For the love of all things sticky, sweet and sinfully irresistible, Malaysia’s smoky, caramel-edged gula Melaka ranks high on our list of desserts worth skipping gym time for. Before the Europeans introduced cane sugar to our part of the world, we relied heavily on palm sugar.
Depending on the quality of the palm, and how it is pressed, different varieties of gula Melaka may exude different flavour profiles. Sourness, smoke, caramel, butterscotch, coffee, or even a combination of those flavours. A complex sweetener with a myriad of nuanced flavours, we just love it in everything.
Here are 15 places in Singapore where you can find gula Melaka desserts worthy enough to make you want to skip gym day.