AI-generated image
ซาหริ่ม (Sarim, mung bean noodles in coconut syrup)
Coloured mung-bean-starch strands in scented sweet coconut syrup over crushed ice
Sarim is an old dessert of central Thailand, served at temple fairs and in market dessert shops on sweltering afternoons: thin, slippery strands in pastel green, blue and white, floating in a pale coconut syrup over a mound of crushed ice. The strands are almost flavourless and very soft, so the syrup does the work; in Thailand it is scented with jasmine flowers or the smoke of a scented candle, and here with pandan and optional fresh jasmine. It is naturally egg-free: the strands are pure mung bean starch cooked with water into a clear, thick paste, which sets into a soft gel the moment it hits ice water. Pandan juice and butterfly pea flowers give the colours, so there is no need for dyes. Serve it straight away, as a light end to a spicy meal. Chef's tip: cook the paste until it turns fully glossy and see-through; the common mistake is stopping while it is still milky, which gives strands that break and taste floury.
- Total time
- 60 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
For the strands
- 4 oz mung bean starch
- 2 cups water
- ½ cup pandan juicefrom 8 leaves blended with water and strained
- 10 dried blue pea flowerssoaked in 120 ml hot water
For the syrup
- 5 ½ oz sugar
- ¾ cup water
- 2 pandan leavesknotted
- 10 fresh unsprayed jasmine flowers (optional)
- 1 ¾ cups coconut milk
- ½ tsp salt
To serve
- 1 ⅛ lb crushed ice
Shop this recipe on Amazon
What you'll need
Spices & pantry
Links open Amazon in a new tab. As an Amazon Associate, WhatToEat.Today earns from qualifying purchases.
Method
0/8 doneStep 1: Simmer 5 ½ oz sugar, ¾ cup water and 2 pandan leaves for 5 minutes, until syrupy. Cool, then add 10 fresh unsprayed jasmine flowers and leave for 30 minutes to scent it; lift out the leaves and flowers.
5 minStep 2: Warm 1 ¾ cups coconut milk with ½ tsp salt just to steaming, without boiling, then cool and stir into the syrup. Chill.
5 minStep 3: Strain the 10 dried blue pea flowers flowers and keep the blue water. Divide 4 oz mung bean starch into three bowls of 40 g.
3 minStep 4: Whisk the first bowl of starch with 240 ml of the 1 cup water and cook in a small non-stick pan over a medium heat, stirring all the time, for 4–5 minutes, until it turns into a thick, glossy, see-through paste that pulls away from the pan.
5 minStep 5: Spoon the hot paste into a piping bag with a 4 mm nozzle (or a noodle press) and press it in short lengths into a big bowl of iced water. The strands set at once. Leave them in the water.
4 minStep 6: Repeat with the second bowl, this time using the ½ cup pandan juice and 120 ml of the ½ cup water for green strands.
8 minStep 7: Repeat with the third bowl, using the blue butterfly-pea water and the rest of the ½ cup water for blue strands.
8 minStep 8: Drain the strands. Pile 1 ⅛ lb crushed ice into bowls, add a mix of all three colours and pour over plenty of the cold coconut syrup. Serve straight away.
3 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 330 kcal
- Protein
- 1 g
- Carbs
- 50 g
- Fat
- 15 g
- Fibre
- 1 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does ซาหริ่ม (Sarim, mung bean noodles in coconut syrup) take?
- About 60 minutes in total: 30 minutes to prepare and 30 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of sugar?
- Caster sugar, same amount.
- What can I use instead of coconut milk?
- Single cream, same amount (not dairy free).
Reviews
No reviews yet. Be the first to cook it.
Rate this recipe
Sign in to rate and review this recipe.
You might also like
Kartoshka cakeCocoa and cake crumb truffles
Soviet cafés and school canteens sold these knobbly brown 'potatoes' for a few kopecks, and they began as a thrifty way to use up sponge and biscuit trimmings at the bakery. Crumbs are bound with butter and sweetened condensed milk, flavoured with cocoa and vanilla, shaped into little potatoes, rolled in cocoa and finished with two dabs of pale butter cream for the sprouts. They are fudgy and dense like a brownie truffle, need no oven, and children love making them. Traditional bakers added a spoonful of rum, an optional extra for adult batches only; this version is alcohol-free with vanilla. The usual slip is coarse crumbs, which make the potatoes crack, so blitz them as fine as sand. Chef's tip: chill the shaped potatoes for at least 20 minutes so they hold their shape and slice cleanly.
Russian
Undu walaluFried urad dal rings in treacle
Walalu means bangles, and these dark, sticky rings of fried urad dal soaked in kithul treacle are a sweet that Sinhala families bring out for Avurudu and for special almsgivings, often made in large batches by an aunt known for her steady hand. A thick, fluffy paste of ground black gram is piped into loops and fried until crisp, then plunged straight into warm treacle, so the rings stay crunchy on the outside while drinking up the syrup. They taste a little like a darker, smokier jalebi, with a toffee finish from the palm treacle. Watery batter is what ruins them; it spreads into flat blobs, so grind the soaked dal with as little water as possible and beat it until light. This recipe uses no asafoetida, so it is naturally gluten free. Chef's tip: pipe the rings onto small squares of baking paper and lower them into the oil paper and all; the paper peels away in seconds.
Sri Lankan
Khao kluk kapiShrimp paste rice
Everything on this central Thai plate is arranged in little heaps around a mound of rice tossed with garlic and fermented shrimp paste: sticky caramelised pork (moo wan), threads of sour green mango, shallots, chillies, sliced long beans, crisp dried shrimp and ribbons of thin omelette. You mix a bit of each into every spoonful, so salty, sweet, sour and hot arrive together. It's a favourite at Bangkok's curry-and-rice shops and a clever way to use up yesterday's rice at home; lime wedges and cucumber cool it down. Chef's tip: use day-old jasmine rice straight from the fridge, because freshly cooked rice clumps and smears the shrimp paste instead of coating each grain.
Perfect for:Summer coolers