[Free Pattern] Kueh Keria Amigurumi Crochet Pattern (Malay Doughnuts)・钩针编织甜薯圈(马来甜薯圈)

Following from the kueh talam amigurumi is a local kueh amigurumi that celebrates a snack that exists in almost all food cultures in various forms....... DOUGHNUTS!

More precisely, the kueh keria (or kuih keria). This Malay doughnut amigurumi is the next in this local kueh amigurumi project series. For the kueh keria amigurumi, I did not create the pattern for the whole kueh keria amigurumi, but made the pattern for the half-eaten kueh keria (below). The whole ones were made using the free crochet doughnut pattern by Veronica Lönnqvist of Garnknuten (also on Ravelry). Please do check out her wonderful website for more of her amazing crochet designs! I also made 2 kinds, to emulate the sugar-glazed keria and the keria gula melaka (i.e. gula melaka glazed).

First, let's set one thing straight: kueh keria are not Nonya kueh but are traditional Malay kuih muih. A traditional Malay snack, kueh keria are sweet potato doughnuts (actually...more like mini doughnuts). They are also known as kuih gelang or kuih tayar, literally "bracelet cake" and "tyre cake" respectively... pretty self-explanatory, given the ring shape. That said, I don't know the origins of its "keria" name but it is Malay for "cheerful". Read on for more or skip to the pattern.

Kueh keria amigurumi, local kueh amigurumi project (IG post).

Unlike the more well known American-style doughnuts, kueh keria are not made from leavened dough. They are made by first steaming sweet potatoes, which are then mashed and combined with just enough flour to form a soft dough. The dough is shaped into rings, deep fried and then glazed in sugar or gula melaka. Yup, gula melaka is our region's local sugar of choice. Like, do I need to say? Glazing the keria is an art in itself, and is about consistency, temperature and timing. As the dough is unleavened and is made using mashed sweet potato, kueh keria is slightly denser than doughnuts made from leavened dough, but are soft and creamy. This texture combined with the texture of the sugar or gula melaka glaze, alongside the balance of smoky, slightly bitter, toffee or caramel-like flavours, is a mouthful of heaven.

Compared to other kueh or kuih, kueh keria is not as widely known or available here in Singapore. But it is widely available in Malaysia, especially Malacca, where it is a popular street snack, and is commonly sold in roadside Malay kuih or snack stalls, or any pasar. It is a particularly iconic favourite of Malacca. In Malaysia, it is a particularly popular snack in the morning and afternoon tea-time, and during Ramadan. It's definitely one of the (many) must-eats in Malaysia.

It is said that kueh keria dates back to the Malacca Sultanate in the 15th century, when it was created by palace chefs for royalty. These secretly held kueh keria recipes became commonly available to the general public when these palace chefs passed them down to their descendants. Since then, kueh keria has claimed a place in the cultures and cuisines of Southeast Asia.

Here's a little piece of trivia: we have a small road named after it here, a Jalan Keria in Bukit Timah (maps). That made me curious about whether we have any other roads named after traditional kueh, after all we have some named after local fruits....

KUEH KERIA AMIGURUMI CROCHET PATTERN

Materials & Tools:

• Yarn in tan, golden brown, light orange
I used Scheepjes Catona No.179 Topaz, No.383 Ginger Gold and No.411 Sweet Orange.
• 2.5mm crochet hook
• Stuffing
• Stitch markers
• Scissors
• Yarn needle
• Embellishments (optional): clear/white seed beads, or white yarn or embroidery thread for a child-friendly alternative
I used Toho round seed beads size 12/0 in opaque white and clear, Gütermann Natural Cotton C Ne 50 Col.1136, and Clover Size 10 Sharps from my sewing stash.

Abbreviations (US terms):
R : round / row
MR : magic ring
ch : chain
sl st : slip stitch
st(s) : stitch(es)
sc : single crochet
inc : increase
dec : decrease / invisible decrease
(...) : a set of pattern instructions
[...] : total number of sts in the round/row

Finished Size (Approx.):
Whole : 5.7cm - 6cm across (diameter)
Half-eaten : 7cm at longest, 4.5cm at highest, 2.5cm - 2.7cm wide

Pattern Notes:
• I found closing and stuffing the whole doughnut amigurumi is not as easy as crocheting it. Be forewarned.
• For this amigurumi, I used the invisible fasten off/join. On how to make the invisible join, see these tutorials by The Stitch Story or One Dog Woof.

WHOLE DOUGHNUT

I did not create the pattern for the whole doughnut. My whole kueh keria amigurumi was made using this crochet doughnut pattern by Veronica Lönnqvist of Garnknuten (also on Ravelry), but with a 2.5mm crochet hook and single-coloured yarn. Since I used a 2.5mm hook, they're smaller than in Garnknuten's doughnuts.

For the keria gula melaka amigurumi, I used Scheepjes Catona No.383 Ginger Gold but left it plain. The sugar-glazed kueh keria amigurumi was made with Scheepjes Catona No.179 Topaz, and heavily embellished with opaque white and clear Toho size 12/0 round seed beads.

Kueh keria amigurumi, sugar-glazed and gula melaka glazed, local kueh amigurumi project (IG post).

To embellish the work, I stitched the white and clear seed beads randomly around the top half of the amigurumi so that it looked like it was covered with sugar. A child-friendly alternative (plus it's less work!) would be to either embroider it with white yarn or embroidery thread, or to make it with white-blended yarn like in the original pattern by Garnknuten.

I think that I went overboard with the embellishments...but the more beads I stitched on, the more addictive I found the process. And the next thing I knew, I'd covered over half the surface with loads of beads (wip post).

Sugar-glazed kueh keria amigurumi...heavily embellished with Toho round seed beads (IG post & wip post).

HALF-EATEN DOUGHNUT

To showcase the difference between the kueh keria and the more common doughnut, I made this so-called "half-eaten" version, to show the "crumb". I used a light orange yarn for the "crumb" to highlight the main ingredient (sweet potato) used in making kueh keria. At the end of this attempt, it gave me quite the craving for the real thing!

Orange "crumb" for this gula melaka glazed piece...because kueh keria is made with sweet potatoes! (IG post)

PART 1 - CRUST

Using tan brown / golden brown yarn, work in rows,
R1. Ch 11, then work in the back bumps of the ch starting in 2nd ch from hook, 10 sc. [10]
R2-3 (2 rows). Ch 1 and turn, 10 sc. [10]
R4. Ch 1 and turn, (inc, 2 sc) 3 times, inc. [14]
R5. Ch 1 and turn, (3 sc, inc) 3 times, 1 sc, inc. [18]
R6. Ch 1 and turn, (inc, 4 sc) 3 times, 2 sc, inc. [22]
R7. Ch 1 and turn, (5 sc, inc) 3 times, 3 sc, inc. [26]
R8. Ch 1 and turn, (inc, 6 sc) 3 times, 4 sc, inc. [30]
R9-14 (6 rows). Ch 1 and turn, 30 sc. [30]
R15. Ch 1 and turn, (dec, 6 sc) 3 times, 2 sc, dec, 2 sc. [26]
R16. Ch 1 and turn, (5 sc, dec) 3 times, 2 sc, dec, 1 sc. [22]
R17. Ch 1 and turn, (dec, 4 sc) 3 times, 1 sc, dec, 1 sc. [18]
R18. Ch 1 and turn, (3 sc, dec) 3 times, 1 sc, dec. [14]
R19. Ch 1 and turn, (dec, 2 sc) 3 times, dec. [10]
R20-22 (3 rows). Ch 1 and turn, 10 sc. [10]
Fasten off, and leave a tail for sewing.
Using the yarn tail and the yarn needle, join R1 and R22 together by whip stitching through both loops. Secure and hide the end. Part 1 will now look like an oversized elbow macaroni.
Next, at each open end of Part 1, re-attach the yarn to the first st of R22 and work 22 sc over the turning chs.
Fasten off, and leave a tail for sewing.

PART 2 - CRUMB

Make 2.
Using orange yarn, work in a continuous spiral,
R1. MR, 6 sc. [6]
R2. 6 inc. [12]
R3. 1 sc, 5 inc, 2 sc, 4 inc, 1 sc. [22]
Invisible fasten off and weave in end.

TO COMPLETE

1. If desired, embellish the top half of Part 1 with white and/or clear seed beads scattered randomly around the top of the doughnut so that it looks like it is dusted with sugar. For a child-friendly alternative, use white yarn or embroidery floss.

2. At one end of Part 1, attach one piece of Part 2. Using the yarn tail and a yarn needle, whip stitch through the back loop of Part 2 and both loops of Part 1. Secure and hide ends.

3. Stuff the work well.

4. On the other end of Part 1, attach the 2nd piece of Part 2 in the same way as Step 2 above. Secure and hide ends.

Snackin' in bed - kueh keria amigurumi, sugar-dusted and gula melaka coated. YUM! (IG post)

* * *

For the doughnut pattern by Garnknuten, please credit Garnknuten if you use her pattern and respect her intellectual property rights. If you wish to share the original pattern, please link to the original post by Veronica Lönnqvist of Garnknuten and credit her.

As for my half-eaten doughnut pattern, I would love to see all your makes of it, so please tag me on my Instagram handle @yotsuba_blythes. If you wish to share my kueh keria pattern, please link to this post and my Instagram profile @yotsuba_blythes. Unless otherwise stated, the pattern and images herein are not for commercial use, sale or distribution without the express written consent of their respective owners.

(This post was updated on 12 January 2022, and edited on 16 August 2022.)