Che Ba Mau Vietnamese Three Colour Dessert
Red beans, soft mung bean paste and green pandan jelly under sweet coconut milk and ice. Cool, creamy and fun to stir.
- Time1 hr 15
- LevelMedium
- Costabout £1.05 a head
Cost is worked out from Aldi and Tesco shelf prices in October 2026. Your shop and brands will differ.
Ingredients
Tick what you need to buy. It goes on your shopping list.
Method
- 1
Rinse the mung beans, cover with cold water and soak for 30 minutes. Drain, then put them in a small pan with 200 ml fresh water.
- 2
Simmer the mung beans for 20 minutes, stirring now and then, until very soft and the water has gone. Stir in 40 g of the sugar and a pinch of salt and mash roughly. Leave to cool.
20 min - 3
Put the red beans in a small pan with 100 ml water and 40 g of the sugar. Simmer for 10 minutes until they look glossy and the syrup has thickened. Leave to cool.
10 min - 4
Whisk the agar into 500 ml cold water with 30 g sugar and the pandan extract. Bring to the boil and simmer for 2 minutes, stirring. Pour into a shallow dish and leave to set for 30 minutes, then cut into small cubes.
2 min - 5
Warm the coconut milk with the last 30 g of sugar and a pinch of salt until the sugar dissolves. Cool, then chill.
- 6
Build each glass in layers: red beans, then mung bean paste, then green jelly cubes. Pour over the coconut milk and top with plenty of crushed ice. Stir everything together before you eat.
Double check before you cook. Recipes can contain mistakes. Any diet labels come from the ingredients as written in this recipe and are a guide, not a guarantee. Always check every ingredient and the packet label for allergens and cross contamination, and ask your doctor or dietitian what is right for you, especially with coeliac disease, diabetes or a serious allergy. This is not medical advice.
