 —

•

3/4 cup rice flour

•

2 tbsp a little tapioca starch

•

1 tsp pandan extract (or juice)

•

2 cups coconut milk

•

3/4 cup palm sugar (gula melaka)

•

to serve shaved or crushed ice

Instructions

1

Cook the rice flour, tapioca, pandan, and water into a thick green paste.

2

Press the hot paste through a cendol mould (or colander) into iced water to set the jellies.

3

Melt the palm sugar with a splash of water into a dark syrup and cool.

4

Lightly salt the coconut milk.

5

Layer jellies, ice, coconut milk, and palm syrup in glasses and stir to drink.

Yogyakarta street tradition.

Ratings & reviews

Sign in to rate this recipe once you’ve cooked it.

No reviews yet — be the first to cook it.

🌏 While it simmers — know your destination

📍

Yogyakarta (Java). Java’s royal city, where fried rice is a midnight ritual.

🗺️

Indonesia. Seventeen thousand islands, each with its own sambal.

🌍

Asia. From street-cart woks to slow monastery kitchens.

The story behind this dish is up top — worth a read while the pot works.

👩‍🍳

Richard Moore & Kelsey Tucker

Recipes cooked, tested, and researched by the creators of Spin the Globe. How we build our recipes →