Have you ever had ais kacang or other Asian iced desserts and wondered what the large translucent ovals were?
They are actually palm seeds also known as attap seeds.
They are the immature fruits of the nipa palm "or mangrove palm", which grow in soft mud and slow-moving tidal and river waters.
The nipa palm's trunk grows beneath the ground and only the leaves and flower stalk grow upwards above the surface. 
wikipedia.org
It is considered native to China, Myanmar, Cambodia, Thailand, Vietnam, Malaya, the Philippines, Queensland, and the Australian Northern Territory.
The flowers are a globular inflorescence of female flowers at the tip with catkin-like red or yellow male flowers on the lower branches.
The flower produces woody nuts arranged in a globular cluster on a single stalk. The ripe nuts separate from the ball float away on the tide. The flower cluster can be "tapped" to yield a sweet, edible sap that is collected to produce local alcoholic beverages called tuba, bahal, or tuak. A fruit cluster is ready to be tapped when the unripe fruits are at their peak sweetness. The Attap seeds (or also known as Attap chee) are collected as a byproduct of the sap harvesting process. 
The seeds themselves are sweet, translucent, gelatinous balls and commonly used as a dessert ingredient in Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Singapore
When cooled and served in syrup, they make an excellent dessert in their own right!
Check out our other posts!
What is Banh Hoi? Pad Thai History and Origin The History and Origins of Banh Mi Sriraja Panich: The Original Sriracha Sauce What is Seasoning Sauce? What is rice paper? | Banh Trang | Goi Cuon Kao Chae – a refreshing, traditional Thai snack for the hottest month in Thailand Toasted Rice Powder Recipe | Khao Khua | ข้าวคั่ว
References:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nypa_fruticans https://lifes-indulgences.blogspot.com/2009/08/where-does-attap-chee-come-from.html http://www.wildsingapore.com/wildfacts/plants/mangrove/nypa/nypa.htm https://www.flickr.com/photos/leonghong/24610826911 http://www.naturia.per.sg/buloh/plants/palm_nipah.htm http://chasingjamesbeard.com/canned-palms-seeds-in-syrup/
2 Comments
George
10/11/2020 04:53:00 pm
Was trying to figure out the difference between toddy palm seeds and attap palm seeds for about 10mins in my local Asian grocery store and this blog really helped me out! Unfortunately, I can't read Thai, and both seeds look very similar on the can, so I felt very silly when I realized they're just from two different palm tree species 10/11/2020 11:24:31 pm
Thanks George! We're so happy that our blog helped you out! We're all learning and glad that we can help demystify a few things in the Asian Grocery! Your comment will be posted after it is approved.
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