Tapioca

Subpopulus

Can somebody tell me what exactly it is, how you cook it, what you cook it in and where you can buy it? It baffles me.

I first heard about it as tapioca tea from Taiwan, known as bubble tea in the US. Does anyone know if this can be bought in Ireland?

shinikins

Tapioca pudding is one of my childhood favourites!!

You can buy it in the baking aisle of any supermarket, it looks like little bubble, and cook it up with sugar and milk, or cream to make pudding. We used to call it frogspawn as kids, as it kind of looks like it! Its a starch that is made from the root of the Cassava plant, or Mannioc, it can also be called Sago.

You can also use it to thicken soups when using ground tapioca/sago, and it can be baked. Its gluten free, so good for Coeliacs, and almost protien free.

I've never heard of Bubble Tea being sold here in Ireland, but I imagine if you checked the asian supermarkets you might find some there.

nompere

Tapioca pudding was one of my childhood nightmares. As shinikins says it was referred to as frogspawn - partly for the look, partly for the texture, and (though I never sampled the original) most of us reckoned partly for the taste.

Vile stuff, and the thought of it now still brings on the gag reflex.

Fortunately it was never part of school dinners, though its marginally more appetising cousin, semolina pudding, appeared with depressing regularity. There was an art (an important one at that) in avoiding the lumps. There was a nasty compulsory aspect to school dinners in those days.

shinikins

nompere wrote: »

Tapioca pudding was one of my childhood nightmares. As shinikins says it was referred to as frogspawn - partly for the look, partly for the texture, and (though I never sampled the original) most of us reckoned partly for the taste.

Vile stuff, and the thought of it now still brings on the gag reflex.

Fortunately it was never part of school dinners, though its marginally more appetising cousin, semolina pudding, appeared with depressing regularity. There was an art (an important one at that) in avoiding the lumps. There was a nasty compulsory aspect to school dinners in those days.

Ahhhh, I see where you went wrong nompere, semolina is awful bland stuff, made from finely milled durum wheat much like pasta, so it has no discernable flavour of its own. I only use it when making meatballs, or thickening sauces. Tapioca is quite sweet and even though the look may be offputting, its actually really nice!!

flikflak

You can buy the `bubbles` for the bubble tea in the Asian shops. You make a milky kind of sweet tea and add the bubbles. Was everywhere when I was in Taiwan.

the beer revolu

This is really good. (you'll get pandan leaves in any Asian shop - they have a very distinctive, very nice flavour)

tfak85

So can you eat the bubbles from the tea then? I got one in the states and got totally freaked out when the bubbles came up the straw!!

wmpdd3

How would I make Tapocia for a 10 month old baby, and possibly me! Would it be the same way yo make rice pudding?

shinikins

wmpdd3 wrote: »

How would I make Tapocia for a 10 month old baby, and possibly me! Would it be the same way yo make rice pudding?

The very same way, just use less sugar as it has a natural sweetness to it that rice lacks. Try cooking it with coconut milk rather than milk, its gorgeous, baby will thank you for it!!

gudwan

I always grimaced a the idea of tapioca but I had the lemon tapioca for dessert in The Pig's ear the other day and it was amazing. I must learn how to make it at home.