This sticky rice and longan dessert come from serene Thailand! Traditionally, known as ‘Kao Niew Piak Lumyai’, this vegan sweet dish is a must-have. It’s a simple vegetarian recipe, which can easily be prepared at home. Once you try the delicious Thai sticky rice and longan dessert, you will want to prepare it again and again over lunch/dinner meetings to relish it with friends & family!
Ingredients, Health Benefits & Flavor
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The sticky rice and longan dessert recipe needs very few ingredients to prepare. Sticky rice has low-fat content while, longan is rich in Vitamin A, contains medicinal properties, and is a great antioxidant. Thus, it’s a healthy dessert. So it's safe to consume very often. This sweet dish fantastically infuses the classic sticky rice creaminess with the mild tartness of longan beautifully sweetened by sugar. The pandan leaves give the vegan rice pudding a lovely aroma and greenish hue. The coconut milk and young coconut bring in a welcome nuttiness to the sticky rice and longan dessert.
Ingredients
- Thai glutinous rice (130 grams) (also called sticky rice)
- Fresh Longan (15-20)
- 7 Pandan leaves
- White sugar (1 ½ Tablespoon)
- Coconut milk (250 ml or 1 can)
- Salt (1/2 teaspoon)
- Water (700-750 ml)
- Fresh young coconut (Few strips for garnishing)
Instructions
Prepare the Rice
Rinse the sticky rice 4-5 times to get rid of the starch.
Prepare the Fresh Longans, Pandan Leaves, & Young Coconut
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To prepare the longans, gently press the fruit to peel the skin. Lightly slit one side of the fruit to remove the seed and maintain the round shape. Roughly chop the pandan leaves and blend them with 150ml water. Now, strain the mixture and collect the light green liquid in a bowl. Scoop out some flesh of the young coconut and cut it into thin strips.
Cook the Sticky Rice and Longan Dessert
- Firstly, fill a pot with rice and 500 ml water (2 cups). Place on stove over medium flame.
- Now, allow the rice to simmer on moderate heat for 10 minutes. Stir regularly or else the rice will stick to the pan’s bottom.
- Next, pour the green pandan liquid and continue to simmer the rice for another 5 minutes. The rice needs to fluff up and become tender while still having a bite-texture rather than turn soggy.
- At this moment, add in the longans and let the sweet, mildly tart flavor infuse gently for 2-3 minutes.
- Add the sugar and salt. Mix everything up softly for a minute. Turn off the gas.
- In another pot, heat the coconut milk with salt seasoning for 2-3 minutes until it comes to a boil.
Serve your sticky rice and longan dessert in a bowl topped with 2 tablespoons of the warm coconut milk. Finish off the garnishing with few fresh young coconut strips.
Tips
- When you store this sticky rice and longan dessert, the rice absorbs the water. Therefore, when having it the next day, simply reheat it with a little water.
- Do not mix the coconut milk when storing the rice dessert as then it won’t last long.
- Use canned longans in case the fresh fruit is unavailable.
