My birthday is in February and I live in the mid-west. As a child, all I ever wanted for my birthday was to eat nab vam but my mom would never make it because she said it was too cold to eat. I was always totally bummed out that she wouldn’t make it for me but now that I’m an adult, I can eat it everyday regardless the season!
This is a very basic tutorial that shows you how to make the most important ingredients:
1. The syrup
2. The cendols / droplets / worms
3. The tapioca pearls (or we like to call them, frog eggs)
The video shows you how I make just a small batch to satisfy the craving at home! This won’t yield enough to feed a small village, just the perfect amount to share with your little family and have enough extra for the next day!
The Syrup
Step 1: Add sugar into a pot on medium high heat. note: you’ll be adding water later so add about half of volume you’d like to to yield (example: if you want to yield 3 cups of syrup, add 1.5 cups of sugar).
Step 2: Continue to stir the sugar to prevent burning on the bottom. The sugar will begin to melt and caramelize.
Step 3: Once the sugar has mostly caramelized and melted, add just enough water to cover the mixture. Continue on the heat until all is dissolved.
Step 4: Once it is all dissolved, remove from heat to cool. Note: I love always having a batch of this in my fridge in a mason jar to add to sauces and other delicious meals.
The Cendols / Droplets / Worms
Step 1: I find that any brand of this Bot Banh Gio (Steamed Pork Rice Cake) premixed flour package works. I add half of it to a pot along with 5 cups of water and add whatever food coloring you’d like! (I kept mine white). I don’t measure the flour, I just pinch about half way of the package then rubberband it to use for later!
Step 2: Whisk the mixture together till it starts to thicken up. Once it begins to thicken up, I like to use a spoon to mix.
Step 3: Once it reaches to about this thick consistency, you’ll have to work fast. You also have a few options… I use a steamer but you can also use the thickest setting on a potato ricer or one of those nab vam presses they sell at the Asian stores.
Step 4: Prepare an ice bath of water for your droplets
Step 4: If you’re choosing the steamer method, use a spatula to press the mixture out of the bottom steamer through the holes.
You can see the droplets falling out the bottom of the steamer (and into the bowl of ice water)
Step 5: Once completed, strain!
Tapioca Pearls
Step 1: Get a pot of boiling water going on the stove. Once the water comes to a boil, add the tapioca pearls into the pot while continuing to stir. Note: the water must be boiling and you must keep stirring to prevent the pearls from becoming goo and sticking together.
Step 2: Add food color if your heart desires so… and keep stirring!!! Stir until it really thickens up. Add water as needed if it becomes too thick, you don’t want it to burn.
Step 3: Keep stirring until the pearls start to expand and become translucent.
Step 4: Remove from heat, add cold water… then strain. Repeat process until the pearls are cool enough to touch.
Now, combine everything (syrup, droplets, tapioca pearls, and don’t forget the coconut milk)! There are many other toppings you can add and in the video, you check out, I also include them in the last clip… But it was a disaster and it didn’t work out during filming purposes. I’ll make a future video/post more in detail and in depth about the other goodies. For now, this is all you really need and it’s enough to get the craving satisfied for just a few people and a few bites! 🙂
