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Che Ba Mau - Vietnamese Three-Color Dessert

Che Ba Mau is a refreshing and delicious Vietnamese dessert that is made up of three vibrant layers, a red layer of red beans, a yellow layer of mung beans, and a green layer of pandas jelly. Served with crushed ice and coconut cream, it is the perfect cool treat on a hot day.
5 from 1 vote
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Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Other time 4 hours
Total Time 5 hours
Course Dessert, Snack
Cuisine Vietnamese
Servings 4
Calories 1678 kcal

Equipment

  • 1 Saucepan
  • 1 Ice Maker or Blender

Ingredients
  

Yellow Layer with Mung Beans

  • .5 cup Yellow Split Mung Beans
  • 5 cups Water
  • 3 tbsp White Granulated Sugar

Green Layer with Pandan Jelly

  • 1 tbsp Agar Agar Powder
  • .25 tsp Pandan Extract
  • 2 cups Water
  • 3 tbsp White Granulated Sugar

Red Bean Layer

  • 1 can Canned kidney beans (red) or sweet red bean paste
  • .25 cup White Granulated Sugar
  • 1 cup Water

Coconut Sauce

  • .5 cup Coconut Cream
  • 1 tbsp Tapioca starch
  • .25 tsp Salt
  • 2 tbsp White Sugar

Shaved Ice

  • 4 cups Shaved Ice

Instructions
 

Yellow Layer - Mung Beans

  • Soak the mung beans in water for at least 4 hours or overnight
  • Add the mung beans and a cup of water to a medium saucepan. Cook the beans for about half an hour on low heat until the beans turn mushy. 
    Step 3 - Add sugar and continue cooking on low heat until dry - around 10 minutes. Set aside and allow to cool.
  • When the mung beans have finished cooking, make the mung bean paste by mashing the beans and adding the sugar. Set aside and allow to cool.

Red Layer

  • Empty the can of red kidney beans into a colander and rinse thoroughly with cold water. Place in a bowl
  • In a small saucepan, heat water and sugar and stir until the sugar dissolves
  • Add the sugar syrup to the red beans and let soak for an hour.
  • If using sweetened red bean paste, simply open the can and set it aside until it is time to assemble the Vietnamese dessert.

Green Layer - Green Pandan Jelly

  • In a small saucepan, bring the water to a boil then add the agar agar powder and the sugar and stir until the sugar is dissolved
  • Continue cooking the mixture for about a minute before removing it from the heat. Add the pandan extract.
  • Pour into a glass container and allow it to cool.
  • Transfer the container to the fridge and allow the jelly to form. This will usually take at least two hours.
  • Cut the jelly into your desired shapes. You can cut it into cubes or strips, or a combination of both.

Coconut Sauce

  • In a small pan, over medium heat, mix coconut cream, sugar, and salt 
  • Add the tapioca starch mixing carefully with a whisk and cook for about two minutes until the mixture thickens. 
  • Remove from the heat and pour into a bowl to cool.
  • You can use thickened coconut milk as a replacement.

Shaved Ice

  • To get make crushed ice, you can use a blender or an ice shaver such as the Hawaiian Shaved Ice and Snow Cone Machine.

Assembly - Che Ba Mau or Che 3 Mau

  • Start by adding some shaved ice to the glass, then add two tablespoons of the sweetened red kidney beans for the red layer.
  • Follow this by adding two tablespoons of mung bean paste for the yellow layer.
  • Add three tablespoons of the pandan jelly for the green layer, then add more crushed ice on top
  • To finish this Vietnamese three-color dessert, top it with a tablespoon of coconut sauce.

Nutrition

Serving: 1gCalories: 1678kcalCarbohydrates: 283gProtein: 52gFat: 44gSaturated Fat: 37gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 2gSodium: 722mgPotassium: 1458mgFiber: 32gSugar: 149gVitamin A: 200IUVitamin C: 6mgCalcium: 213mgIron: 15mg
Keyword Vietnamese dessert
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