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Coconut Tapioca Pudding is a creamy, light, and refreshing Asian dessert to enjoy on a hot summer evening. Loaded with soft and chewy tapioca pearls (or sago) and topped with ripe mango, this tropical Thai coconut pudding is satisfying in flavor and texture.
If you’re a fan of bubble tea and boba, this coconut tapioca pudding is a must try dessert! Plus, it’s gluten-free and can easily be made vegan too.
Why You'll Love Coconut Tapioca
- The flavors are simple but delicious. This coconut tapioca pudding is made with coconut milk, sweetened condensed milk, and tapioca pearls. Plus, you can add fresh mango or other fruit on top. Together, these flavors create a slightly sweet and tropical flavor.
- The texture of soft boba. You can use your favorite white pearls in this coconut tapioca pudding, whether large tapioca or small sago. Either way, you’ll love the texture that the boba adds to this pudding.
- A perfect summer dessert. This sweet dessert, whether served at room temperature or cooled, is incredibly light and refreshing. Once you try this coconut tapioca pudding, it might become your new favorite treat on a hot summer day.
- It’s quick to make. You can enjoy this coconut tapioca pudding just 40 minutes after you’ve decided to make it. Cooking the boba pearls takes some time, but assembling the pudding together takes seconds.
Ingredient Notes
To make this delicious Coconut Tapioca Pudding, you will need the following ingredients (full measurements in recipe card below):
- white pearls - you can use large white tapioca pearls or mini sago pearls or a combination of both (which is what we did). Note that sago pearls cook faster.
- honey - prevents the pearls from sticking together.
- coconut milk
- sweetened condensed milk
- mango - optional topping. You can also use any other tropical fruit on top such as pineapples, peaches, and berries.
- fresh mint - optional, to garnish on top.
How to Make Vegan Coconut Tapioca Pudding
To make this tapioca pudding vegan, substitute the condensed milk with coconut cream. You will also want to add a sweetener such as agave, maple syrup, or sugar to make up for the missing sugar.
How to Cook White Tapioca Pearls
For Large Tapioca Pearls:
- Cook. In a medium saucepan, bring water to a boil over medium-high heat. Add tapioca pearls and turn the heat down to medium-low heat. Cook for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent them from sticking to the bottom of the pan.
- Rest. Turn off the heat and let the pearls rest in the hot water for another 30 minutes.
- Rinse. Rinse the pearls under running water to cool and drain well.
- Repeat if necessary. If you still see a white dot in each pearl, repeat the previous steps by boiling the pearls for 30 minutes and letting them sit for 30 minutes until all the tapioca pearls become completely transparent.
- Drain. Drain well and transfer into a bowl. Stir in honey to prevent them from sticking together.
For Mini Sago Pearls:
- Cook. In a medium saucepan, bring water to a boil over medium-high heat. Add sago pearls and turn the heat down to medium-low heat. Cook for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent from sticking to the bottom of the pan. At this point, you might still see a tiny white dot in each pearl.
- Rest. Turn off the heat and let the pearls rest in the hot water until all the tapioca pearls become completely transparent, about 15-20 minutes.
- Rinse and drain. Rinse the pearls under running water to cool. Drain well and set aside in a bowl. Stir in honey to prevent the pearls from sticking together.
How to Make the Best Coconut Tapioca Pudding
In a mediummixing bowl, whisk together coconut milk and sweetened condensed milk until well combined.
Divide the cooked pearls between 4 serving bowls. Stir in the coconut milk mixture.
Top with diced mango and fresh mint (if using) and serve immediately.
How to Serve
This Coconut Sago Pudding is a delicious Asian dessert to serve on a hot summer day after dinner. Some of my favorite summer dinners to serve this after are:
- Thai Basil Chicken
- Coconut Rice
- Thai Mango Salad
- Coconut Curry Salmon
- Chicken Pad Thai
Recipe Tips and Tricks
- How to store: Keep leftover coconut tapioca pudding in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
- How to freeze: You can also freeze tapioca pudding in an airtight container or freezer bag in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- How to thaw: Allow frozen coconut tapioca pudding to thaw overnight in the refrigerator before serving.
More Tapioca Recipes
- Tapioca Pearls (Boba)
- Mango Sago
- Three Ways to Make Bubble Tea
- Strawberry Milk Tea
- Matcha Milk Tea
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Recipe
Coconut Tapioca Pudding
5 Stars4 Stars3 Stars2 Stars1 Star
5 from 1 review
- Author: Sam Hu | Ahead of Thyme
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
Coconut Tapioca Pudding is a creamy, light, and refreshing Thai dessert to enjoy on a hot summer evening. Plus, it’s gluten-free and can be made vegan too.
Ingredients
- 1 cupwhite tapioca pearlsor mini sago pearls,uncooked
- 6 cups water
- 1 tablespoonhoney
- 1 (13.5 ounce) cancoconut milk(about 1 and ½ cups)
- 2-3 tablespoonssweetened condensed milk(to taste)
- 1 ripemango,peeled and diced
Instructions
Cook the white pearls
For white tapioca pearls:
- In a medium saucepan, bring 6 cups of water to a boil over medium-high heat.
- Add tapioca pearls and turn the heat down to medium-low heat. Cook for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent them from sticking to the bottom of the pan.
- Turn off the heat and let the pearls rest in the hot water for another 30 minutes.
- Rinse the pearls under running water to cool and drain well.
- If you still see a white dot in each pearl, repeat the previous steps by boiling the pearls for 30 minutes and letting them sit for 30 minutes until all the tapioca pearls become completely transparent.
- Drain well and transfer into a bowl. Stir in honey to prevent them from sticking together.
For mini sago pearls:
- In a medium saucepan, bring 6 cups of water to a boil over medium-high heat.
- Add sago pearls and turn the heat down to medium-low heat. Cook for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent from sticking to the bottom of the pan. At this point, you might still see a tiny white dot in each pearl.
- Turn off the heat and let the pearls rest in the hot water until all the tapioca pearls become completely transparent, about 15-20 minutes.
- Rinse the pearls under running water to cool. Drain well and set aside in a bowl. Stir in honey to prevent the pearls from sticking together.
Assemble the coconut tapioca
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together coconut milk and sweetened condensed milk until well combined.
- Divide the cooked pearls between 4 serving bowls. Stir in the coconut milk mixture.
- Top with diced mango and serve.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Asian
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Comments
Stacie Anderson says
Easy and delicious! I added just to touch more honey at the end and it also it’s nice to drizzle over the top to make it look pretty. I’ve never worked with tapioca pearls before and it’s actually quite messy to deal with in a strainer and such so just be prepared for that. But the flavor was wonderful!!! Thank you.
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