Kokis ( si, කොකිස්) is a deep-fried, crispy

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

n food made from rice flour and

coconut The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family ( Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, the seed, or the ...

milk. Although considered as a traditional Sri Lankan dish, it is believed to have come from the

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

. This is an important dish when celebrating Sinhala New Year and plays a major role in the festivities.

Etymology and history

Although kokis is considered as a traditional Sri Lankan dish, it is believed to be of Dutch origin, from the time when parts of the country were under Dutch rule during the

Kandyan period The Kandyan period covers the history of Sri Lanka from 1597–1815. After the fall of the Kingdom of Kotte, the Kandyan Kingdom was the last Independent monarchy of Sri Lanka. The Kingdom played a major role throughout the history of Sri Lanka. ...

. Its name may have been derived from the word '' koekjes'', meaning

cookies A cookie is a baked or cooked snack or dessert that is typically small, flat and sweet. It usually contains flour, sugar, egg, and some type of oil, fat, or butter. It may include other ingredients such as raisins, oats, chocolate chips, nuts ...

biscuits A biscuit is a flour-based baked and shaped food product. In most countries biscuits are typically hard, flat, and unleavened. They are usually sweet and may be made with sugar, chocolate, icing, jam, ginger, or cinnamon. They can also b ...

in the

Dutch language Dutch ( ) is a West Germanic language spoken by about 25 million people as a first language and 5 million as a second language. It is the third most widely spoken Germanic language The Germanic languages are a branch of the Indo-Europea ...

. The Swedish rosette and the Persian Nan panjereh would be the most similar dishes to the Sri Lankan kokis. The Indian biscuit,

Nankhatai Nankhatai ( bn, নানখাতাই, Hindustani: नानख़टाई (Devanagari) / (Urdu)) are shortbread biscuits originating from the Indian subcontinent, popular in Northern India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Myanmar (formerly Burma ...

, also bears some similarities with kokis. An almost identical snack,

Achappam Achappam ('achu' meaning mould and 'appam' meaning food made with flour) is a deep fried rose cookie made with rice flour. It is a signature Saint Thomas Christians, Syrian Christian food believed to come from Dutch influence. In Kerala, it is an ...

, exists among Christian community in the south west Indian state of

Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...

Significance during the Sinhala new year

Sinhalese people Sinhalese people ( si, සිංහල ජනතාව, Sinhala Janathāva) are an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group native to the island of Sri Lanka. They were historically known as Hela people ( si, හෙළ). They constitute about 75% of t ...

prepare and consume a number of traditional dishes, including kokis, to celebrate their

new year New Year is the time or day currently at which a new calendar year begins and the calendar's year count increments by one. Many cultures celebrate the event in some manner. In the Gregorian calendar, the most widely used calendar system to ...

in mid-April. These are traditionally prepared by the women of the household, usually a few days before the new year. Nowadays however, they are made mostly by older women, as many people of the younger generation lack the time or the skill and knowledge required to make them due to their busy lifestyles.

Description

A special

mold A mold () or mould () is one of the structures certain fungus, fungi can form. The dust-like, colored appearance of molds is due to the formation of Spore#Fungi, spores containing Secondary metabolite#Fungal secondary metabolites, fungal seco ...

of decorative shape such as a flower is used to make kokis. This is called a ''kokis achchuwa'' ( si, කොකිස් අච්චුව). It is also called Rosette cookies in English. This mold is coated in a thick batter made from

rice flour Rice flour (also rice powder) is a form of flour made from finely milled rice. It is distinct from rice starch, which is usually produced by steeping rice in lye. Rice flour is a common substitute for wheat flour. It is also used as a thickening a ...

coconut milk Coconut milk is an opaque, milky-white liquid extracted from the grated pulp of mature coconuts. The opacity and rich taste of coconut milk are due to its high oil content, most of which is saturated fat. Coconut milk is a traditional food i ...

and beaten eggs. Sugar and salt may be added to the mixture as well. The batter-covered mold is dipped in boiling coconut oil, and the kokis is shaken off the mold and into the oil when it is half cooked and allowed to deep fry until ready. The cooked dish is crispy, and may be served hot or after cooling down. The oil is usually drained on paper before serving. It may also be prepared using

wheat flour Wheat flour is a powder made from the grinding of wheat used for human consumption. Wheat varieties are called "soft" or "weak" if gluten content is low, and are called "hard" or "strong" if they have high gluten content. Hard flour, or ''bread ...

, as an alternative to the traditional rice flour. Kokis may be consumed as a

dessert Dessert is a course (food), course that concludes a meal. The course consists of sweet foods, such as confections, and possibly a beverage such as dessert wine and liqueur. In some parts of the world, such as much of Greece and West Africa, and ...

, and also as an

appetizer An hors d'oeuvre ( ; french: hors-d'œuvre ), appetiser or starter is a small dish served before a meal in European cuisine. Some hors d'oeuvres are served cold, others hot. Hors d'oeuvres may be served at the dinner table as a part of the ...

snack A snack is a small portion of food generally eaten between meals. Snacks come in a variety of forms including packaged snack foods and other processed foods, as well as items made from fresh ingredients at home. Traditionally, snacks are p ...

. It is also commonly served with

kiribath Kiribath ( si, කිරිබත්) is a traditional Sri Lankan dish made from rice. It is prepared by cooking rice with coconut milk, hence this name, and can be considered a form of rice cake or rice pudding. Kiribath is an essential dish i ...

and other traditional sweets, which are collectively referred to as sweetmeats or ''rasa kavili'' ( si, රස කැවිලි), particularly at new year celebrations and other auspicious occasions.

Health effects

Like most of the traditional Sri Lankan sweetmeats, kokis is a food that has a high energy-density. As an oily and fatty food, there is a risk of it causing heart diseases and narrowing of blood vessels.

References

External links