Following the World War II, the Southern Resistance War began among the British, French and Vietnamese for the control of Vietnam. Probably, it was when the British introduced sago pudding, a sweet dessert made with cream. The Vietnamese then replaced sago with tapioca – which was more available than sago, added in sweet bananas, and also replaced cream with coconut milk.
That was called banana tapioca pudding, using “chuoi su” – also known as musa sapientum. This type of banana native to Southeast Asia and Southern China. For this recipe, regular banana or plantains can be used in lieu of the small Southeast Asian bananas.
After the Vietnam war, Hanoi became a cradle for dishes made of tapioca (because of years of reserving rice for the war, people had mostly cassava and tapioca left to eat), including banana tapioca pudding. The pudding is one of the city’s famous desserts that our food tour’s travelers asking for a recipe, hence we would like to show you how to make a Hanoi banana tapioca pudding.
INGREDIENTS
- 1 lb. (0.5 kg) ripe bananas or plantains
- 4 oz (120 grams) of sugar
- ¼ tsp of salt
- 3 tbsp of small tapioca balls
- 7 oz (200 grams) of coconut cream (savory band recommended)
- 3 drops of pandan extract
- ½ cup of crushed peanuts
- 1 tbsp of sesame seeds
STEPS
- Soak 3 tbsp of tapioca balls in warm water for 20 minutes. Drain and set aside.
- Slice bananas to be ½ inch thick. Add the bananas to a bowl and coat the bananas with 4 oz of sugar. Refrigerate for 1 hour.
- Boil 2 cups of water and add 3 drops of pandan extract. Add the bananas, 7 oz of coconut cream, tapioca balls, and ¼ tsp of salt.
- Heat on medium for 12 minutes until bananas soft. Stew longer if you prefer softer bananas.
- Scoop into small serving bowls. Sprinkle sesame seeds and crushed peanuts on top.
There you go. That’s how to make Hanoi banana tapioca pudding for 4 persons, with just about 30 preparation and 20 minutes of cooking time. We hope you enjoy your drink, and please contact us if there is anything we can help.
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