Making Your Own Tapioca Pudding—If you ask around, you could find that tapioca pudding is the most divisive kind of pudding. The sight of it makes some people gag, while others like it. I totally belong to the "love it" group, maybe because I had the handmade kind when I was a kid. Delicious, creamy, and a timeless dessert, it never fails to please. As soon as you take a taste, all those carefree days of youth will flood back.
Even though I don't see many people making it these days, I still think it's best when cooked from scratch. When compared to the velvety smoothness of handmade pudding, store-bought falls well short. Fortunately, it's not hard to whip up!
Ingredients for Making Homemade Tapioca Pudding
3/4 cup of tiny pearl tapioca
Whole or 2% milk (4 cups) and 1/3 cup of white sugar
a trio of eggs
1/4 cup of white sugar plus an extra teaspoon of vanilla
A Guide to Making Your Own Tapioca Pudding at Home
After rinsing, place tapioca pearls in a small dish and add water to cover. Wait 45 to 60 minutes to soak.
In a large saucepan, combine the milk with the first quarter cup of sugar. Reduce heat to medium and simmer mixture. Toss in the tapioca pearls and bring to a simmer as soon as bubbles start to appear. Once the pearls start to become translucent, simmer for another fifteen to twenty minutes, stirring often.
Combine the eggs and the remaining 1/4 cup of sugar in a medium-sized bowl and beat while the pearls boil.
While stirring continuously, slowly add the heated mixture to the eggs, about 1/4 cup at a time. Keep going until the eggs have been beaten with half of the heated mixture.
With constant swirling, slowly transfer the contents of the egg bowl to the pot.
Keep cooking for another three to five minutes, or until the pudding begins to thicken; it will thicken more while it cools.
Turn off the stove and mix in the vanilla extract. Chill before serving by transferring to serving plates.
