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This absolutely delicious dessert is made of a medley of sweet potatoes in purple, orange, and yellow color and also taro/yam serve in sweet and aromatic coconut milk broth studded with soft and chewy tapioca pearls.
It’s really hard for me not to love many of the coconut-based desserts, cake, or kue/kueh. It’s in my blood I suppose. Coconut is truly a quintessential ingredient in Southeast Asia. Bubur means porridge in Bahasa or Malay language. However, bubur cha cha or u ce ce is not the kind of porridge you would imagine, thick and creamy. The coconut milk is actually more watery compared to a dessert such as bubur sumsum or bubur candil. Bubur cha cha is very similar to kolak ubi pisang.
TYPES OF SWEET POTATOES AND TARO/YAM
I used three types of sweet potatoes here: purple, yellow, and orange
Orange, purple, yellow sweet potatoes
After you peel the sweet potatoes, you can see that the purple doesn’t have the obvious purple color until you cut it into smaller pieces, exposing the purple color inside
purple, yellow, and orange sweet potatoes
We like to call this yam in Asia, which is actually a taro. Yam in the U.S., usually refers to sweet potatoes and not taro. I usually like to get pre-peeled taro from the Asian market. I hate peeling the thick skin of taro. It makes my skin itches too.
HOW TO MAKE BUBUR CHA CHA / BUBUR U CE CE
1. Steam sweet potatoes and taro
Peel and cut the sweet potatoes and taro into bite-size cube. Steam over high heat for 10 minutes or until they are fork-tender but not mushy. Set aside after that
2. Boil tapioca pearls
The tapioca pearls I got do not need to be soaked. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add tapioca pearls and cook until they turn translucent and cooked through, about 10 minutes or so. Give them a stir every now and then to prevent sticking to the bottom of the pot. Turn off the heat and cover and let them sit for 10 minutes
Drain off the cooking liquid and rinse the pearls in cold running water. This will get rid of excess starch and prevent the pearls from clumping into each other. Let them soak in cold water while you prepare other things. Set aside
3. Prepare the sweet coconut broth
Place all ingredients for the sweet coconut broth in a large pot, except for the coconut milk. Bring to a gentle simmer to melt the sugar. Once the sugar melts, add the coconut milk. Take care not to boil the coconut milk or they will curdle. Have a taste and adjust to your preference. Turn off heat
4. Serve
Stir in the cooked sweet potatoes, taro, and tapioca pearls. Serve warm or at room temperature
Something so simple and humble is truly so awesome and satisfy that craving for sweet without overdoing it.
TIPS
1. Don’t overcook the sweet potatoes and taro or they will turn into mush when you stir them into the sweet coconut broth
2. Don’t overboil the coconut milk. Just cook until the sugar melts over medium-low heat. The broth will turn frothy if the coconut milk is boiled and “break”
3. Tapioca pearls are best kept at room temperature as they will harden if you refrigerate them. They can be kept at room temperature for 2-3 days
DID YOU MAKE THIS GOLDEN CRISPY SALTED EGG YOLK RECIPE?
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Bubur Cha Cha / Pengat (Nyonya Coconut Milk Dessert)
Ingredients
- 100 gr orange sweet potatoes about 2/3 cup
- 100 gr purple sweet potatoes about 2/3 cup
- 100 gr yellow sweet potatoes about 2/3 cup
- 200 gr taro about 1 1/3 cup
- 80 gr tapioca pearls small pearls, about 1/2 cup
Sweet coconut milk broth:
- 250 ml coconut milk about 1 cup
- 500 ml water about 2 cups
- 120 gr sugar about 1/2 cup+ 5 tsp, or more or less to your taste
- ¼ tsp salt
- 2 pandan leaves knotted
Instructions
Steam the sweet potatoes and taro:
- Peel and cut the sweet potatoes and taro into bite-size cube. Steam over high heat for 10 minutes or until they are fork-tender but not mushy. Set aside after that
Boil the tapioca pearls:
- The tapioca pearls I got do not need to be soaked. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add tapioca pearls and cook until they turn translucent and cooked through, about 10 minutes or so. Give them a stir every now and then to prevent sticking to the bottom of the pot. Turn off the heat and cover and let them sit for 10 minutes
- Drain off the cooking liquid and rinse the pearls in cold running water. This will get rid of excess starch and prevent the pearls from clumping into each other. Let them soak in cold water while you prepare other things. Set aside
- The pearls may appear to still have some cloudiness in the center, don't worry, as long as they are soft and chewy and not hard, they are cooked through
Prepare the sweet coconut broth:
- Place all ingredients for the sweet coconut broth, except for the coconut milk, in a large pot. Bring to a gentle simmer to melt the sugar. After the sugar melts, add coconut milk. Take care not to boil the coconut milk or they will curdle. Have a taste and adjust to your preference.Turn off heat
- Stir in the cooked sweet potatoes, taro, and tapioca pearls. Serve warm or at room temperature
*Nutrition facts are just estimates and calculated using online tools*
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE THESE DESSERTS
Kolak Ubi Pisang (Sweet potatoes, cassava, ube, and banana in coconut milk dessert)
Bubur Sum sum / Indonesian Sweet Coconut Rice Porridge
Bubur Candil
7 comments
loved this recipe! it’s my go to during colder months and a family favorite as it’s so simple to whip together
Another fantastic recipe!!
Happy you like it 🙂
This looks reallyyyy yummyyy! I’m looking for some sweet potato recipes and find this. Can’t wait to do it right now!!
Thank you for the recipe.
Hi Rosanna, I hope you like it if you have a chance to try it out!
My family like your BUBUR CHA CHA recipe very much and I had tried cooking it twice thank you for your lovely recipe
Hi Rewari, I’m glad you like it. It’s your family’s favorite too!