Haupia: Hawaiian Coconut Milk Pudding Squares
Inspired by techniques from Serious Eats.
Coconut milk and milk thickened with cornflour into a smooth, gently sweet pudding that sets firm enough to cut into squares.
Always check the labels of the products you use.
Method
- 1
Start cold. Whisk the sugar, cornflour and salt together in the saucepan before it goes on the heat, then slowly whisk in the coconut milk and milk. Mixing into cold liquid keeps the starch from forming lumps.
- 2
Thicken. Set over medium heat and whisk constantly for 6-8 min, until it bubbles and becomes thick and glossy.
- 3
Cook it out. Lower the heat and keep stirring with the spatula for another 10 min, reaching into the corners of the pan. This fully cooks the starch, so the pudding sets firm and loses any raw, floury taste.
- 4
Add vanilla. Take the pan off the heat and stir in the vanilla.
- 5
Chill to set. Pour into the tin without greasing it, level the top and press cling film onto the surface so no skin forms. Chill for at least 2 h until firm.
- 6
Cut and serve. Cut into 16 squares and serve cold, on a ti or banana leaf if you have one.
Storage
Keep covered in the fridge for up to 4 days. Do not freeze, as the texture turns spongy.
EU nutrition claims
- Low salt: 0.12 g salt per 100 g (limit ≤ 0.3 g)
Per 100 g of the finished dish, worked out from the nutrition per serving and the lowest likely cooked weight (about 81 g a serving), so the true values are, if anything, lower. Thresholds from the Annex to EU Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006. How we decide
Free sugars
9.4 g per serving
18.8 % of the 50 g daily maximum · 37.6 % of the ideal 25 g
Free sugars under 50 g a day, ideally about 25 g, based on WHO free-sugar guidance (not endorsed by WHO). The share shown is the share of one serving. WHO
Equipment
- medium heavy saucepan
- whisk
- silicone spatula
- 20 cm square tin
- cling film
- sharp knife
Nutrition per serving (estimated values)
| Per serving | Amount |
|---|---|
| Energy | 175 kcal |
| Protein | 2.4 g |
| Carbohydrate | 17.5 g |
| of which sugars | 11.8 g |
| of which free sugars | 9.4 g |
| Fat | 11.2 g |
| of which saturates | 9.5 g |
| Fibre | 0 g |
| Salt | 0.1 g |
Protein per 100 kcal
1.4 g High Protein needs ≥ 5 g (20% of energy)
Calculated from USDA FoodData Central ingredient values
