how to make pandan juice and extract

How to Make Pandan Juice and Pandan Extract

When visiting an Asian market, you might often come across long and narrow leaves and wonder what they are used for. Pandan leaves are known for their very fragrant aroma. In Vietnam, people use them to enhance the taste and aroma of many dishes. Having prepared numerous dishes with these leaves, I feel compelled to create a post introducing this amazing ingredient. Today, I will introduce to you to their origins and how we can use them in different dishes. Let’s discover why they are so important in Southeast Asian cuisine, and how to make pandan juice/ pandan extract for cooking.

What are Pandan Leaves

Pandan leaves resemble long, green ribbons that come from a special plant called Pandanus amaryllifolius. These leaves possess a unique aroma and flavor that distinguish them in cooking. Due to their pleasant aroma and vibrant green color, they are used to color desserts and as a substitute for vanilla.

Pandan leaves
Pandan plant

Pandan leaves can be in many Southeast Asian countries, including Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Vietnam. That’s where they naturally grow. I remember my mom bringing home a bunch of leaves on special occasions, making juice from them, and using the juice to prepare syrup, mung bean milk, mung bean milk tea, Vietnamese steamed layer cake (banh da lon), Vietnamese tapioca dessert (che bot loc), Pandan Rice Cake (Banh duc la dua). They are also used to dye foods such as glutinous rice balls (che troi nuoc) and many more, acting as a natural coloring agent.

Thanks to the wonderful characteristics of pandan leaves, they are now exported worldwide and utilized not only in Southeast Asian dishes but also in many others, such as Pandan Belgian waffles, Italian panna cotta, French macarons, or Chinese mantou.

Nutritional Benefits

Inside those long, green pandan leaves, there are some really beneficial components for your health. Pandan leaves contain vitamins, minerals, and natural substances that are much healthier than artificial food coloring. Therefore, when you use pandan leaves in cooking, you’re adding a touch of goodness to your food.

In Southeast Asia, many people use pandan leaves as a form of medicine. People believe that pandan leaves can relieve various health issues, including stomach discomfort and pain. In traditional Chinese medicine, Pandan leaves are commonly used to treat conditions such as joint pain, gout, cough, bronchitis. It is also used regulate blood sugar levels in individuals with type 2 diabetes.

When you eat food that includes pandan leaves, you’re not just enhancing the taste; you’re also benefiting from some healthy components. While they may not work like magic, they can contribute to a meal that is both good for your body and delicious.

Glutinous rice balls
Green glutinous rice balls dyed by pandan extract

Moreover, these leaves can be used in beauty care, as Southeast Asian women believe. During the scorching summer months, immersing oneself in a bath infused with pandan tea can effectively soothe sunburned skin. Alternatively, you can create a nourishing hair treatment by boiling clean and chopped pandan leaves, and letting the water concentrate overnight. Mix this concentrated solution with three tablespoons of coconut water and use it for a scalp massage and hair wash. This natural remedy can promote lustrous hair. Mixing the solution with regular shampoo can help treat dandruff and prevent hair loss.

Making Pandan Juice And Pandan Extract For Cooking

There are three methods to harness all the benefits of pandan leaves in cooking.

  • Method 1: Direct method. You can use the whole leaves to roast or simmer with other foods and ingredients, such as roasting glutinous rice with chopped pandan leaves, or boiling them with milk to add fragrance. I also enjoy decorating drinks, like pumpkin milk, with fresh pandan leaves too.
pumpkin milk
Decorate pumpkin milk with pandan leaves
  • Method 2: Making pandan juice. With pandan juice, it’s easy to dye dough, from rice, glutinous rice to wheat flour dough. Add pandan juice directly to mung bean paste and milk mixture to make mung bean milk. Additionally, you can boil pandan juice and make tea with it, then add it to mung bean milk to create mung bean milk tea. Pandan syrup is made by cooking this juice with sugar. Vietnamese steamed layer cake (banh da lon) and Vietnamese tapioca dessert (banh phu the) both use the juice as an irreplaceable ingredient.
  • Method 3: Making pandan extract. For the extract, I usually use it for naturally dyeing food, often combined with beetroot. I enjoy using it to dye snowskin mooncakes, Vietnamese glutinous rice balls, and Western dishes like panna cotta and bread.

Let me share with you how to make pandan juice and pandan extract for cooking.

How To Make Pandan Juice and Pandan Extract

You’ll need:

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Steps to Make Pandan Juice

  • Prepare the Pandan Leaves: Wash the pandan leaves thoroughly to remove any dirt. Cut them into smaller pieces, around 2-3 inches long. This helps release their flavor and makes it easier to add them into the blender.
How to make pandan juice and extract
  • Blending the Pandan Leaves: Put the cut pandan leaves into the blender. To make pandan juice, add about 2 cups of water and blend them together until you get a bright green mixture. To make Pandan Extract, don’t add water, or add just 1 tbsp of water if the blender finds it hard to blend.
how to make pandan juice
  • Straining the Juice: Place a strainer over a clean bowl or jug. Pour the blended pandan mixture through the strainer to separate the liquid from the solid bits. You’ll be left with the pandan juice/pandan extract in the bowl. You can use cheesecloth, or even your hands, to squeeze out all the remaining liquid to extract more juice.
how to make pandan juice and extract
  • Chilling the Juice/ Storing: You can enjoy pandan juice right away or chill it for a while. Put it in the fridge with an airtight cover. To store the extract and juice for longer, label and freeze them for up to 3 months.

Pandan Recipes Ideas

There are plenty of pandan recipes for you to try. The most traditional and typical dishes are from Southeast Asian cuisine. Moreover, consider using pandan extract whenever you need natural green coloring. Let’s try these recipes:

Pandan Juice

Pandan Extract for dyeing or adding aroma:

how to make pandan juice and extract

Making Pandan Juice and Pandan Extract

Yield: 500ml juice/ 10ml extract
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 15 minutes

Let's discover why they are so interesting in Southeast Asian food, and how to make pandan juice/ pandan extract for cooking.

Ingredients

  • 10-15 Fresh or frozen pandan leaves
  • For Pandan Juice only: 2 cups of water

Instructions

  • Prepare the Pandan Leaves: Wash the pandan leaves thoroughly to remove any dirt. Cut them into smaller pieces, around 2-3 inches long. This helps release their flavor and it’s also easier to add into blender.pandan juice and pandan extract
  • Blending the Pandan Leaves: Put the cut pandan leaves into the blender. To make pandan juice, add about 2 cups of water and blend them together until you get a bright green mixture. To make Pandan Extract, don’t add water or just add 1 tbsp of water if the blender finds it hard to blend.how to make pandan juicehow to make pandan juice
  • Straining the Juice: Place a strainer over a clean bowl or jug. Pour the blended pandan mixture through the strainer to separate the liquid from the solid bits. You'll be left with the pandan juice/ pandan extract in the bowl. You can use cheesecloth, or even your hands, to squeeze all the leftover to get more juices.how to make pandan juice and extract
  • Chilling the Juice/ Storing: You can enjoy pandan juice right away or chill them for a while. Put it in the fridge with air-tight cover. To store the extract and juice for longer, label and freeze them up to 3 months.Pandan juice

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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 1 Serving Size: 500ml
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 48

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