Sweet potato balls are a simple and delicious Malaysian dessert with only three ingredients. It is a traditional Malaysian Chinese street food sold in night markets and street food stores. 

These balls have a crispy exterior and a soft and chewy interior, providing a delightful contrast in texture that makes them a favorite among the locals. They are easy to make with minimal skill.

This article will provide a detailed guide on preparing sweet potato balls. While the recipe is pretty straightforward, two points are critical to ensure success: the correct amount of tapioca starch and the proper frying temperature.

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How to make sweet potato balls

You only need sweet potatoes, sugar, tapioca starch, and a pinch of salt (optional) to prepare sweet potato balls. I use yellow and purple sweet potatoes in this recipe, which look colorful and appealing when served together.

1. Steam the sweet potatoes

1. Peel the sweet potatoes and slice them thinly. Then, steam the sweet potato slices in a steamer for 15 to 20 minutes until soft and cooked.  The exact time required depends on the thickness of the slices. To check if they’re done, press on them with the tines of a fork. If they can be mashed easily, then they’re cooked.
2. Remove the sweet potatoes from the steamer and transfer them to a large mixing bowl. Mash the sweet potatoes until smooth.
3. Next, add the sugar and salt when the mashed sweet potato is still hot. The heat from the hot sweet potato slices will help dissolve the sugar and salt.

2. Add the tapioca starch

After mixing well, add the tapioca starch. The amount of tapioca starch required varies depending on the weight of the sweet potatoes. The amount will generally be half the sweet potatoes’ weight or less. For example, if you use 200g of sweet potatoes, the quantity of tapioca starch required will be 100g or less. However, I did not use all the sweet potato starch to form the dough.

Why? The quantity of tapioca starch will depend on the water content of the sweet potatoes. Some sweet potatoes are drier and require less tapioca starch to form the dough. It also depends on the way you steam the sweet potatoes. If you steam them in a bowl, the bowl will contain some water condensed during the steaming process, giving the sweet potatoes a higher water content. If you place sweet potatoes in a steamer with holes at the bottom, then the sweet potatoes are relatively drier.

Hence, to prepare a dough using 200 grams of sweet potatoes, I eventually only need about 50 grams of tapioca starch until the dough is non-sticky and does not break while rolling it out. The texture of the dough should be soft and pliable, similar to that of plasticine.

3. Divide the dough into small portions

After preparing the dough, roll it into a rod shape and then portion it into 10g pieces. I use a digital weighing machine to measure it for accuracy. Making each sweet potato ball the same size ensures it will cook evenly when deep-fried.

4. Deep-fry the sweet potato balls

1. Heat enough oil in a wok to submerge all the balls. Keep the oil temperature at 120°C/250°F and deep-fry the balls at low temperatures until they expand and float to the top of the oil.
2. Initially, it is best to use a chopstick to stir the balls constantly to prevent them from sticking together. If you use a ladle to stir, you might break the balls and cause them to stick to the ladle.
3. After two minutes of frying the sweet potato balls over low heat, they will expand and float to the top. At this stage, press down the balls lightly with a ladle or use the bottom of a slotted pan to submerge them in the oil as much as possible. Continuously stir and press the balls until they turn to light golden. Then, remove them from the oil.
4. Next, turn up the heat and increase it to about 170°C/340°F. Return the sweet potato balls to the hot oil and deep-fry them over high heat for about a minute or until golden brown. This method will help to crisp up the surface and make it very crispy, while the inside of the balls will remain chewy.
5. Once done, place the sweet potato balls on a paper towel to remove the excess oil. 
6. Most street vendors serve the sweet potato balls as they are, which most customers prefer. However, you can arrange them nicely on a plate and sprinkle some icing sugar to decorate them if you make them at home. Another option is to drizzle some melted chocolate or honey on top to serve.

Note: It’s worth noting that Taiwanese sweet potato balls are similar to the Malaysian version. The Malaysian version is deep-fried in oil, similar to another dessert called sesame ball (Jian Dui).

Other related Chinese desserts

If you enjoyed the sweet potato balls recipe, I have some more Chinese dessert recipes that you might like:

• Jian Dui, known as sesame balls, are made using glutinous rice flour and white sesame seeds. They are deep-fried in a similar way to sweet potato balls.
• If you want another authentic Chinese dessert, try the salted egg pastry. It’s a popular tea break item and is also served in dim sum restaurants.