“Taho….taho….taho….”
Early mornings in the Philippines, you’ll normally hear the man selling this warm, caramel tofu pudding calling out these words. He would have two metal pails balanced by a bamboo rod on his shoulders. Totally hard work, but surely, it made our day.
Kids and adults alike would wait patiently, holding their little cups, glass containers, and tumblers, for the taho vendor to come by their home. I remember a several times our nanny got a whole Coleman cooler (a gallon one I believe) for us. It’s that delicious!
Everyone asks for extra caramel, as it is the highlight of this sweet dessert/breakfast in a cup.
So…it’s been a while since I’ve had that taho that you can purchase. Taho here in the US is mostly an anemic cousin of the real stuff, flavor wise and texture wise. What to do but make it yourself, right?
I had been making soy milk and sometimes tofu for a while now but I never made a super soft, silky tofu like taho should be. It literally disintegrates when jiggled. I tried to make it but it just curdled, not really forming any solid you could scoop up. Oh well…
My co worker Lisette gave me this tofu mix a few months back. She said they use it to make taho, and you just need the sago pearls and the caramel and you’re good to go. Since my “from scratch” tofu pudding failed, I reached for the box and tried it.
It worked beautifully! See my photo below! And it’s super easy to make!
All you’ll need are the following:
For the tofu pudding:
1 box (6.06oz) Tofu mix
10 cups water
For the caramel:
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup water
For the tapioca pearls:
1/2 cup Tapioca pearls
5 cups water
To make the tofu pudding:
Mix 10 cups water with the tofu packet mixture in a large saucepan. That is the big envelope in the tofu box. Set over medium heat. Bring to a boil.
Stir constantly with a whisk. Lower heat and for 3 minutes.
Add the coagulant, which is in the smaller white envelope, into the mixture, slowly. Give it a quick stir. And stop.
Remove from heat. Cover. Set aside to set. Do not touch or move it while it is setting. I just left it to set in the saucepan I cooked it in. 😊
In the meantime, prepare the Caramel.
Place 1 cup dark brown sugar and 1/2 cup water in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium low heat. When it comes to a boil, lower heat and simmer until the sugar is dissolved and the caramel is slightly thickened, about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Set aside to cool completely.
For the Sago Pearls,
Bring 5 cups water to boil. Add 1/2 cup sago. Simmer for about 20 – 30 minutes until translucent. Drain and rinse. Place in a bowl of water until ready to use.
To assemble your “taho”
Using a spoon, carefully scrape thin layers of the warm tofu pudding into a glass, cup, or bowl. You only want a few spoonfuls as we will be layering this with the other ingredients.
*If the tofu is getting watery, scoop out and discard the excess water.*
Next, place a spoonful or two of the cooked tapioca pearls in.
Then a spoonful or two of the caramel(I always add more when no one is looking! It’s super delicious!).
Continue layering until you fill the glass almost to the top. I am stopping midway as I might eat everything at one go.
Remember to wipe of any caramel that dripped outside the glass! It will be a sticky mess if you don’t!
You can eat this with a spoon, as we do, or stir it up and drink it like I see some folks do.
Either way, it is a nutritious and very delicious breakfast/snack/dessert.
I hope you all like this!
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