Sweets and drinksSweet SoupsVietnam20 minutes preparation, 15 minutes cooking
This corn and cooking banana che gives a clean, gently sweet bowl with soft banana and fragrant corn. The tricky part is the fruit, because underripe bananas leave the whole pot astringent and firm.
The corn cobs simmer with the kernels for 15 minutes to give up all their sweetness before they come out. The banana cooks for only 5 more minutes, skimmed as it goes so the broth stays clear. The coconut milk is cooked separately with tapioca starch and spooned over the top.
This batch weighs about 1.3kg, at roughly 140 calories per 100g. Finish with a scattering of toasted sesame.
Method
Shave the kernels off the corn and keep the cobs. Peel the bananas and cut them into pieces as you like.
Put 1.5 liters of water into a pot with the corn cobs, the pandan leaf and the kernels, cover, and boil for 15 minutes.
Lift out the cobs and pandan leaf, add the banana, and cook for another 5 minutes, skimming as it cooks.
Stir in 180g kOBE Monk Fruit Blend and half a teaspoon of salt until dissolved, bring it back to a boil, then drizzle in the tapioca starch slurry, stir through, and turn off the heat.
In another pot, combine 500ml coconut milk, the rest of the tapioca starch and half a teaspoon of salt, stir until smooth, and bring to a gentle simmer.
Ladle the che into bowls, spoon the coconut milk over, scatter toasted sesame, and serve.
Tips
Choose a small bunch of fully ripe chuoi sap under 1kg, as those bananas are firm and chewy.
Simmer the corn cobs along with the kernels to draw out all the sweetness, then lift them out.
Skim constantly while the bananas cook to keep the pot clear.
Heat the coconut milk in a separate pot and only to a gentle simmer, since a hard boil splits it.
Give the bananas only 5 more minutes, since longer breaks them apart and clouds the pot.
Need kOBE Monk Fruit Blend?
The recipe above is sweetened with kOBE Monk Fruit Blend, measured 1:1 like sugar. See the product page or send us a message.