Helapa (හැලප), also written halapa, is a small steamed sweet made from kurakkan, the Sinhala name for finger millet. A soft, dark dough of kurakkan flour is spread on a leaf, filled with grated coconut cooked in kithul treacle, then folded and steamed. The leaf, traditionally kenda (Macaranga peltata), leaves a faint pattern and a gentle fragrance on the finished parcel.
It is a village-style sweet rather than a festival centrepiece: sold by roadside and market vendors, made at home as a tea-time snack, and usually eaten warm with a cup of plain Ceylon tea. The flavour is earthy, lightly malty and only moderately sweet.
How to make helapa
- Makes 10 pieces
- Prep: 30 minutes
- Cook: 20 minutes
- Difficulty: Easy
For the filling
- 100 g freshly grated coconut (about 1 cup)
- 5 tbsp kithul treacle, or 60 g grated kithul jaggery
- 1/4 tsp ground cardamom
- 1 pinch salt
For the dough
- 200 g kurakkan (finger millet) flour
- 1/4 tsp salt
- About 180 ml warm water
- 10 kenda leaves, or 10 pieces of banana leaf about 15 x 20 cm
Method
- Cook the filling. Put the coconut, treacle, cardamom and salt in a pan over a low heat and stir for 4 to 5 minutes, until the treacle is absorbed and the mixture is sticky and just holds together. Leave it to cool.
- Prepare the leaves. Wash and dry the leaves. If using banana leaf, pass each piece briefly over a flame or dip it in hot water to soften it so it folds without splitting.
- Make the dough. Mix the kurakkan flour and salt, then add the warm water a little at a time, mixing with a spoon and then your hand, to make a soft, slightly sticky dough that spreads easily. Add a spoonful more water if it cracks.
- Spread. Take a walnut-sized portion of dough, about 35 g, and press it into a thin oval on one half of a leaf with wet fingers, about 5 mm thick.
- Fill and fold. Put a heaped teaspoon of the coconut filling along the centre of the dough, then fold the leaf over so the dough closes around the filling. Press gently along the edges to seal.
- Steam. Stand or lay the parcels in a steamer over boiling water, cover and steam over a medium-high heat for 15 to 20 minutes, until the dough is firm and no longer sticky when you open one.
- Serve. Let them rest for a few minutes, then serve warm in the leaf, to be unwrapped at the table.
Is there another way to make helapa?
Yes. Many cooks do not use a separate filling at all. Instead, they cook the grated coconut with treacle or sugar syrup, stir the kurakkan flour straight into the warm mixture, and press the sweetened dough flat inside the leaf. Some add a proportion of wheat flour for a softer, lighter piece. Large batches for sale are packed upright in a big steamer and cooked for much longer, up to about 1 1/2 hours, because the heat takes time to reach the centre of the stack.
What is kenda leaf, and what can you use instead?
Kenda is the Sinhala name for Macaranga peltata, a small tree found in Sri Lanka, India and Thailand, whose large, rounded leaves are also used to wrap jaggery and other sweetmeats. They are hard to find outside South and Southeast Asia, so banana leaf is the usual substitute and works well. At a pinch, baking paper or foil holds the shape, although the parcel loses the leaf's aroma and pattern.
Why is my helapa dough dry or cracked?
Kurakkan flour has no gluten, so the dough relies on moisture to hold together. It should feel a little wet and tacky, more like a thick paste than a bread dough. If it cracks when you spread it, work in more warm water a spoonful at a time and wet your fingers while pressing it onto the leaf.
How is helapa different from other Sri Lankan sweets?
Most traditional sweets on the New Year table, such as kavum and kokis, are made from rice flour and deep-fried. Helapa is steamed rather than fried and is built on kurakkan flour, which gives its dark reddish-brown colour and nutty taste. Kurakkan is also used in savoury dishes, such as kurakkan dosa.
How long does helapa keep?
Helapa is best eaten on the day it is made, warm or at room temperature. Kept in their leaves in a covered container in the fridge, they last for a day or two; steam them again for 5 minutes to soften before serving.
