This Vietnamese dessert made with coconut milk, deliciously rich and creamy, will be ideal to satisfy your sweet cravings or to serve as a surprising dessert to crown a worthy Asian meal
What is Chè Chuối?
As usual with Vietnamese dishes, I love to start by breaking down the name. Chuối means banana and Chè is simply an umbrella term for sweet “soups”. Well, to the extent that things like puddings can be called “soups”.
In short, you get it, if it’s quickly made liquid, creamy and sweet: congratulations, you have a Chè in front of you.
In Vietnam, chè chuối is always prepared with chuối xiêm bananas (pisang awak), more delicate and slightly tangy than the Cavendish we find here, and which hold up better during cooking.
Available frozen in Asian grocery stores, they can withstand repeated reheating, unlike Cavendish bananas which decompose quickly.
If you can’t find them, use very ripe plantains (with black-spotted skin), which are sweeter and less aromatic. To enhance their flavor, marinate them in sugar before adding them to the coconut milk. But hey, if you use normal bananas it will still be good.
Chè chuối, rich, creamy and not too sweet, is enjoyed hot or warm, sprinkled with roasted peanuts. It’s an ideal sweet snack or a good fragrant dessert at the end of a meal.
The Main Ingredients of Chè Chuối
Coconut milk: Ideally, use real coconut milk. Try to avoid Alpro-style coconut milks
which are just flavored water
Bananas: As mentioned above, ideally use the chuối xiêm variety found in Asian grocery stores, but regular bananas can also work
Tapioca pearls: Small pearls found in Asian grocery stores
Palm sugar: You can substitute it with regular sugar or cane sugar
Pandan: Replace it with a little vanilla extract, but if you can find fresh or dried leaves, it’s really delicious
Chè Chuối – Bananas with Coconut Milk and Tapioca
Ingredients
- 700 mL coconut milk
- 700 mL water
- 60 g palm sugar substitute with regular sugar
- 0.25 teaspoon salt
- 85 g of tapioca pearls small
- 2 bananas ripe
- 1 banana sliced, for garnish
- Coarsely crushed peanuts for garnish
- 2 tablespoons of sesame seeds toasted
- 3 leaves of pandan tied together, substitute with a little vanilla extract. No pandan extract
Procédé
- Bring the coconut milk, pandan, and water to a boil in a saucepan over high heat700 mL coconut milk, 700 mL water, 3 leaves of pandan
- Reduce the heat to low and add the sugar and salt.60 g palm sugar, 0.25 teaspoon salt
- Stir until the sugar is dissolved.
- Add the tapioca pearls and cook for 30 minutes, stirring frequently, until the pearls are transparent.85 g of tapioca pearls
- Cut the bananas into quarters lengthwise, then into 1 to 2 cm pieces.2 bananas
- Turn off the heat, incorporate the banana pieces, cover and let rest for 10 minutes until the bananas are well heated.
- Pour into serving bowls and garnish with toasted sesame seeds, peanuts, and the remaining banana.1 banana, 2 tablespoons of sesame seeds, Coarsely crushed peanuts
- Serve warm, at room temperature, or slightly chilled.
