Not too long ago in a South-east Asian nation, the pudding for the official banquet for a visiting high-level delegation from South America was ondeh-ondeh.
Aware that the food was for the highest in the land, the caterers had stuffed the delicate rice balls with an extra dose of melted palm sugar. As the dinner wound to a close, a member of the visiting delegation speared the ondeh-ondeh and was surprised by a spurt of brown syrup decorating his starched white military dress. It was the last time the Nonya dessert featured on the banquet menu of that government house.
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