Easy Vietnamese desserts to make at home

The easiest Vietnamese desserts to make at home are the ones built on pantry staples: sweetened condensed milk, coconut milk, bananas, beans and eggs. Sữa chua (Vietnamese yogurt), chè chuối (banana coconut soup), bánh flan (caramel custard) and sinh tố (fruit smoothies) all need little equipment and no special skills.

Below is a short tour of six beginner-friendly options, with a full recipe for Vietnamese yogurt, which is much simpler than it sounds.

What makes a Vietnamese dessert "easy"?

Many Vietnamese sweets are light and not overly rich, and plenty of them skip the oven entirely. They're simmered on the stove, steamed, chilled or blended. That makes them friendly for small kitchens. The trickier desserts, like layered steamed cakes or delicate rice flour dumplings, take more practice. The ones below are a good place to start.

1. Sữa chua: Vietnamese yogurt

Vietnamese yogurt is sweet, tangy and silky, made with condensed milk and fresh milk, then set in small jars. It's sold everywhere in Vietnam, and people eat it plain, with ice, or with coffee as yogurt coffee.

Ingredients (about 8 small jars)

• 1 can (14 oz / 397 g) sweetened condensed milk
• 3 cups (720 ml) whole milk
• 1 cup (240 ml) hot water
• 1/2 cup (about 120 g) plain unsweetened yogurt with live cultures, at room temperature

Steps

• 1. Wash your jars and lids with very hot water and let them dry.
• 2. In a large bowl, whisk the condensed milk with the hot water until smooth. Whisk in the milk. The mixture should feel warm, like a baby's bottle, around 105 to 110°F (40 to 43°C). Warm it gently on the stove if needed.
• 3. In a small bowl, loosen the plain yogurt with a ladle of the warm milk mixture, then stir it back into the bowl. Stir gently; don't whisk hard.
• 4. Pour into the jars and cover.
• 5. Keep the jars warm for 6 to 8 hours so the cultures can set the yogurt. An oven with just the light on, a cooler filled with warm water, or a yogurt maker all work.
• 6. Once set, refrigerate for at least 4 hours before eating.

Save one jar as the starter for your next batch. Allergens: contains dairy. If the yogurt smells off, has unusual colors or doesn't set, throw it away and start fresh.

2. Chè chuối: banana and coconut soup

Ripe bananas simmered in coconut milk with small tapioca pearls, topped with roasted peanuts and sesame. It takes about 30 minutes and uses one pot. We have a full recipe in chè chuối.

3. Bánh flan: caramel custard

Vietnamese flan is smooth and less sweet than you might expect, often served with crushed ice and a drizzle of black coffee. You make a quick caramel, pour in an egg and milk custard, then steam or bake. Our bánh flan recipe walks through each step.

4. Sinh tố: Vietnamese smoothies

Sinh tố are blended fruit drinks, usually with condensed milk and ice. Avocado (sinh tố bơ) is the classic, but mango, soursop and strawberry are popular too. It's a five-minute dessert. Try our Vietnamese avocado smoothie.

5. Chè đậu đen: black bean sweet soup

This is one of the simplest chè. Soak dried black beans overnight, simmer until tender, then sweeten with sugar and a pinch of salt. Serve it warm, or chilled over ice with a spoonful of coconut cream. It's especially popular in summer in the North, where it's often eaten cold.

A rough starting point: 1 cup (200 g) dried black beans, 6 cups (1.4 liters) water and about 1/2 cup (100 g) sugar, adjusted to taste. Simmer the beans until soft, roughly 1 hour, before adding the sugar.

6. Rau câu: coconut jelly

Rau câu is jelly made with agar agar, a plant-based gelling agent from seaweed. Coconut versions are popular and sometimes layered with coffee or pandan. Agar sets at room temperature and holds firm even in warm weather, which makes it great for parties. We cover it in detail in our guide to rau câu.

Pantry staples to keep on hand

If you'd like to make these desserts regularly, a few ingredients cover most of them:

• Sweetened condensed milk
• Canned coconut milk and coconut cream
• Small tapioca pearls
• Dried mung beans and black beans
• Agar agar powder
• Pandan leaves or pandan extract
• Roasted peanuts and toasted sesame seeds

Most are available in Asian grocery stores and many large supermarkets.

A note on sweetness

Vietnamese desserts vary a lot in sweetness. Home cooks often adjust sugar to taste, and many prefer a lighter touch than restaurant versions. Start with less sugar than a recipe suggests, taste, and add more if needed.

Allergens to watch: peanuts and sesame appear in many toppings, coconut is used widely, and flan and yogurt contain eggs or dairy. Label dishes clearly when serving guests.

For more ideas, browse our list of Vietnamese desserts to know and try.

If you only try one this week, make the yogurt; it's mostly waiting, and the result is a classic Vietnamese café treat.