Authentic Ube Halaya Recipe (Filipino Purple Yam Jam)

If you’ve never tried ube halaya before, think of it as a rich Filipino purple yam jam with a smooth, creamy texture and a naturally vibrant purple color. It can be enjoyed on its own, spread on bread, or used as a filling for many Filipino desserts. This homemade version uses simple ingredients and delivers the authentic flavor I love.

Ube Halaya (Halayang Ube) is a classic Filipino purple yam spread made by cooking mashed ube with sugar and butter until thick, smooth, and irresistibly creamy. The result is a rich, nutty, slightly earthy spread with a naturally vibrant purple color.

One of the best things about ube halaya is how easy it is to make and how versatile it can be. Keep it in the fridge and use it as a filling for pastries, spread it on toast for a quick treat, or turn it into a variety of ube desserts. From pancakes and cookies to creamy frozen treats, ube halaya is a simple base that works in many ways.

How to Use Ube Halaya

Ube halaya is incredibly versatile and can be used as a base or filling for many desserts. Here are some of the most popular ways to use it:

Baked desserts – Ube Crinkle Cookies, Ube Mochi Pancakes

Frozen treats – Ube Ice Cream

Pastry fillings – Salted Egg Yolk Pastry, Pumpkin Buns, Snow Skin Mooncakes, Dorayaki (as an alternative to red bean filling)

Recipe Ingredients

Ingredient Notes

Purple Sweet Potato – pick the ones that have purple bright color skin. Wash and peel the skin before steaming. Or you can steam it with the skin attached and peel it after.

Palm sugar – The coconut and nutty smell of palm sugar pairs well with purple sweet potato. You can also use coconut sugar if you don’t have palm sugar.

Condensed Milk – You can use store-bought condensed milk or make homemade condensed milk with real milk.

Evaporated Milk – I use evaporated milk because it has lower water content. This makes the ube halaya easier to process. You will not need as much time needed in cooking it with milk.

Butter – Use unsalted butter if you already put salt. If you only have salted butter, omit the salt.

Substitutions & Variations

You can substitute evaporated milk and condensed milk with coconut milk to get the right consistency. Use a thick one, canned coconut milk is highly recommended.

Instead of butter, use coconut oil to add nutty flavor to the purple jam.

How to Make Ube Halaya

STEP 1. Wash the purple sweet potato clean. You can peel the skin first (Image 1) if you like or you can peel it later after steaming. Steam the purple sweet potato 30-45 minutes or until a fork can be inserted easily into the middle part of purple yam (Images 2, 3, 4).

STEP 2. Take them out from the steamer. Let them cool for a while. Mash the potatoes using a fork (Images 5, 6) or a food processor until smooth. You still have to sieve it later. Put all the ingredients except butter in a non-stick pot, starting from the mashed ube, evaporated milk, condensed milk, salt, and palm sugar (Image 7). Stir well with a spatula (Image 8).

STEP 3. Put the pot on a stove and cook with low heat. Keep stirring with a spatula. Do not leave it unattended. You will see that the mixture dries up gradually and the mixture will become thick and less runny (Image 9). To make the jam even more spreadable, add butter (Image 10). Stir until the butter melts and the jam can hang on the spatula for a while (Image 11). Sieve it so the texture is even smoother (Image 12). Transfer to a glass bowl to let it cool before using.

Serving Suggestions

You can spread this ube jam on toast for a quick, simple breakfast, topped with butter and grated cheese. You can also stir it into a quick ube mochi pancake or ube crinkle cookies for an easy treat.

Serve it with Asian drink like Lemongrass Tea or Lemon Ginger Tea. Or you can pair it with Butterfly Pea Flower Tea or Latte.

Ube Halaya (Purple Sweet Potato Jam) FAQs

Storage

If you use it often, you’d better store it in a fridge/chiller. It can stay nice for a maximum of one week for the non-dairy and one month for the dairy version.

You can also divide the jam into 2, store it in a different container and put half in the freezer for up to 3 months. Simply take it out of the freezer and chill it overnight for use the next day.

More Recipes Using Purple Sweet Potatoes

If you enjoy desserts made with purple sweet potatoes, you may also like these recipes:

• A perfect combination with tapioca starch and coconut milk makes this Talam Ubi Ungu taste wonderful.
• Add sweetened coconut inside this purple sweet potato balls and drizzle it with coconut sauce, and you will have Bugis Mandi Ubi Ungu.
• If you want a fast and simple ones, you can check Candil Ubi Ungu.