Watalappan in Toronto

Sri Lankan steamed coconut-jaggery custard with cardamom and nutmeg. Rich, smooth and caramel-like.

Watalappan is the Sri Lankan dessert everyone saves room for. It is a steamed custard made from coconut milk and jaggery (unrefined palm sugar), set with egg and spiced with cardamom and nutmeg. The jaggery gives it a deep caramel colour and a flavour closer to toffee than to plain sugar.

Why ours tastes the way it should

The jaggery is what matters. We use real palm jaggery, not brown sugar, and steam the custard slowly so it sets smooth and silky instead of grainy. A little cardamom and nutmeg, sometimes a few cashews on top, and that is it.

Order it for the weekend

Watalappan is made in batches on weekends and is a favourite to add to a catering order or take home for the family. Pickup or Uber Eats delivery in range.

How to get it

Add watalappan to any weekend order while it lasts. We are a weekend kitchen, so pickup is from our Scarborough location on Saturday and Sunday, 12 to 5. If you are inside our Uber Eats delivery range, we can also drop it at your door.

• Call or text (647) 449-2924 to set up weekend pickup.
• Feeding a group? Ask about halal catering in Scarborough.

More from our kitchen

• Sri Lankan rice and curry
• Halal catering in Scarborough

Serving watalappan

Watalappan is best slightly chilled or at room temperature, never hot. For events, several of our combos already include kithul watalappan: the Mutton Biryani Combo and most ghee rice combos. For a single order, our Vattalappam is $15.

Allergy notes

Some of our dishes contain egg (kottu, egg masala, watalappan), dairy (yogurt sambal), fish (maasi sambal is made with dried Maldives fish) and nuts (green pea cashew curry). If anyone has an allergy, tell us when you order and we will tell you what to avoid.

What kithul jaggery is

Our Vattalappam is made with kithul jaggery, which comes from the sap of the kithul palm, a fishtail palm that grows in Sri Lanka. The sap is boiled down into a dark, soft block. It tastes deeper and slightly smoky compared with cane sugar, and that flavour is what people remember in a good watalappan.

One dessert, many spellings

Watalappan, vattalappam, wattalappam and ktull wattalapam on our combo lists all mean the same dessert. It is commonly linked to Sri Lanka's Muslim and Malay communities, and it is a fixture at Eid tables and weddings across the island.

Taking it home and storing it

• Carry it flat and keep the lid on, because the custard is soft.
• Refrigerate it as soon as you get home. It contains eggs and coconut milk.
• Eat it within two to three days for the best texture.
• Take it out of the fridge a little before serving if you prefer it less cold.

Small holes or smooth?

Some watalappan has small honeycomb holes through it, some is completely smooth. Holes form when the custard steams quickly. Families argue about which is better; both are traditional.

Allergies

Watalappan contains eggs. It is sometimes finished with cashews, so tell us about nut allergies when you order.

Order with our order direct page, or call (647) 449-2924 to add it to a catering order. See vegetarian Sri Lankan dishes.