Servings are for 1/2 cup of pudding.

For tapioca pearls:

  • 1 cup (160 g) large tapioca pearls
  • 8 cups water

For pudding:

  • 2 cups whole milk or coconut milk
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 egg yolk, beaten
  1. Place water in a large pot with a lid. Bring to a boil and add the tapioca pearls. Bring it back to a boil and then immediately lower the heat to let them gently simmer for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking. Turn off the heat and cover the lid and soak for 8-12 hours or overnight.
  2. Discard the soaking water and rinse the pearls to get rid of excess starch. Replace water in pot. Add the presoaked pearls back in. Turn on the heat to medium and bring it back to a gentle simmer, stirring occasionally. Cover with a lid and lower the heat to avoid boiling over. Let it simmer for 15 minutes. Then turn off the heat, do not open the lid and let them soak for another 15-20 minutes, or until the pearls are translucent and soft.
  3. Uncover the lid and you will see all the large pearls have turned translucent, and if you press on the pearls, they are soft and chewy. You may see a few pearls with some white center, but if you squeeze those pearls, they are actually soft and chewy already. Drain off the cooking water and gently rinse the pearls with some water.

If not using pearls right away:

  1. Toss them with a tablespoon of sugar and they won’t stick to each other anymore. They can be stored at room temperature for about a day or two.

For tapioca pudding:

  1. Put milk (or milk of your choice, preferably full fat/cream for the best result), sugar and the tapioca pearls in the pot. Bring the milk to a gentle simmer, don’t hard boil it. Cook until sugar dissolves.
  2. With one hand keep whisking the egg, slowly add some of the milk into the egg and keep whisking. This is to temper the egg so it won’t curdle when you add it to the milk. After that, gradually pour the egg mixture into pot and keep stirring. The mixture will thicken. It may not thicken as much but it will continue to thicken as it cools down. Remove from the heat and add vanilla extract and stir to combine.
  3. Let it cool down for about 5 minutes at room temperature. You can eat the pudding warm or chill it in the fridge after it has cooled down. Enjoy!