Vietnamese Mung Bean Pudding With Coconut Cream- "Che Hoa Cau" Recipe
Vietnamese Mung Bean Pudding With Coconut Cream- "Che Hoa Cau"
My mom used to make this simple Vietnamese "Che" aka dessert which is made with soft yellow mung beans, it’s cooked in a clear and thickened sweet sauce and then drizzled with some creamy coconut cream.
A few couple things to note, sometimes a little sticky rice is added into this mixture for extra fille. My mom also mentioned that she adds a drop of vanilla to the mung bean pudding for a soft vanilla taste. She also said it’s an expensive ingredient so it’s not commonly to used within Vietnamese households so feel free to omit :)
INGREDIENTS
Mung Bean Pudding
3 cups pre-washed, soaked and cooked dried mung beans
3 cups water
1/2 cup + 1 tbs granulated white sugar
1/8 tsp sea salt
Drop or two of pure vanilla extract (OPTIONAL)
Slurry
1/4 cup tapioca starch mixed with 1 cup water
Coconut Milk Sauce
1 can coconut milk (14 oz)
1/2 cup granulated white sugar
1/8 tsp salt
PREPARATION
1. Take your soaked yellow mung beans and drain fully in colander.
2. Add your drained mung beans to a small pot with just enough water to cover the beans and cook over medium low heat until they are completely soft (about 10-20 min, don’t let these turn into mush).
3. Drain and rinse mung beans.
4. In a clean pot, add water, sugar, and a pinch of salt mix over medium heat until everything is dissolved.
5. Slowly add your starch slurry into hot water mixture, turn up heat to simmer, and add as needed until it reaches your desired consistency (it should be like nice slightly runny pudding texture when rolled off a spoon).
5. After sauce thickens up, add your cooked mung beans into this mixture and remove from heat.
6. Coconut Sauce: In a small sauce pan, add all the coconut sauce ingredients and mix until fully dissolved. Stir some of the slurry mixture until the coconut sauce thickens up into a nice creamy pudding. Then remove from heat.
ASSEMBLY:
Ladle some of the mung bean mixture (beans and clear pudding) into a bowl, then top it off with some coconut sauce. To eat, just mix and use a spoon to eat.