Nata De Coco Pudding: How To Make It And What To Buy

Nata de coco pudding is a chilled fruit or milk pudding with chewy cubes of nata de coco suspended in it, and you can make it at home with fruit nectar, agar powder, and nata de coco in about 2 hours. Ready-made versions also come in sealed packs and pudding cups, such as the Cocon range from Malaysia.

This guide explains what nata de coco pudding is, gives a simple recipe, shows how to keep the cubes from sinking, and lists substitutes when you have no mango nectar or coconut milk. It also covers storage, ready-made puddings, and how dessert makers source nata de coco. This guide comes from Nico Brands, the brand portfolio of Nico Trading Company Limited, a Vietnamese manufacturer and exporter of nata de coco drinks and bulk nata de coco.

What Is Nata De Coco Pudding?

Nata de coco pudding is a set dessert, usually fruit-flavored, that contains cubes of nata de coco, a chewy gel made by fermenting coconut water. Home cooks set the pudding with agar powder, while packaged puddings such as Cocon use seaweed extract as the gelling agent and add milk powder (Asia Market). Nata de coco consists of water and cellulose and tastes almost neutral (International Coconut Community), so the pudding’s flavor comes from the nectar, juice, or milk around it.

How Do You Make Nata De Coco Pudding?

To make nata de coco pudding, boil fruit nectar with agar powder, let it cool until it starts to set, stir in drained nata de coco, and chill the cups for 1 to 2 hours. The recipe below is adapted from Sift & Simmer’s mango pudding with nata de coco and makes 3 servings (Sift & Simmer).

Ingredients:

• 250 ml (8.5 fl oz) mango nectar
• ½ teaspoon agar powder
• 150 g (5.3 oz) nata de coco, drained (about half a can)

Method:

1. Combine the mango nectar and agar powder in a small saucepan and whisk.
2. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat and boil it for 1 to 2 minutes.
3. Remove the pan from the heat and let the mixture cool slightly.
4. Pour the mixture into serving cups, then add the nata de coco once the mixture starts to set.
5. Chill the cups in the refrigerator for 1 to 2 hours, until the pudding is firmly set.

How Do You Keep The Nata De Coco From Sinking?

Add the nata de coco after the pudding mixture has cooled and started to set, so the cubes stay suspended instead of sinking. If you put the nata de coco in the cups first and pour the hot mixture over it, the cubes sink to the bottom (Sift & Simmer). Drain the nata de coco well before you add it, so its syrup does not dilute the pudding.

What Can You Use Instead Of Mango Nectar Or Coconut Milk?

You do not need coconut milk for nata de coco pudding: the base recipe uses only fruit nectar, agar, and nata de coco, and you can swap the mango nectar for another nectar, a fruit juice, coconut milk, or dairy milk.

• Other nectars: lychee, peach, or guava nectar work with the same method.
• Fruit juice: use a sweetened juice, or add a little sugar, because plain juice tastes less sweet than nectar.
• Coconut milk: gives a creamy, white coconut pudding.
• Dairy milk: gives a milk pudding, similar to ready-made puddings that add milk powder.

Agar comes from red algae and works as a vegan substitute for gelatin (Wikipedia), so a pudding made with agar, nata de coco, and a plant-based liquid suits vegetarian and vegan diets.

How Long Does Nata De Coco Pudding Keep?

Keep homemade nata de coco pudding covered in the refrigerator and eat it within a few days, because it contains no preservatives. Ready-made pudding packs and cups carry a best-before date and storage instructions on the label, so follow those for packaged products.

Which Ready-Made Nata De Coco Puddings Can You Buy?

Cocon, a Malaysian brand, sells ready-made nata de coco pudding in single packs and in multipacks of small cups.

• Cocon Kingo Pudding with Nata de Coco: a 420 g (14.8 oz) lychee-flavor pack made with water, sugar, nata de coco, milk powder, lychee juice, seaweed extract, vegetable oil, citric acid, flavor, and emulsifier (Asia Market).
• Cocon pudding cups: 80 g (2.8 oz) cups sold six to a pack; the strawberry version contains 17% nata de coco (Joybuy).
• Cocon assorted pudding in the US: a 24.9 oz (706 g) pack priced at $4.99 at Food Bazaar, with 90 kcal and 12 g of sugar per serving (Food Bazaar).

Check the label for sugar per serving and for milk, an allergen that some ready-made puddings contain.

How Do Dessert Makers Source Nata De Coco?

Dessert makers buy nata de coco in bulk packs and add it to their own puddings, jellies, and drinks. Nico Trading supplies bulk nata de coco in 3.2 kg (7 lb) boxes, packed 4 per carton, and in 10 kg (22 lb) bags for pudding manufacturers, cafes, and bubble tea shops. For drinks rather than desserts, the Nico Nico juice drink with nata de coco contains 15% nata de coco and 30% not-from-concentrate (NFC) juice.

Nata De Coco Pudding: Key Takeaways

Nata de coco pudding is a set dessert with chewy nata de coco cubes suspended in fruit nectar, juice, or milk. At home, boil 250 ml (8.5 fl oz) of fruit nectar with ½ teaspoon of agar, add 150 g (5.3 oz) of drained nata de coco once the mixture starts to set, and chill it for 1 to 2 hours. You do not need coconut milk, though coconut milk or dairy milk makes a creamier version, and agar keeps the pudding gelatin-free. Ready-made puddings such as Cocon add milk powder and sugar, so read the label. For more, read what nata de coco is, more nata de coco recipes, whether nata de coco is vegetarian, and how to make pink nata de coco for a colorful pudding.