Vietnamese Che Ba Mau (Three-Color Dessert)

Vietnamese Che Ba Mau (Three-Color Dessert)

Che Ba Mau is a colorful Vietnamese dessert made with sweet red beans, creamy mung beans, and pandan jelly, all topped with crushed ice and coconut sauce. It’s cold, refreshing, and perfect for hot days.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 1

Total Time 1 20

Servings: 4 servings

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: asian, Vietnamese

Calories: 300

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

For the Bean Layers:

1 cup dried adzuki beans or red kidney beans soaked overnight
1 cup split mung beans soaked at least 2 hours
½ cup sugar divided
Pinch of salt

For the Pandan Jelly:

½ cup mung bean starch or agar powder
2 cups water
1 tsp pandan extract
2 tbsp sugar

For the Coconut Sauce:

1 can 400ml coconut milk
2 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp cornstarch mixed with 2 tbsp water
Pinch of salt

For Serving:

Crushed ice

Optional: grass jelly cubes, sweet corn pudding, or jackfruit slices

Method

Cook the red beans:

Drain the soaked beans. Simmer in fresh water for 45–60 minutes until tender. Stir in sugar and a pinch of salt. Let cool.

Cook the mung beans:

Steam the soaked mung beans until soft. Mash them lightly with a spoon and mix with sugar. Set aside.

Make the pandan jelly:

In a small pot, mix mung bean starch, pandan extract, sugar, and water. Stir over medium heat until thick and smooth. Spread into a tray, let set, then cut into thin strips.

Make the coconut sauce:

In a saucepan, heat coconut milk with sugar and salt. Add the cornstarch slurry and stir until slightly thickened. Remove from heat.

Assemble the dessert:

In a tall glass, layer red beans, mung bean paste, and pandan jelly. Add crushed ice and optional toppings like grass jelly. Pour coconut sauce on top. Serve cold with a spoon.

Notes

You can replace pandan jelly with agar jelly if you can’t find pandan extract.
Sweetness levels can be adjusted to your taste.
Best eaten right after assembling, so the ice doesn’t melt too much.