Chè Thái (Vietnamese Fruit Cocktail) (2024)

Che Thai is the perfect dessert to make for events hosting large groups of people. It is lightly sweet, filled with delicious tropical fruit, and so refreshing on a hot day. If you love Vietnamese desserts, check out my che ba mau (three-colored dessert), creme caramel flan, and Vietnamese coffee tiramisu cake.

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Table of contents

  • What Is Chè Thái?
  • Kitchen Equipment
  • Ingredients
  • Substitutions and Additions
  • How to Make Chè Thái
  • Expert Tips
  • Storage Instructions
  • Additional Vietnamese Recipes to Try
  • Chè Thái Recipe
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What Is Chè Thái?

Chè Thái is a popular Vietnamese dessert combining various fruits and jellies served in a sweet coconut sauce topped with ice. This colorful Vietnamese fruit cocktail is popular for its various textures and refreshing sweet flavor. Che thai is a great dessert option for large crowds and very easy to customize to your preferred flavors.

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Kitchen Equipment

There is no fancy kitchen equipment needed to make this super easy Vietnamese che Thai recipe.

  • Small saucepan: you will need a small saucepan to cook the red rubies (red water chestnuts)
  • Mixing Bowl: you will need a large mixing bowl to hold the fruit and to mix them all together.
  • Slotted spoon or spider strainer: you will need either a slotted spoon or spider strainer to scoop the red water chestnuts from the saucepan into the ice water bath.
  • Potato ricer: you will need a potato ricer with interchangeable discs to make the pandan jelly (cendol).
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Ingredients

Most of the ingredients for Che Thai can be found in the baking and canned fruit aisle of your local Vietnamese or Chinese grocery store or online! You can add or subtract any ingredients from this list as you prefer.

Agar Jelly

  • Agar-agar: agar is a vegetarian gelatin substitute that helps solidify the simple syrup and creates a subtly sweet jelly texture.
  • Granulated Sugar: sweetens the agar jelly
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Red Rubies

  • Whole water chestnuts: make sure to use whole water chestnuts and not use pre-diced water chestnuts since they will not have that same amount of crunch.
  • Red food coloring: the red food coloring is what gives the water chestnuts its “ruby color” and creates the look of pomegranate seeds.
  • Tapioca starch: tapioca starch creates a chewy clear layer around the water chestnuts that mimic a pomegranate.
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Pandan Jelly (Cendol)

  • Mung Bean Flour: mung bean flour or mung bean starch is the base of the pandan jelly.
  • Tapioca Starch: tapioca starch or tapioca flour gives the pandan jelly a nice chewy texture.
  • Rice Flour: rice flour thickens the jelly and also aids in its chewy texture. Do not mistake rice flour for glutinous rice flour it is not the same.
  • Pandan Extract: pandan extract gives the jelly a subtle pandan vanilla flavor and a bright vibrant green color.
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Coconut Half & Half Base

  • Coconut milk: I recommend using Chef’s choice coconut milk for the best tasting coconut milk. The coconut milk will be thickened with tapioca starch and flavored with sugar and salt.
  • Half and Half: half and half is the main base of this dessert. It is what makes che thai creamy and lightens all the sugars from the syrup.
  • Palm Sugar: palm sugar is used for the palm sugar simple syrup that is used to create an additional sweetness to the coconut milk.
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Canned Fruit

Below I’ve listed the canned fruit that you need for this che thai recipe. I recommend finding them in an Asian grocery store before buying online since it’s a lot more cost-efficient in-store.

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Substitutions and Additions

  • Ai-yu jelly: You can substitute the pandan jelly for canned green ai-yu jelly. Ai-yu jelly is made from the seeds of the aiyu fruit (fig tree seed) which gives the jelly a fruity flavor.
  • Fresh Coconut: if you have access to fresh coconut, you can substitute the jar of coconut strings for fresh coconut strips.
  • Grass Jelly: Another alternative to the pandan jelly is grass jelly which shares the grassy flavor of pandan.

How to Make Chè Thái

This chè thái recipe is probably the easiest Vietnamese dessert recipe ever created. Follow these simple steps for the ultimate Vietnamese fruit cocktail! This che Thai recipe includes an all-inclusive guide for all the fruits and jellies the come together to make chè thái. You can skip any of the toppings that aren’t speaking to you.

Agar jelly

  1. In a small saucepan, mix 2 teaspoons agar, 3 tablespoons of sugar, and 1 3/4 cup water and mix on high until it dissolves and reaches a boil. Once it reaches a boil, pour it into a shallow bowl and set it aside until it hardens.
  2. Once it hardens, thinly slice into 1/4 inch strips.
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Red Rubies

  1. Prepare the water chestnuts. In a medium-sized bowl, add the diced water chestnuts and red food coloring. Mix until all the pieces are red. Then add the tapioca starch and toss until fully coated.
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  1. Cook the red rubies. Boil water in a small saucepan. Then add the coated water chestnuts into the boiling water and stir to prevent them from sticking. Boil for about 2-3 minutes until it floats and has puffed out slightly. Then scoop it all out with a slotted spoon or spider strainer and immediately place it in an ice bath for about 10 minutes. Drain and set aside in a small bowl.
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Pandan Jelly (Cendol)

  1. Mix the batter. In a medium saucepan, mix together the mung bean starch, tapioca starch, rice flour, and water until combined. Then add in 1 teaspoon of pandan extract and stir until combined.
  1. Cook until thickened. Cook on high heat and continuously stir until it reaches a boil and some pieces begin to cook underneath and small dark translucent pieces come to the top, about 3 minutes. Then turn the heat to low and keep stirring until it is thick, slightly translucent, and begins to bubble for about 3 minutes.
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  1. Mold worms. Using the 1/4 inch circles setting on your mashed potato ricer, pour a few scoops into the ricer and squeeze the green worms over a bowl of ice water. Let it steep for about 10 minutes. Drain and aside in a medium bowl.
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Coconut Milk

  1. Make tapioca slurry. In a small bowl, mix together the tapioca starch and 2 tablespoons of water until combined.
  2. Cook the coconut milk. In a medium saucepan, add the tapioca slurry, coconut milk, water, salt, and sugar and mix to combine. Heat on medium-high heat and stir until thickened. Then, set aside to cool.

Palm Sugar Simple Syrup

  1. Make the palm sugar simple syrup. In a small saucepan, heat the palm sugar and 1 cup of water until the sugar is dissolved. Set aside to cool.
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Assembly

  1. Cut the fruit. Cut the jackfruit into small strips and thinly slice the toddy palm seeds.
  1. Mix together. In a large mixing bowl, mix together the sliced sugar jelly, lychee with 2/3 cup of syrup, longan with 2/3 cup of syrup, jackfruit with 2/3 cup of syrup, pineapple jelly jar with all the syrup, coconut jelly jar with all the syrup, coconut strings, and sliced toddy palm seeds.
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  1. Assemble. In a tall glass, add 1-2 ladles of the fruit mixture, 1 scoop of the red rubies, 1 scoop of green worms, 1/4 cup of coconut milk, ice, and 1-2 tablespoons of palm sugar simple syrup to taste.
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Expert Tips

  • Chill with ice or in the refrigerator. You can serve this che thai recipe immediately with crushed ice or chill it in the fridge for a minimum of 2 hours before serving.
  • For the red rubies: make sure to pat the water chestnuts dry and to shake out excess tapioca powder. This will prevent the red water chestnuts from becoming too gummy and hard to eat.
  • Adjust the sweetness. You can 100% adjust the sweetness by adding more or less of the canned syrup of the fruit.

Storage Instructions

You can store this che Thai in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Just note that the pandan jelly and the red rubies may not hold their shape and be as bouncy and chewy after 48 hours.

Frequently Asked Q’s & A’s

What is Chè?

In Vietnamese, che is a word for any sweet dessert, drink, pudding, or sweet soup. The most popular Vietnamese dessert is che ba mau.

Why is it called Chè Thái?

Che Thai is a Vietnamese take on a Thai classic dessert called tub tim grawb that adds more local Vietnamese fruit for a more colorful dish.

Do I need to make every single component?

Of course not! This is an all-inclusive guide to che Thai. You can opt-out of making the sugar jelly, or pandan jelly, and substitute it with canned ai-yu jelly instead. Also, if you prefer a less sweet dessert, you can opt-out of making the palm sugar simple syrup as well.

Can I switch out the fruits?

Of course! You can swap out any of the fruits in the mix or add fresh ones as well. This Che Thai recipe is so easy to customize.

Additional Vietnamese Recipes to Try

  • Che Ba Mau (Vietnamese Three Colored Dessert)
  • Coconut Pandan Jelly
  • Banh Bo Nuong (Vietnamese Honeycomb Cake)

Explore More:

  • Strawberry Sago
  • Chè Ba Màu (Vietnamese Three Color Dessert)
  • Pandan Ice Cream
  • Coconut Pandan Jelly (Thạch Rau Câu Lá Dứa)
  • Mango Sago
  • Vietnamese Coffee and Cream Jelly (Thạch Cà Phê)

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Chè Thái Recipe

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Chè Thái

5 from 3 votes

Prep Time 50 minutes mins

Cook Time 25 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 15 minutes mins

Colorful, sweet, refreshing and filled with fun textures only begin to describe my all-time favorite Vietnamese dessert—Chè Thái. Made with jackfruit, lychees, longan, pandan jelly and red rubies, you can taste the Southeast Asian rainbow with this crowd-pleaser dessert.

Servings: 10 servings

Print Recipe

Ingredients

Agar-Agar Jelly

  • 2 teaspoons (8 g) Agar agar
  • 1 ¾ cup (420 g) water
  • 3 tablespoon (38 g) sugar

Red Rubies

Pandan Jelly (Cendol)

Coconut Milk

Palm Sugar Simple Syrup

Canned Fruit

Instructions

Agar-Agar jelly

  • In a small saucepan, mix 2 teaspoons agar agar, 3 tablespoons of sugar and 1 3/4 cup water and mix on high until it dissolves and reaches a boil. Once it reaches a boil, pour it into a shallow bowl and set aside until it hardens.

  • Once it hardens, thinly slice into 1/4 inch strips.

Red Rubies

  • Prepare the water chestnuts. In a medium sized bowl, add the diced water chestnuts and red food coloring. Mix until all the pieces are red. Then add the tapioca starch and toss until fully coated.

  • Cook the red rubies. Boil water in a small saucepan. Then add the coated water chestnuts into the boiling water and stir to prevent them from sticking. Boil for about 2-3 minutes until it floats and has puffed out slightly. Then scoop it all out with a slotted spoon or spider strainer and immediately place it in an ice bath for about 10 minutes. Drain and set aside in a small bowl.

Pandan Jelly (Cendol)

  • Mix the batter. In a medium saucepan, mix together the mung bean starch, tapioca starch, rice flour and water until combined. Then add in 1 teaspoon of pandan extract and stir until combined.

  • Cook until thickened. Cook on high heat and continuously stir until it reaches a boil and some pieces begin to cook underneath and small dark translucent pieces come to the top, about 3 minutes. Then turn the heat to low and keep stirring until it is thick, slightly translucent and begins to bubble, about 3 minutes .

  • Mold worms. Using the 1/4 inch circles setting on your mashed potato ricer, quickly while the batter is still hot pour a few scoops into the ricer and squeeze the green worms over a bowl of ice water. Let it steep for about 10 minutes. Drain and aside in a medium bowl.

Coconut Milk

  • Make tapioca slurry. In a small bowl, mix together the tapioca starch and 2 tablespoons of water until combined.

  • Cook the coconut milk. In a medium saucepan, add the tapioca slurry, coconut milk, water, salt and sugar and mix to combine. Heat on medium high heat and stir until thickened. Then, set aside to cool.

Palm Sugar Simple Syrup

  • Make the palm sugar simple syrup. In a small saucepan, heat the palm sugar and 1 cup of water until the sugar is dissolved. Set aside to cool.

Assembly

  • Prepare the fruit. Open all the canned fruit and cut the jackfruit into small strips and thinly slice the toddy palm seeds.

  • Mix together. In a large mixing bowl, mix together the sliced sugar jelly, lychee with 2/3 cup of syrup, longan with 2/3 cup of syrup, jackfruit with 2/3 cup of syrup, pineapple jelly jar with all the syrup, coconut jelly jar with all the syrup, coconut strings, and sliced toddy palm seeds.

  • Assemble. In a tall glass, add 1-2 ladles of the fruit mixture, 1 scoop of the red rubies, 1 scoop of green worms, 1/4 cup of the coconut milk, ice and 1-2 tablespoons of palm sugar simple syrup to taste.

Nutrition:

Calories: 364kcal | Carbohydrates: 43g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 19g | Saturated Fat: 14g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 33mg | Sodium: 81mg | Potassium: 473mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 12g | Vitamin A: 354IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 149mg | Iron: 3mg

Chè Thái (Vietnamese Fruit Cocktail) (2024)

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