Mung Bean Dessert With Coconut Milk, Pandan & Banana

Mung Bean Dessert With Coconut Milk, Pandan And Banana.

A Vegan, Gluten Free, Low Sugar Dessert That Doubles As Breakfast Porridge.

Soak Overnight, Then Cook For About 15 To 20 Minutes. A Bali Retreat Favourite.

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Introduction to mung bean dessert

Mung bean dessert is soaked mung beans simmered with coconut milk, banana, pandan, lemongrass, ginger and warm spices like cinnamon, cloves and allspice, until the beans are tender. It’s vegan and gluten free, and you can make it with a little palm sugar or none at all. You soak the beans overnight, and the cooking takes around 15 to 20 minutes. I eat it as a dessert, or as a warm breakfast porridge.

I first ate it for breakfast at a Flametree Bali yoga retreat, and then learnt how to make it in the free cooking class there. It’s also called mung bean dessert soup, or mung bean coconut dessert.

I’d always shied away from mung beans, simply because I had no idea how to cook them, or how delicious and sustaining they could be. Like lentils, they have a bit of a bad name. They don’t deserve it!

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Mung bean dessert, ready to eat

Mung bean dessert with coconut milk, served with fruit

Another dish I discovered when someone else was cooking for me, at a Flametree retreat in Bali. Serve it with whatever fruit you like.

Ingredients for mung bean dessert

Here are the ingredients for this Flametree Yoga Studio dish.

The beans and coconut milk

1 cup of dry mung beans
3 cups of water
2 to 3 cups of coconut milk, ideally organic
Salt, to taste
2 bananas, to cook in the dessert
A dessert spoon of palm sugar, or less, or none if you wish

The flavour

1 pandan leaf
2 sticks of lemongrass
A piece of ginger, left whole
A stick of cinnamon, or half a teaspoon of ground cinnamon
A quarter of a teaspoon of ground cloves
Half a teaspoon of allspice
A vanilla pod, scraped out

To serve

Fruit of your choice, like berries, kiwi fruit or more banana
Coconut yoghurt

You’ll usually find pandan leaves at Asian supermarkets. Lemongrass sticks are at any Woolies supermarket.

The mung bean dessert ingredients

Dry mung beans and other main ingredients for mung bean dessert with coconut milk

Some of the main ingredients. The cloves and vanilla pod aren’t in the picture. The vanilla and cinnamon are especially important for a delicious taste.

How to make mung bean dessert

Use these steps to make this mung bean coconut milk dessert, or breakfast porridge.

Step 1: Soak the beans overnight

Soak the mung beans in water overnight.
The next day, rinse the mung beans.

Step 2: Boil the beans

Put the beans in a saucepan on the stove with 3 cups of water and the salt.
Bring to the boil, then simmer.

Step 3: Add the coconut milk, flavours and banana

Add the coconut milk, pandan leaf, lemongrass, ginger, palm sugar, cinnamon, cloves, allspice and the vanilla scraped from inside the pod.
Add quite big chunks of banana, so they won’t disappear when cooked.

Step 4: Cook until tender

Cook until the beans are tender, stirring now and then. This could take around 15 to 20 minutes.
Test as you go. You want cooked, firm mung beans that are not crunchy or mushy.

Step 5: Serve

Serve with fruit of your choice, such as berries, kiwi fruit or more sliced banana, and coconut yoghurt.

Is mung bean dessert vegan and gluten free?

Yes. This one is made with mung beans, coconut milk, banana, spices and a little palm sugar, so it’s vegan and gluten free. Serve it with coconut yoghurt to keep it vegan.

Can you eat mung bean dessert for breakfast?

Yes. That’s how I first ate it, as a warm, sustaining breakfast porridge at the Bali retreat.

Mung beans are a legume, like lentils, so they add some plant protein to your breakfast. Top it with fruit and coconut yoghurt.

How do you make mung bean dessert low in sugar?

Use less palm sugar, or leave it out. The banana, vanilla and cinnamon give plenty of flavour.

Also take care with how much fruit you add, because fruit has some sugar too.

Mung bean dessert: quick questions answered

How long does mung bean dessert take to make?

Soak the beans overnight. The next day, the cooking takes around 15 to 20 minutes.

How do I know when the mung beans are cooked?

Test them as you go. You want them cooked and firm, not crunchy and not mushy.

Why add the banana in big chunks?

So the banana doesn’t disappear into the dessert as it cooks.

Where can I buy pandan leaves?

Usually at Asian supermarkets. Lemongrass sticks are easy to find at Woolies.

Where did this mung bean dessert recipe come from?

I learnt it in the free cooking class at a Flametree Bali yoga retreat, after eating it there for breakfast.

More Flametree coconut milk desserts

Love coconut milk desserts? Try my sago dessert with coconut milk, my quinoa coconut milk dessert, or my Indonesian black rice pudding, another recipe from the Bali retreat cooking class.

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, as I did here.

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.