Kevum facts for kids
Konda Kavum
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| Type | Sweet |
|---|---|
| Course | Dessert |
| Place of origin | Sri Lanka |
| Main ingredients | Rice flour, Treacle |
Kevum or Kavum is a super tasty deep-fried sweet from Sri Lanka. It's sometimes called an oil cake. This special treat is made from rice flour and a sweet syrup called treacle. The treacle comes from the kithul (sugar-palm) tree. People in Sri Lanka traditionally enjoy Kevum during big celebrations like the Sinhala and Tamil New Year.
A Sweet History
Kevum has been a part of Sri Lankan culture for a very long time! This sweet is even mentioned in old Sri Lankan books. Some of these ancient texts include the Ummagga Jatakaya, Saddharma Ratnawaliya, and Pujawaliya. This shows how important Kevum has been through history.
Different Kinds of Kevum
Did you know there are many types of Kevum? An old Sinhala book called the Dhathuwansaya talks about 18 different kinds! Each one has its own special twist. Here are some popular ones:
- Konda Kevum (Sinhala: කොණ්ඩ කැවුම්) - This is the most common type. It has a dark reddish color. The dough is made from rice flour and kithul treacle, with a little salt and cardamom for flavor. Konda means "hair" in Sinhala. This Kevum gets its name because its shape looks like hair tied up in a bun. It's shaped by hand, without any special mold.
- Naran Kevum (Sinhala: නාරං කැවුම්) - This Kevum is shaped like a small orange, or mandarin, and is colored yellow with saffron. To the basic mix of rice flour and treacle, people add green gram flour and shredded coconut.
- Thala Kevum (Sinhala: තල කැවුම්) - This type of Kevum has sesame seeds mixed right into the dough. This gives it a unique texture and nutty flavor.
- Undu Kevum (Sinhala: උඳු කැවුම්) - This Kevum gets its special taste from urad dal. Urad dal is a type of lentil that adds a distinct flavor to the sweet.
- Mun Kevum (Sinhala: මුං කැවුම්) - This Kevum is made with green gram flour and saffron, giving it a yellow color. These Kevum are often cut into a cool diamond shape.
