Creamy Tapioca Pudding – A Classic Comfort Dessert
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Soaking Time: 4 hours
Servings: 4
This creamy tapioca pudding is a nostalgic dessert made with just a few pantry staples. Gently cooked with milk and egg yolks until soft and luscious, it’s gluten free, comforting, and simple. Serve warm or chilled — with or without a spoonful of homemade berry jam on top.
Ingredients
For the Tapioca Pudding
- ½ cup small tapioca pearls
- 1 cup water for soaking
- Pinch of salt
- 3 cups whole milk or any milk you prefer
- 2 egg yolks
- ¼ cup sugar any type — raw, caster, brown, coconut, etc.
- ½ teaspoon vanilla essence
For the Easy Berry Jam:
- 500 g about 2 cups frozen berries (mixed berries, raspberries, strawberries, etc.)
- 1 - 2 cups icing sugar to taste
- 1 teaspoon cornflour
- 1 tablespoon water
- 2 tablespoons Chambord liqueur (optional)
Instructions
Soak the Tapioca
- Place the tapioca pearls in a container with the water.
- Cover and refrigerate for 4 hours. After soaking, rinse the pearls thoroughly and drain well.
Cook the Pudding
- In a heavy-based saucepan, combine the soaked tapioca, salt & milk.
- In a separate bowl, whisk the egg yolks and set aside.
- Place the saucepan over low heat and bring to a gentle boil, stirring frequently.
- Once the mixture boils, reduce heat and simmer gently for a few minutes, until the pearls become translucent and the mixture thickens.
Sweeten & Add Eggs
- Stir in sugar gradually, stirring until fully dissolved.
- Temper the egg yolks: Slowly whisk in a ladle of the hot tapioca mixture to the whisked egg yolks, then add another. Then tip the egg mixture back into the pot with the rest of the tapioca and simmer gently for another 2 minutes.
- Remove from heat and stir in vanilla essence.
- Spoon into serving dishes. Enjoy warm, or chill in the fridge — it will firm up as it cools.
To Make the Easy Berry Jam
- In a small saucepan, combine the frozen berries and sugar.
- Simmer over medium heat for about 10 minutes, until the berries break down and release their juices.
- In a small bowl, mix 1 tsp cornflour with 1 tbsp water to form a slurry.
- Slowly stir the slurry into the simmering berries and cook for another 2–3 minutes, until thickened.
- Optional: Stir in 2 tbsp Chambord and simmer for 1–2 more minutes.
- Let cool, then transfer to a clean jar. Store in the fridge.
Video
Notes
- You can use any kind of sugar you like for both the pudding and jam.
- For a dairy-free version, swap the milk with almond, oat, or coconut milk.
- Make the jam as sweet as you like — icing sugar is my preference as it dissolves easily.
- Chambord is optional but adds beautiful flavour and depth to the berry jam.
- The pudding firms up in the fridge — delicious served both warm and chilled.