Smooth and delicate triple layered Green Tea Pudding with Japanese red bean paste, this delicious dessert is super easy to make at home.
Throughout the year I receive many requests for Japanese desserts, especially with matcha (green tea) as an ingredient. I hope this Green Tea Pudding (抹茶プリン) will satisfy some of the readers’ cravings. The Japanese enjoy this dessert all year round, and it’s a perfect little sweet to end a meal.
Easy Green Tea Pudding Recipe
This pudding dessert is very easy to make. As long as you have a few hours before guests come, you can quickly make it and still have enough time to chill the pudding in the fridge. It requires just a few ingredients and if you never made pudding desserts before, this is a perfect one to try.
The way I make it results in 3 different layers so it’s quite pretty. The very bottom layer is Japanese anko (red bean paste), the soft bean texture of the red beans contrasts really well with the smooth pudding.
As the pudding settles, the heavy red beans stay at the bottom. The middle layer is created by green tea powder settling, resulting in a darker color and more intense flavor than the top layer. As you scoop your spoon through the different layers, you enjoy both the delicate texture a well as the aromatic green tea with sweet red bean in one bite.
Use Gelatin Sheet for Green Tea Pudding
As I mentioned in the Orange Jelly post, I’ve been using gelatin sheets (or gelatin leaf) since I can’t stand the gelatin powder’s strong smell. The strong smell ruins the taste and smell of the desserts or the dishes it’s used in. The brand of gelatin sheet that I like is this PerfectaGell from Amazon.
The gelatin sheets are very thin and almost translucent. Each sheet is 2.5 grams and there are 20 sheets in the package.
The best part about these gelatin sheets is there is almost no smell at all (at least for me). The instructions are also very easy so if you have been reluctant to make jelly because of the awful gelatin powder smell, definitely try the gelatin sheets!
Ever since I started using gelatin sheets, I’m really enjoying making pudding and jelly desserts that I was hesitant to make before.
If you’re vegetarian or vegan, you can use Kanten powder which is plant-based. In general, 1 tsp gelatin powder gelatin is about the same as ½ tsp kanten powder.
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Green Tea Pudding
Ingredients
- 1 ½ Tbsp matcha (green tea powder)
- 2 gelatin sheet(s)/powder (2 sheets are equivalent to 5 g gelatin powder; The gelatin sheets are odor-less, and I highly recommend this brand.)
- 2 Tbsp hot water
- 1 ¼ cup whole milk
- ¼ cup sugar (4 Tbsp)
- 3 Tbsp red bean paste (anko)
- whipped cream (optional)
Instructions
- Gather all the ingredients.
- Sift 1 ½ Tbsp green tea powder into a medium bowl. If you have a Chasen (bamboo tea whisk), you can whisk the sieve so there will be no green tea powder left inside. Set aside.
- If you are using gelatin sheets, cut 2 gelatin sheets into thin ½ inch (1.3 cm) strips in a medium bowl. Please make sure to use a heat resistant bowl as we will need to melt the gelatin with a double boiler (Step 2). If you are using gelatin powder, put 5 g gelatin powder in a medium bowl. Once the gelatin sheet/powder is in the bowl, pour 2 Tbsp hot water and mix.
- In a small saucepan, bring roughly ½ cup of water to simmer and place the bowl of gelatin mixture over the saucepan. The steam will immediately warm up the glass bowl and start dissolving the gelatin. Once dissolved, remove from the heat and set aside.
- Pour 1 ¼ cup (300 ml) whole milk in a small saucepan and bring it to almost boil. When you see the small bubbles around the edge of the saucepan, turn off the heat.
- Add ¼ cup (4 Tbsp, 50 g) granulated sugar and whisk well to dissolve the sugar.
- Add 3 Tbsp of milk mixture into the green tea powder. Whisk with Chasen (or small whisk) until the mixture is silky smooth and you don’t see any lumps of dry green tea powder left (very important!).
- Pour the green tea mixture into the milk mixture and whisk all together. If you dissolved all the powder at previous step, this step should be very easy and matcha powder should blend very well and easily.
- Add the gelatin liquid into the green tea mixture and whisk well.
- Put 3 Tbsp (40 g) anko (red bean paste) in a medium bowl and pour some of green tea mixture into red bean paste. Combine well. The green tea mixture will loosen up the red bean paste. Divide the red bean & green tea mixture into each serving cup.
- Pour the green tea mixture on top. Chill in the refrigerator for 2 hours. Once the pudding has solidified, add whipped cream on top and sprinkle matcha powder to decorate. Serve chilled.
To Store
- You can store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Notes
- 1 sheet gelatin = 2-3 g powdered gelatin, or approx 1 tsp
- 3 ½ sheets = approx 1 envelope Knox gelatin
- 4 sheets = approx 1 Tbsp powdered gelatin
- 1 tsp gelatin powder = ½ tsp kanten powder
- 1 tsp gelatin powder = 1 tsp agar powder
