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Boiling the palm juice is done in a big pan until reduced and the colour turns dark red,
sticky like rubber. Lower the heat. Take the pan down from the heat and place it on a ring made
of coconut coir. In the past, a paddle was used to stir till the palm juice turns dry enough to drip
into a pot or a mold. The palm juice of good quality is fragrant sweet, not sticky hard and has
a bit of fatty flavour. After World War 2, the pounding steel or โ€Lek-Kratoongโ€ is used instead of
a paddle.
Before World War 2, earthen pots are used to keep the palm juice. They are known as
โ€Tanonโ€. The government built kiln factories in Samutsongkram for all coconut sugar producers.
The coconut sugar contained in this earthen pot is therefore called : โ€Naamtarn Peepโ€
(palm sugar).
Coconut sugar, nowadays, is made in lumps, placed on plates with banana leaves or thin
white cloth on top. When the coconut sugar lumps are dried,, they can be wrapped in banana
leaves or easily removed from the cloth. It is called, according to its shape, โ€Naantarn Puekโ€
(palm sugar in the form of cakes).
The knowledge of making palm sugar from real palm juice is rarely found in the present
days. Sugar cane is mixed in the production process to lower the costs. Palm sugar production
centre has been set up to relay the knowledge of authentic palm sugar production so that it does
not become extinct. Palm sugar production, in the present days, are found in many provinces:
Samutsongkram, Rajburi, Petchaburi, Nakorn Srithammaraj and Suratthani.
Palm sugar has been registered as Thai Cultural Heritage in 2014.
Reference Books
Chalong Suntharvanich, Bunnathikarn, 2007, Samut-Rajburi 1895. 2nd edition, Bangkok
Thai-Japanese Friendship Association
Veera Thepakorn 2005, Palm Sugar-Sweetness from Thai Knowledge, 3rd edition, Bangkok :
Aksorn Charoentasna Press
98 เธญเธฒเธซเธฒเธฃเนเธ—เธข เธกเธฃเธ”เธเธ เธนเธกเธเธด เธเธฑ เธเธฒเธ—เธฒเธเธงเธ’เธฑ เธเธเธฃเธฃเธก
Thai Food : Thai Cultural Heritage ๆณฐๅผๆ–็-ไผ ็ป้ฅฎ้ฃๆ–ๅ–้—ไบง
