Banana, Tapioca Pearl, and Coconut Sweet Soup

Name: Banana, Tapioca Pearl, and Coconut Sweet Soup
Yield: serves 4 to 6
Ingredients: 3 cups water; 1/4 cup small tapioca pearls (about 1/8 inch in diameter); 1 to 1 1/4 pounds ripe but firm bananas, preferably small; 2/3 cup coconut milk, canned or freshly made (page 318); 3 1/2 tablespoons sugar; 1/8 teaspoon salt; 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract; 2 tablespoons chopped unsalted roasted peanuts (optional)

December 14, 2011

If you have never tried a Vietnamese che (sweet soup), this one is a good place to start. The perfume of the banana comes through wonderfully, and the tapioca pearls, enrobed in coconut milk, cook up to resemble large orbs of clear caviar. Once the tapioca pearls have fully expanded and set, the texture of this mildly sweet treat is like that of a thick Western-style tapioca pudding. Small, creamy bananas, such as the Nino variety, also known as Finger or Baby, are traditionally simmered for this sweet soup. They are sold at Asian and Latin markets. If they are unavailable, substitute regular bananas. Regardless of the variety, use ripe but firm, blemish-free fruits.

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