Coconut jam

Coconut jam

A jar of coconut jam sold in the Philippines.
Alternative names	Srikaya, kaya
Type	Spread
Place of origin	Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines
Main ingredients	Coconut, sugar, eggs

Coconut jam (Malay: kaya; Indonesian: seri kaya, srikaya; Tagalog: matamís sa báo, matamís na báo, or kalamay-hatì; Hokkien: 咖吔 ka-ia) is a food spread or fruit curd made from a base of coconut milk, eggs and sugar. It is wildly popular in Southeast Asia, mainly in the Philippines, Malaysia, and Singapore, and in Palembang in Indonesia.

The word for coconut jam in the Malay language, kaya, means rich, referencing the texture of the popular food. It could possibly be an adaptation of the Indian word 'khoya' or 'kova', which is an Indian milk custard used as a base for sweet desserts, as in ancient times the Southern Indians traded extensively with the Malay archipelago peoples, thus contributing a fair amount to the cuisine, faith and language of the Malays. The kaya has a custard-like texture like khoya.

To the Malaysians, Indonesians and Singaporeans, kaya, also called srikaya (coconut egg jam), is a sweet creamy coconut spread made from coconut milk (also known as santan) and duck or chicken eggs (which are flavored with pandan leaf and sweetened with sugar). The colour varies depending on the colour of the egg yolks, the amount of pandan, and the extent of the caramelisation of the sugar. As a popular local spread, kaya is typically spread on toast to make kaya toast and eaten in the morning, but is also enjoyed throughout the day. Kaya can be found in most kopitiam and night markets.