Pandan Coconut Milk Tea is a refreshing, creamy blended drink of jasmine tea, yellow mung beans and coconut milk flavored with pandan leaves. It is inspired by a drink of the menu from The Lunch Lady Vietnamese restaurant, made famous by Anthony Bourdain.
Want to save this recipe?
Enter your email & I'll send it to your inbox. Plus, get great new recipes from me every week!
What is pandan?
Pandan, also known as screwpine, is a tropical plant cultivated for its long, narrow, fan-like leaves that have a distinct, fragrant aroma.
This plant is widely used in Southeast Asia as a flavoring agent in various foods.
Pandan leaves typically blended or processed to extract its flavour, which then can be turned into a pandan syrup, or added to make pandan cake.
Why you'll love this recipe
Creamy and delicious: blending the yellow mung beans with the tea adds a creamy, full-bodied texture to the drink. I would consider this drink is somewhat in between an iced drink and a dessert soup.
Refreshing: great for those hot summer days!
Not too sweet, vegan and gluten-free: perfect for those who have dietary restrictions, and the only sweetness comes from adding a little sugar to the yellow mung beans, which you can customize to your personal taste.
Ingredients you'll need
Pandan jasmine tea:
- jasmine tea: or you can use any green tea that you like; looseleaf or tea bags
- hot water
- pandan leaves (also known as screwpine): cut into small pieces; you can use fresh or frozen pandan leaves; usually available in Asian supermarkets or Southeast Asian grocery stores
- pandan extract: optional; is a thick, vibrant green colored paste with pandan flavoring and aroma; also available in Asian supermarkets; or substitute with vanilla extract
Yellow mung beans:
- split yellow mung beans (see photo below): also commonly known as moong dal in Hindi or "split yellow gram," they are small, yellow in color and look like lentils; from the whole green mung bean; washed and drained
- granulated sugar: for sweetness; to your taste
For serving:
- ice
- coconut milk: use a full-fat canned coconut milk for the best flavor
You can find these ingredients at your local Asian supermarket or grocery store.
How to make creamy pandan milk tea
Make the pandan jasmine tea:
Brew the jasmine tea and let cool (in the fridge). [You can this ahead of time, or even the night before].
In a blender, combine jasmine tea and pandan leaves.
Blend until the pandan leaves are pulverized.
Strain the jasmine tea pandan mixture into a bowl and discard the pandan pulp.
Add a drop of pandan extract to the tea (for color, optional).
Cook the yellow mung beans:
In a saucepot, add water and bring to a boil.
Add in the washed and drained yellow mung beans.
Cook for 10-15 minutes, until mung beans are tender.
Drain the yellow mung beans.
Transfer the cooked mung beans to a bowl and stir in 2-3 tablespoon sugar while the beans are still hot.
Blend:
Add the sweetened mung beans to a high-powered blender.
Pour in pandan jasmine tea.
Blend on high speed until smooth and creamy.
Assemble:
Add ice to a tall serving glass.
Pour the jasmine pandan mung bean tea mixture about half way up.
Top off with coconut milk.
Stick in a straw and give it a good stir before enjoying.
How to serve
It's best to serve Pandan Coconut Milk Tea immediately, as the ice will dilute the drink over time.
Be sure to give the drink a good stir before enjoying.
How to store
Store any leftover components in separate airtight containers in the fridge for up to 2 days.
Expert tips
You can prepare the jasmine pandan tea and cook the yellow mung beans ahead of time and store in the fridge for up to 3 days.
My coconut milk curdled:
Coconut milk (especially full-fat, canned ones) tends to separate when it is cold, and it becomes solid at around 14°C, especially if the product does not contain any emulsifiers, gums or stabilizers.
However, you can easily fix this by warming the coconut milk in the microwave or in a small saucepan, and it will return to its liquid state.
I don't suggest blending the coconut milk with the mung beans as it tends to curdle and separate.
The mung bean mixture is too thick:
You can add more ice and coconut milk to thin out the drink.
Mung bean mixture tastes chalky:
Beans generally do have a chalky taste and texture; make sure the beans are blended until smooth.
Use a high-powered blender and blend on low speed first to break up the beans into the tea before increasing the speed.
You can also add a splash of vanilla extract to help with the taste.
Other pandan recipes you may like
Seri Muka (Malaysian Coconut Sticky Rice Pandan Custard)
Be sure to check out these recipes -- tag me on Instagram @siftandsimmer or leave me a comment/rating below!
Pandan Coconut Milk Tea
For accuracy and precision in baking recipes, use weight (metric) measurements when available.
Ingredients
Pandan jasmine tea:
- 1 tablespoon loose leaf jasmine tea
- 1 ½ C hot water
- 2 pandan leaves cut into small pieces
- 1 drop pandan extract optional
Yellow mung beans:
- ½ C split yellow mung beans washed and drained
- water to cover
- 2-3 tablespoon granulated sugar or to your taste
For serving:
- ice
- 1 C coconut milk
Instructions
Make the pandan jasmine tea:
- Brew the jasmine tea and let cool (in the fridge). [You can this ahead of time, or even the night before].
- In a blender, combine jasmine tea and pandan leaves.
- Blend until the pandan leaves are pulverized.
- Strain the jasmine tea pandan mixture into a bowl and discard the pandan pulp.
- Add a drop of pandan extract to the tea (for color, optional).
Cook the yellow mung beans:
- In a saucepot, add water and bring to a boil.
- Add in the washed and drained yellow mung beans.
- Cook for 10-15 minutes, until mung beans are tender.
- Drain the yellow mung beans.
- Transfer the cooked mung beans to a bowl and stir in 2-3 tablespoon sugar while the beans are still hot.
Blend:
- Add the sweetened mung beans to a high-powered blender.
- Pour in pandan jasmine tea.
- Blend on high speed until smooth and creamy.
Assemble:
- Add ice to a tall serving glass.
- Pour the jasmine pandan mung bean tea mixture about half way up.
- Top off with coconut milk.
- Stick in a straw and give it a good stir before enjoying.
Nutrition
The nutritional information provided should be considered as approximate and is not guaranteed. Please use your best judgment to ensure food is safely prepared and/or a good fit for your diet.
Raymund | angsarap.net
What a refreshing tropical concoction!
Healthy World Cuisine
Pandan milk tea with mung beans is so cooling and refreshing for the warmer weather. We have frozen pandan leaves so I better start making the syrup so we can try this delicious drink asap.
Linsey
This tropical fragrant flavoured coconut milk drink is a thirst quencher. The addition of the mung beans which thicken the drink slightly, provided both protein and fiber. Excellent drink!