Have you ever heard of the Chinese Coconut Tapioca Pearls Dessert (西米露)? This unique, traditional dessert is famous around the world. Soft and chewy tapioca pearls, various seasonal ingredients, and a refreshingly sweet coconut flavor make this dessert a must-try.
What Is Coconut Tapioca Pearls Dessert?
Chinese tapioca dessert is a pudding made with tapioca pearls(西谷米） and other ingredients. It is a traditional dish made from tapioca starch, sugar, coconut milk, and your chosen root vegetables. This simple recipe can be easily made at home and tastes so good!
Tapioca pearls are made from the cassava root, a starchy root vegetable native to South America, and were introduced to Asia by Portuguese traders around the 16th century. They are small balls made from cassava root starch for this sweet dessert. You can serve tapioca dessert cold or at room temperature with various toppings like fruit, jellies, or syrups. Or add tapioca to many dishes, including desserts, drinks, and snacks.
Ingredients
Unsweet coconut milk: A can of unsweet coconut milk adds rich flavors to this dessert soup.
Taro and sweet potato chunks: Taro is a large root starchy vegetable. You can see some purple veins running through the flesh. It is similar to sweet potatoes.
Purple yam: Purple yam is a sweet potato with purple flesh. Usually, they are violet-purple to bright lavender. Purple yam is also a starchy root vegetable that is extremely nutritious. Purple yam is a trendy ingredient in Asian cooking. There's some evidence that purple yam supplements can help lower cholesterol levels in people who are overweight or obese with high cholesterol.
Tapioca pearls (西米, sago pearls): Tapioca pearls are small balls of starch made from the starch of palm stems. They're popular in Asian cuisine and are often used mainly in desserts, often served with fruit juices or milk. The cooked tapioca has a jelly-like consistency, and you can add different flavors. You can easily find them in most Asian grocery stores or online!
Brown sugar: Maple syrup and Chinese rock sugar also works!
4 cups of water
How To Make Coconut Tapioca Pearls Dessert
Let's start with gathering all the ingredients. Peel off the skin of the sweet potato, purple yam, and taro. Chop them into small bite chunks and set them aside.
In a large pot, boil the water, add the small tapioca pearls, and continue to boil for 15 minutes. Let it soak in the hot boiling water for additional 10 minutes. You should no longer see the white dot inside the tapioca balls after 10 minutes. Rinse them with cold water and set them inside the container with ice cubes for later use.
Steam all the root vegetables in a steamer for 15 minutes until they are soft and side aside.
In a large pot, pour in 4 cups of water and bring to a boil. Dissolve the brown sugar in the water. Smash one small purple yam with a fork and add it to the pot. Stir well until the liquid turn to purple color! And then add in coconut milk, sweet potatoes, purple yam, taro chunks, and tapioca pearls. Let everything simmer for 2 minutes. Turn off the heat and serve. Enjoy!
Creative Ways to Make Chinese Tapioca Dessert
Chinese tapioca dessert is one of my favorite desserts to make when I want something sweet but doesn’t want too much sugar or calories. It’s also perfect for kids because you can add toppings like Jell-O and nuts – they will love it!
Some people also like to add ripe bananas, fresh mint, and red bean paste to this sweet soup.
Store
To store Chinese tapioca dessert, refrigerate it in an airtight container for up to three days. You can also freeze tapioca for up to three months. Just make sure you thaw it before serving, so it's soft enough to eat!
Conclusion
This coconut tapioca pearls dessert is a popular dessert that’s fun and easy to make. Plus, you can get creative with the ingredients and make a variety of flavors. Whether you’re looking for a traditional recipe or something a bit more unique, this Chinese dessert is a must-try. I hope you enjoy this post. If you made this recipe, how does your tapioca dessert turn out? Let me know by leaving a comment below. Happy cooking!
Coconut Tapioca Pearls Dessert (西米露)
Ingredients
- 1 cup yam peeled and chopped into chunks
- 1 cup sweet potato peeled and chopped into chunks
- 1 cup purple yam peeled and chopped into chunks
- 1 cup unsweet coconut milk
- ⅓ cup tapioca pearls
- ½ cup brown sugar
- 4 cups of water
Instructions
- Let's gather all the ingredients. Peel off the skin of the sweet potato, purple yam, and taro. Chop them into small bite chunks and set them aside.
- In a large pot, boil the water, add the small tapioca pearls, and continue to boil for 15 minutes. Let it soak in the hot boiling water for additional 10 minutes. You should no longer see the white dot inside the tapioca balls after 10 minutes. Rinse them with cold water and set them inside the container with ice cubes for later use.
- Steam all the root vegetables in a steamer for 15 minutes until they are soft and side aside.
- In a large pot, pour in 4 cups of water and bring to a boil. Add the brown sugar until the water is dissolved. Smash one small purple yam with a fork and add it to the pot. Stir well until the liquid turn to purple color!
- And then add in coconut milk, sweet potatoes, purple yam, taro chunks, and tapioca pearls. Let everything simmer for 2 minutes.
- Turn off the heat and serve. Enjoy!
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