Tapioca Pudding Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What are the little balls in tapioca pudding made of? ›

Looking at a tapioca pearl, you may think, “What are these made out of?” These white little balls that give tapioca pudding its signature texture actually come from the starch of the cassava root, which is grown in the tropics. After this starch is extracted, it's formed into little pearls.

It can also be a tasty, nutritious food choice for people who need to gain weight. In moderation, tapioca can play a role in a healthful eating plan. People should keep in mind that many tapioca recipes, such as tapioca pudding and bubble tea, have additional calories and fat from added sugar, milk, or cream.

This delicious old-fashioned Tapioca Pudding recipe is one of my favorite classic desserts and only requires the simplest ingredients, including small tapioca pearls, milk, cream, sugar, eggs, and vanilla.

Tapioca pudding is historically the most common tapioca dish in the U.S. It's made using tapioca pearls, which are small, white balls with no flavor that are used mostly in sweet recipes. They swim in a sweet, custardy pudding made with milk, eggs, and sugar.

The tapioca pearls in bubble tea, also known as bubbles or boba, have a jelly-like texture and are made with tapioca starch, making it completely safe for human consumption. On the other hand, popping bubbles are made from water, fruit juice, sugar, and plant-based Alginic acid, which also makes them safe to eat.

The tapioca is what's leftover when you make manioc flour from the cassava root. The Portuguese brought it on their ships and spread it throughout Africa, Asia, and the West Indies. Tapioca can take many forms, but the small pearls are what's used to make tapioca pudding.

Regarding nutritional value, tapioca, and rice pudding are high in carbohydrates and calories, but tapioca pudding is typically lower in fat than rice pudding. Tapioca pudding and rice pudding are both gluten-free, making either a good option for those with celiac disease or gluten intolerance.

Tapioca is very high in carbohydrates, providing nearly 89 grams per 100-gram serving. The majority of carbohydrates in tapioca comes from starch. Just under one gram is from fiber and 3.35 grams come from sugar.

When processed properly, tapioca does not seem to have many negative health effects. Most negative health effects come from consuming poorly processed cassava root. Furthermore, tapioca may be unsuitable for people with diabetes since it's almost pure carbs.

By adding different ingredients, like water, sugar, or some other type of sweetener like honey, tapioca pearls can be made to vary in color and in texture. Various forms of tapioca pearls include black, flavored, popping, mini, and clear. Tapioca pearls are commonly soaked in sugar syrup to make them sweet and chewy.

Why do people like tapioca pudding? ›

It's creamy, sweet, hearty and comforting, with squishy pearls that are fun to eat. It's also not a bad choice for dessert, as tapioca is made from a starchy root vegetable — cassava — that has no fat, gluten or protein.

British schoolchildren have traditionally nicknamed the dish frog spawn, due to its appearance. The Guardian described it as "Britain's most hated school pudding", with names such as fish eyes, frogspawn and eyeball pudding.

Tapioca pudding tastes very much like vanilla pudding only its texture is quite different. While still delicately creamy and smooth, it's tapioca's distinctly pearly texture that turns some people off. Tapioca pudding has a reputation for resembling fish eggs, but they are nothing like such.

In general, you'll use about 6–8 cups (1,400–1,900 mL) of water for 1 cup (150 grams) of dry tapioca pearls. Using enough water is important because the pearls will absorb tons of water while they cook; not using enough could cause them to turn gummy and stick together.

Unfortunately, boba itself provides very few health benefits, though its calories and carbohydrates can provide you with a boost in energy. In most cases, boba tea contains high levels of sugar, which is linked to long-term health conditions like diabetes and obesity.

You can use tapioca flour to make pearls, or buy pearls. Tapioca pearls are used to make puddings, like Kay Chun's Coconut Tapioca Pudding with Mango and Lime or Bill Kim's Bubble Sundaes with Peach-Blueberry Compote.

Chemically, tapioca pearls form from hot water loosening the polymer structure of the tapioca flour until hydrogen bonds form and the flour gelatinizes. Once the flour mixture cools, it hardens and turns into the chewy, elastic balls we know and love today.

Cooked tapioca pearls are often used in bubble tea, a cold, sweet beverage. Bubble tea, also known as boba tea, usually consists of brewed tea with tapioca pearls, syrup, milk, and ice cubes. Bubble tea is often made with black tapioca pearls, which are like the white pearls but have brown sugar blended into them.