Agar Agar Dessert With Jackfruit, Coconut & Tropical Fruit: Vegan Layers

Q: How much agar agar do I use?

For the first layer, I add 1 3/4 tsp of agar agar to about 3 cups of cool water.

Agar Agar Dessert With Jackfruit, Coconut And Tropical Fruit.

An Easy, Refreshing Vegan Dessert In Layers, Wonderful For The Tropics And Summer.

Sets At Room Temperature, Then Chill It In The Fridge.

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Introduction to agar agar dessert

This agar agar dessert is built in three layers: a clear agar agar layer with chopped fruit, a coconut milk layer, and a jackfruit layer made with jackfruit puree. The fruit is ripe jackfruit, mango, white dragon fruit, strawberries and blueberries. Agar agar comes from seaweed, so the dessert is vegan and gluten free. Each layer sets before the next goes on, at room temperature, and then it can be chilled in the fridge.

It is easy, excellent and refreshing, and wonderful for the tropics and summer.

There are different ways to combine the layers, and I show three of them below. Made in a big mould, you could call it an agar agar fruit cake.

If you have any comments or questions, please contact us. Or chat with me at a Flametree yoga or meditation class via these timetables.

Agar agar dessert, in layers

Layered agar agar dessert with jackfruit, coconut milk, mango and blueberries on a green plate

Jackfruit, coconut, and fruit on top.

Ingredients for agar agar dessert

Here are the ingredients for this Flametree Yoga Studio dessert.

The fruit

1 medium size jackfruit, ripe, deseeded
1 ripe medium mango
1 white dragon fruit
1 punnet of strawberries
Blueberries

The layers

1 packet of agar agar (I use 1¾ tsp for the first layer)
About 3 cups of cool water, for the first layer
1 tin of coconut milk
Water, to thin the coconut milk
A pinch of salt

The tropical fruit

Chopped mango, white dragon fruit, strawberries and blueberries ready for an agar agar dessert

Cut the fruit into small, even pieces.

Inside a ripe jackfruit

A ripe jackfruit cut open, showing the yellow fruit pods and seeds, for a jackfruit dessert

Use oil on the knife.

Cleaned jackfruit

Bowl of cleaned yellow jackfruit pieces with the seeds removed

Seeds out, and ready for the puree.

How to make agar agar dessert

Use these steps to make this layered vegan dessert.

Step 1: Prepare the fruit

Cut the fruit into small, even size pieces.
Cut up the ripe jackfruit. Use oil on the knife.
Remove the seeds and clean up the jackfruit.
Keep some jackfruit pieces aside. Put the rest into a mixer and make a jackfruit puree.

Step 2: Layer 1, clear agar agar with fruit

Place about 3 cups of cool water into a saucepan. Add 1¾ tsp of agar agar.
Place on the stove, stir and bring to the boil. Stir continuously.
Boil for 2 minutes.
Pour into the base of your mould, and add some chopped fruit.

Step 3: Layer 2, coconut milk

Place 1 cup of coconut milk into a saucepan, and add ¼ cup of water to thin it.
Add agar agar, and cook as above. Add a pinch of salt.
When layer 1 is set, add layer 2.

Step 4: Layer 3, jackfruit

Cook the jackfruit puree with agar agar, stirring continually, then put it aside.
Add in chopped fruit.
When layer 2 is set, pour layer 3 on top.

Step 5: Set and chill

Leave to set at room temperature.
Then place it in the fridge to chill.

Three ways to combine the layers

There are different ways to combine the layers. Here are three I have made.

Strawberries and blueberries on top

Agar agar cubes of jackfruit on the bottom, coconut milk next, and a third layer of strawberries and blueberries.

Jackfruit, coconut, then berries.

The agar agar fruit cake

Jackfruit agar agar on the base, coconut milk as the second layer, and a third layer of jackfruit puree, jackfruit pieces, mango, dragon fruit slices and blueberries. Made in a big mould like this, you could call it an agar agar fruit cake.

Large square agar agar fruit cake with jackfruit puree, mango, dragon fruit and blueberries set in layers

The big one: an agar agar fruit cake.

Thick jackfruit puree on top

A first layer of agar agar with a strawberry piece. Wait until it sets, then add a coconut agar agar layer. Wait until that sets, then add a thick jackfruit puree, and top with jackfruit pieces. The puree may need a little water to thin it.

Small agar agar desserts with strawberry, coconut and a thick jackfruit puree layer on a plate

Strawberry, coconut, then thick jackfruit puree.

A simpler jackfruit version

For a quicker one, add 1¾ tsp of agar agar to 3 cups of cold water in a saucepan. Stir, bring to the boil and cook for around 5 to 8 minutes. Pour into moulds with a few slices of jackfruit as the first layer, and wait until it sets. Then add roughly blended jackfruit with more agar agar and some sliced jackfruit on top. Wait until it sets, and place it in the fridge to cool. Turn it out and serve with coconut yoghurt.

Is agar agar vegan?

Yes. Agar agar comes from seaweed, not from animals like gelatine does. That makes this a vegan dessert, and it is gluten free too.

How do you cut a jackfruit?

Use oil on the knife. Cut it up, remove the seeds and clean up the yellow fruit, then cut it into small, even pieces.

How much vitamin C is in jackfruit?

Raw jackfruit has about 13.7 mg of vitamin C, 1.5 g of fibre and 95 calories in every 100 g, according to the USDA FoodData Central database.

Agar agar dessert: quick questions answered

Does agar agar set at room temperature?

Yes. Leave each layer to set at room temperature before adding the next. Then you can place it in the fridge to chill.

How much agar agar do I use?

For the first layer, I add 1¾ tsp of agar agar to about 3 cups of cool water.

Can I change the order of the layers?

Yes. There are different ways to combine the layers. Try jackfruit on the bottom with berries on top, or a thick jackfruit puree on top.

What do you serve it with?

I like it turned out and served with coconut yoghurt.

What is an agar agar fruit cake?

It is this dessert made in one big mould, with layers of agar agar, coconut milk and fruit.

More Flametree agar agar and tropical desserts

If you like this, try my mango pudding with agar agar and coconut milk, my coconut jelly with agar and berries, my mango sago with dragon fruit, or my savoury jackfruit curry with sweet potato.

Do you have a vegan recipe or dish you’d like to share?

Please contact me with any dishes you’d like to share with me.

Obviously, I’m especially interested in any dish that is already a great Darwin vegan option.

Alternatively, it may be a potential vegan Darwin recipe that I could adapt, or be inspired by.

Experience eating alternatives at a Flametree Yoga Retreat

By the way, there are several upcoming Flametree yoga retreats in Bali in 2027.

Contact us for details of our Darwin yoga retreat packages, or our yoga class packages in the orange lines below.

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Learning to eat mindfully, as a result of yoga and pranayama meditation, is a great way to start more of a vegetarian or vegan journey, or simply mindfully eat whatever you choose.