“Water Chestnuts in Coconut Milk” Dessert Made from Lotus Roots

Thais love to eat dessert, so it is not surprising that there are a variety of Thai desserts such as gold egg yolk flowers, gold egg yolk drops, gold egg yolk threads, and egg custard made with mung bean with lablab seed filling. Some desserts have been modified by changing the recipe and raw ingredients to create new desserts to meet the needs of the market, production, and consumer lifestyles.

“Water chestnuts in coconut milk” has been modified by using lotus roots instead of water chestnuts because they help enhance the body’s immunity, reduce the risk of cancer, have a sweet taste, and are crispy and delicious. Important tips for cooking delicious dessert are to have the right measurements and tasting the dessert to ensure that it is not too sweet or salty.

We are pleased to present the recipe of Asst. Prof. Suwannee Ardhannarong from the Department of Food and Nutrition, Faculty of Home Economics at RMUTT. To make this dessert, buy lotus roots, cut them into blocks and completely peel the dark skin off. Bring water to a boil for abou 30 minutes. In the meantime, cut the lotus roots into small cubes (total of 300 grams) and mix it or soak it in red syrup (sala flavor) for five to seven minutes. Mix the lotus root cubes with tapioca flour, then individually spread each cube out using your hand. Put the lotus root cubes into boiling water and once it is cooked, the cubes will float up onto the boiling water and become transparent, and the lotus root cubes will be pink like pomegranate. Finally, scoop the cubes from the boiling water and soak them in syrup.

“To make the syrup delicious, aromatic, and have a yellowish-transparent color, prepare 400 grams of white sugar and 300 grams of jasmine-infused water. Turn the stove on to low heat, pour the jasmine-infused water into the pot, and melt the sugar then add five or six fresh pandan leaves. Boil the pandan leaves until it gives out a fragrant smell then scoop up all the pandan leaves and set the pot aside to cool. Afterwards, prepare the coconut cream for garnishing the dessert by boiling water and putting 720 grams of fresh coconut cream and 3-5 grams of salt. When the water comes to a boil, turn off the stove and set the pot aside. Serve the dessert in a small bowl and top it with coconut cream and crushed ice. To make the dessert more delicious, add jackfruit or coconut milk” says Prof. Suwannee.

Dessert does not only make one full but also happy as well, whether it be happiness when making it or happiness in carefully doing according to each step. “Water chestnuts in coconut milk” but made from lotus roots will become more popular because of its sweet taste and nutritional value. It is no wonder that this dessert has been served as part of numerous important meals.