Here’s a delicious Baked Sago Pudding recipe for you, Tastebud! Sago, is sourced from the pith of the sago palm and can be used in various cuisines and in various recipes. I personally think it’s best when served warm with a few dollops of apricot jam which adds a slight tartness to each bite. Also, serving it with some ice cream is never a bad idea.
In the past I’ve also topped the baked sago pudding with castor sugar and crème brûlée the top and of course, I can highly recommend you give that a try. I did still add a light coating of apricot jam on top of the hardened sugar so this was obviously a sweeter version but the textures blew my mind! Sago pearls are similar in appearance to the pearled starches of other origins, e.g. cassava starch (tapioca) and potato starch. They may be used interchangeably in some dishes, and tapioca pearls are often marketed as “sago”, since they are much cheaper to produce. Compared to tapioca pearls, real sago pearls are off-white, uneven in size, brittle and cook very quickly. Some recipes had whole eggs to the warm sago mixture and others first separate the eggs and then fold in the whipped egg whites. I grew up eating the latter and I think it delivers a light and airy texture to the sago pudding with a light crust on top that’s absolutely divine.
Check the recipe video below to get an idea of how to make this!
Baked Sago Pudding
Equipment
- 1 Large Saucepan
- 1 Ovenproof Baking Dish
- 1 Larger Roasting Pan
Ingredients
- 180 grams sago or tapioca pearls
- 2 tsp butter
- 1 liter full cream milk
- ¼ tsp cinnamon or 1 cinnamon stick
- 2 large eggs
- 5 tbsp sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla essence
- ⅛ tsp salt
- 4-5 tbsp apricot jam
Instructions
- Start by soaking the sago pearls in 1 1/4 cups room temperature water. Soak for 30 minutes.
- Preheat your oven to 160 degrees celsius and coat your serving dish with 1 tsp butter - the dish size I used was 26cm L x 17cm W x 7cm H.
- Line a large saucepan with the remaining 1 tsp butter (this'll prevent the milk and cinnamon from burning). To the buttered saucepan, pour in 1 liter milk and 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon (or cinnamon stick if you prefer). If you add the ground cinnamon to warm milk it'll clump up so make sure your milk is room temperature/cold when you add it in. Whisk until the cinnamon has distributed.
- Bring the milk to a simmer. Once simmering, add the soaked sago and any remaining liquid. Simmer on a medium heat for 5 minutes or until the sago turns translucent. Stir continuously. Set aside.
- Separate 2 large eggs and place the egg yolks in one bowl and the egg whites in another. Add the sugar, vanilla essence and salt to the egg yolks and whisk. Add the egg yolk mixture to the sago while stirring to prevent the eggs from scrambling.
- Then whisk the egg whites until stiff peaks form. Fold the egg whites in to the sago and pour the mixture into the prepared dish.
- Place the dish in a larger baking pan, then fill with warm water until it comes about halfway up the sides of the dish. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until it’s golden brown on top and has a lovely jiggle to it.
- Immediately top with 4 tbsp apricot jam and spread. Serve whilst the sago is still warm and enjoy!