Coconut-Lemongrass Tapioca With Caramelized Citrus
- Total Time
- 50 minutes
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
Yield:6 to 8 servings
- ½teaspoon kosher salt (Diamond Crystal)
- 1cup/190 grams small pearl tapioca
- 2(13½-ounce) cans full-fat coconut milk
- 1stalk lemongrass (about 2¼ ounces), tough outer part discarded, roughly chopped and smashed
- 1(1-inch) piece ginger, scrubbed and thinly sliced (14 grams)
- ¼cup maple syrup, plus more for drizzling
- 1lime
- 3½pounds/1½ kilograms mixed citrus fruits, such as oranges, blood oranges, tangerines and pink grapefruit
- ¾cup/138 grams granulated sugar
- ¼cup crushed pistachios (optional)
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (8 servings)
504 calories; 23 grams fat; 18 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 2 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 78 grams carbohydrates; 4 grams dietary fiber; 45 grams sugars; 5 grams protein; 137 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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- Step 1
In a small pot, bring 3 cups of water to a boil and add ¼ teaspoon of salt. Add the tapioca pearls and simmer gently over medium-low heat, stirring frequently until the tapioca is softened and almost all the way translucent, 12 minutes.
- Step 2
Reduce the heat to low, cover the pot and allow the tapioca to steam and cook through completely, 4 minutes. Transfer to a bowl, cover it and refrigerate until ready to serve. You can prepare the tapioca up to 3 days in advance and store it in the refrigerator.
- Step 3
Wash out the pot and pour in the coconut milk. Add the lemongrass, the ginger and 1 tablespoon maple syrup. Bring up to a simmer over medium heat. Remove from heat and zest the lime into the milk. Allow the infused milk to steep while you prepare the fruit and the caramel.
- Step 4
Remove the tops and bottoms of the citrus by cutting the ends with a sharp knife so each fruit sits flat on your work surface. Cut the citrus peels off into strips, running your knife down the length of the fruit and carefully removing the white pith as you slice. Cut each fruit crosswise into ½-inch-thick rounds and remove any visible seeds.
- Step 5
Make a caramel: Heat a large (12-inch) skillet over medium. Add the sugar and cook, stirring frequently, until the sugar melts and forms a light golden syrup, 5 to 7 minutes. Cook the syrup until deep golden brown, about 2 minutes more, lowering the heat slightly if necessary to avoid scorching. Stir in the remaining 3 tablespoons maple syrup, squeeze in the juice of the lime and add remaining ¼ teaspoon of salt. Remove from heat and carefully add the fruit, a couple of pieces at a time, swirling the pan to coat the pieces in syrup. The hot syrup may bubble and splatter, so be careful here. If the caramel forms hard clumps around the citrus slices, return the skillet to heat over medium-low and continue to cook, swirling the caramel around the citrus pieces, until any hard clumps dissolve, 2 minutes.
- Step 6
Using a fine mesh sieve, strain the coconut milk into a medium bowl, pressing down on the aromatics in the sieve before discarding.
- Step 7
To serve, scoop a few spoonfuls of the tapioca into shallow bowls. Ladle the infused coconut milk over the top, add several slices of citrus and spoon in some of the caramel glaze. Drizzle with some maple syrup and garnish with the crushed pistachio, if using.
Private Notes
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Cooking Notes
Lovett Smith
Made this for Christmas dinner as an exotic dessert. Was "interesting" and relatively tasty but way too much effort for the result. (A Crème brûlée cheesecake would have given twice the impact for half the effort.) The tapioca was simply a tasteless gelatinous blob--pretty similar to glue or cornstarch. But glad I tried it.
Tipitina
I agree with Lovett Smith. Would have been better making tapioca pudding with of the infused milk and then spooning the caramelized citrus over. Also impossible to clean the glop of a tapioca mess.
dana
I'm not familiar with cooking tapioca so after reading a few recipes I decided to use large pearl tapioca. I soaked them for a few hours (vs overnight as the package indicated) and then followed the recipe which produced large, silky tapioca pearls. I infused the milk earlier so I could serve the pearls immediately after cooking them and it turned out beautifully. Don't refrigerate the pearls or they'll get hard and clumpy. Beautiful and elegant dessert that feels extra special.
dana
You could also serve the warm infused milk over a mix of colorful fruits (kiwi, raspberry, citrus) and an edible flower on the side of the dish for presentation. The tapioca feels interesting but not necessary.
Sara
I have a question. I have not made this yet but wonder why in the world you can't just cook the tapioca in the infused milk? It seems like both the flavor and the texture would be so much better. You could make extra infused milk to pour over the tapioca when serving. If anyone has tried this or has any insight, let me know.
Carolyn
This recipe was both delightful & delicious, so many textures and flavors- YUM! I never cooked tapioca like this before - a couple helpful hints: watch it when it is cooking, I found using a small whisk worked well to declump it (yes it clumped). Not sure about this, but I ended up steaming it for about 30 min after the active cooking time - it was perfect by then. Last thing I found to make it less difficult - line a sheet pan with parchment for the fruit - then drench it in the caramel.
Sharanya
Idk why this didn’t work for me - the lemongrass was too overwhelming in the coconut milk and the grapefruit didn’t caramélise well :( ah well onto the next
Rachel A
I’ve made this twice now and it is so special. My kitchen is a mess and it took over two hours, but worth it all for the flavor, beauty and texture of this dish. My guests were floored. This works for me as a Sunday afternoon treat, not a dessert; I could never handle making a meal to go with it because of the time, space and attention required.
alternate idea
I used the flavoured milk for a crème caramel served with the caramelized citrus and pistachios - absolutely delightful.
Ferguson
I made the coconut milk first and then when the tapioca was finished I stirred the coconut milk in. It kept the tapioca from forming a big clump. This was delicious.
kemi
Interesting flavors that impressed my guests. I looked up a couple of other recipes on how to cook tapioca that helped with cooking and storage. 1) change the water frequently while cooking as it gets cloudy, whisk frequently 2) cooked tapioca pearls keep best in sugar water which prevent sticking
Andrew
I made the recipe mostly as written. I didn't have lemongrass handy, put a couple of rum in the coconut milk, and used turbinado sugar for the caramel. A beautiful dish with a wonderful combination of textures and flavors - everyone wanted more.
Peter Nelson
One of the more spectacularly UNsuccessful recipes I've tried from the Times. I failed at the caramel, quite likely my own fault. There are some lovely flavors and textures here, but the coconut tapioca I made a few days later was delightful and far less complicated or finicky.
Linda
I was raised on tapioca and haven't eaten it since I left home! My citrus trees - lemons, tangerines, and oranges - are going insane, so this is a MUST make recipe. I'm all in with MamaDoc! What a great idea!
MamaDoc
Forget everything else, I'm going to caramelize store bought citrus segments, squirt them with lime and crushed, salted pistachios and serve them alone!
Linda
YES!!!!! But mine won't be store-bought. Our entire street is alive with citrus fruits everywhere.
Sara
I have a question. I have not made this yet but wonder why in the world you can't just cook the tapioca in the infused milk? It seems like both the flavor and the texture would be so much better. You could make extra infused milk to pour over the tapioca when serving. If anyone has tried this or has any insight, let me know.
Carolyn
This recipe was both delightful & delicious, so many textures and flavors- YUM! I never cooked tapioca like this before - a couple helpful hints: watch it when it is cooking, I found using a small whisk worked well to declump it (yes it clumped). Not sure about this, but I ended up steaming it for about 30 min after the active cooking time - it was perfect by then. Last thing I found to make it less difficult - line a sheet pan with parchment for the fruit - then drench it in the caramel.
dana
I'm not familiar with cooking tapioca so after reading a few recipes I decided to use large pearl tapioca. I soaked them for a few hours (vs overnight as the package indicated) and then followed the recipe which produced large, silky tapioca pearls. I infused the milk earlier so I could serve the pearls immediately after cooking them and it turned out beautifully. Don't refrigerate the pearls or they'll get hard and clumpy. Beautiful and elegant dessert that feels extra special.
dana
You could also serve the warm infused milk over a mix of colorful fruits (kiwi, raspberry, citrus) and an edible flower on the side of the dish for presentation. The tapioca feels interesting but not necessary.
e
Per comments made some changes. Was very good Used Joy of Cooking milk to tapioca ratio and soaked tapioca overnight in fridge. Next day, simmered tapioca slowly on low till milk absorbed and pearls cleared in center. No problems with clumping… Made everything else the same but instead of adding the infused coconut milk, just poured over the tapioca ala cream of wheat or oatmeal. Made syrup as written but I think the membranes were a distraction and would cut into wedges w/o next time
Joey
I make something similar to this but poach the tapioca in the coconut milk. I am going to try infusing it per this recipe first as it sounds like a serious upgrade.
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