Chè Sâm Bổ Lượng (Ching Bo Leung) is a Vietnamese/Chinese dessert soup known for its cooling effects during the summer months. The recipe starts by soaking barley pearls, dried longans, dried goji berries, dried jujubes, and kelp seaweed. After the dried ingredients have softened, all the ingredients are added together into a boiling pot and cooked into a delicious dessert soup. Chè sâm bổ lượng is versatile and can be enjoyed warm or cold. Chè sâm bổ lượng is a nutritional dessert option that's easy to make and satisfying!
Drinks that can cool me down are some of my favorites! Artichoke tea (tra atiso), pennywort drink (nước rau má), and Vietnamese herbal tea (nước sâm/nước mát) are so refreshing after a long day. Grass jelly and chia seeds are great toppings that can cool you down and go well with the drinks.
Growing up in a Vietnamese family meant that my mom had a healthy dessert
cooking on the stove. Sâm bổ lượng was a regular on rotation when the Texas heat hit. My Má had her dried ingredients out and we would sometimes help run water over the dried fruit and soak them. Growing up in America, I loved the American desserts of cookies and ice cream and I didn't appreciate the herbal, refreshing flavors of it until I was in college when no one would make it for me anymore.
When I was younger summers meant that we were going to visit Vietnam. South Vietnam is already hot but in the summer months, the heat is on another level. It's the rainy season but for some reason it is scorching.
It's no wonder why there are dessert carts with sâm bổ lượng served at every corner. It is very much enjoyed year round but especially in the hot summers by the locals and tourists. I can still recall sweat dripping down my face at night and quenching my thirst with chè sâm bổ lượng. You don’t need to go to Vietnam to enjoy this dessert though. You can get this at Bambu as well as many Vietnamese restaurants too. When I'm in the mood to treat myself at a Vietnamese restaurant, I would order this dessert as a drink to-go alongside my meal. A meal fit for a Queen or King!
As a mom now, I make sâm bổ lượng for my family. This recipe is very easy. There are 2 main steps: 1. soak the ingredients and 2. boil and simmer the soup until it's done. This recipe is super forgiving and easily adjustable. You do not need to follow my recipe to the tee because depending on where you are, the cost of the ingredients, and your tastes you can pick and choose what you want in your sâm bổ lượng. This is what I put in my sâm bổ lượng and you can do the same or add your mix to it. I will add other ingredients you can choose to add that are not in my recipe. This dessert requires a lot of ingredients and can get overwhelming. You can also opt to buy a pre-packaged che sam bo luong bag at the Vietnamese store to try it out. I like to buy my own dried ingredients and use them according to my preferences.
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❤️Why You'll Love This Recipe
- This recipe is super easy and requires only 2 big steps and the result will give you the perfect che sam bo luong.
- Like with all my recipes you can customize this recipe to your liking.
🥄Equipment and tools
- A medium size 5-quart pot. This recipe uses 10 cups but with additional ingredients, you need a pot big enough to hold all the ingredients without it overflowing.
🛒Recipe Ingredients
Wonder what is in Chè Sâm Bổ Lượng? Let's talk about the ingredients!
- Pearl barley - Pearl barley can be found in any store and it doesn't have to be the Asian variety. Pearl barley's texture is hard but when cooked it gets softened. In Vietnamese it is often referred to as "bo bo".
- Dried longan - dried longans are a popular addition to add to your che sam bo luong. It is very expensive though. I normally get mine at the Vietnamese or Chinese herbal medicine store. They usually have it for much cheaper than Amazon. Dried longans need to be soaked so they can soften. I recommend washing them and rinsing the dried longans before soaking them. After they have been soaked add the longans along with the water it's been soaking into the pot. The dried longans are very sweet and will impart its flavor into the water. Using the water in this dessert will add a natural sweetness to the dessert.
- Dried ziziphus jujuba - are a type of jujube that tastes like honey. This jujuba is extremely hard and even if you soak it, it'll still be hard. You can not eat this but I use it in my recipe for the sweet honey flavor it adds. If you can't find this, it's ok. Just omit it.
- Red Dates or Jujubes - Red dates or jujubes in Vietnamese called these little dates "táo tàu đỏ" or "táo đỏ". It translates to Chinese red dates. They are commonly used in traditional Chinese and Vietnamese medicine. For this dessert try to find the small ones without any seeds or use the pre-cut ones. I had big ones with seeds which worked fine but you need to de-seed them and cut them before adding to the dessert. The seeds can cause a bitter taste to the dessert when cooked.
- Dried Goji berries - Goji berries are small thin berries from the wolfberry plant. I've bought a whole bag of dried goji berries from Costco before. Check your local Costco to see if they have it. Generally, it's more affordable and goes a long way. These berries have a sweet-tart flavor and are also used in traditional Chinese and Vietnamese herbal medicine.
- Dried seaweed strips (kelp) - I was not able to find the specific seaweed on Amazon but they are sold on sayweee.com and at many Asian grocery stores in the dried fruit and herbal aisle. There are many different types of seaweeds out there so be sure to pick the right one. For chè sâm bổ lượng do not use kombu, nori, wakame, or arame type seaweeds.
- Chia seeds - If you've never had chia seeds and want to add them to your dessert, you'll need to soak them beforehand. A little bit goes a long way. They're tiny seeds that expand when soaked in water. They have a very jelly-like texture. But I like them and find chia seeds very refreshing. In place of chia seeds, you can also use basil seeds.
- Rock sugar - Rock sugar is a form of sugar that has a subtle sweetness and a slight caramel taste. You can replace rock sugar with white or brown sugar.
optional ingredients
- Dried lotus seeds - Dried lotus seeds have a nutty taste with a chewy texture. They are rich in protein and fiber. If you add this to your sam bo luong, cook it first along with the barley. It is very hard and will take the most time to cook.
- Snow fungus - Snow fungus is a popular addition to chè sâm bổ lượng but it is also very expensive. I wasn't able to find this at my local grocery store but I do enjoy the chewy texture in my dessert.
- pandan leaves - If you love the flavor of pandan, add a few leaves to the mix. Soak these and add them last. Take it out before serving.
See the recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and measurements.
↔Substitutions & Variations
- Add a combination of dried lotus seeds, pandan leaves, lotus, or snow fungus to your che sam bo luong for more nutrition and a deeper taste.
👩🏫 How to Make Che Sâm Bổ Lượng
Step 1: Wash and prep dried ingredients before soaking them. If using jujube (táo đỏ) de-seed the berry and cut it into small pieces. Then cover the ingredients with water and let them soak until they are softened.
Step 2: Turn the heat to high and add water to a big pot. When small bubbles form add the pearl barley first. Pearl barley takes the longest to cook. If you are using lotus seeds, add them at this time too.
Step 3: Then add all the the jujubes and their juices, ziziphus jujuba and its juices, and the longan its juices, then add seaweed - but not the water it's been soaking it.
Step 4: When the pot starts to boil add the rock sugar and turn the heat down to medium-low, let it cook and simmer. Taste the dessert for the sweetness level and adjust by adding more sugar or water to the pot. A little at a time until you're happy with the flavor.
Step 5: Lastly add the chia seeds, stir them around, and turn off the pot. Wait for it to cool down a bit so you don't burn yourself before you dig in! Or enjoy over ice!
Expert Tips
- Wash all the ingredients thoroughly before soaking in water.
- When the dried longan, goji berries, and jujubes are softened add water and fruit to the pot to add additional sweetness.
- De-seed the jujubes before adding them to the pot.
- Cut seedweed before adding to the pot.
🙋♀️Recipes FAQ
Yes, che sam bo luong is a nutritious dessert that features ingredients commonly found in traditional Chinese and Vietnamese medicine. The combination of these ingredients aims to cool the body. Every che sam bo luong is different but they can contain barley pearls, jujubes, goji berries, longan, chia seeds, lotus seeds, kelp seaweed, snow fungus, and pandan leaves. The amount of sugar added to the recipe can turn a healthy dessert into an overly unhealthy one. But overall the combinations of ingredients are protein and nutrient rich.
Traditionally only dried longans are used. Dried longans are sweeter than fresh longans and have a chewier texture. If you use canned longans the result will be different.
❄️Storage and reheating instructions
- Refrigerator: Store in a covered container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
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📖Recipe
Easy Chè Sâm Bổ Lượng
Equipment
- 1 medium size pot
Ingredients
- ½ cup dried longan
- 2 whole ziziphus jujubes
- ½ cup dried goji berries
- 1 cup dried seaweed (kelp)
- 1 cup jujubes
- ⅛ cup pearl barley
- 2 tablespoons chia seeds
- ½ cup rock sugar
- 10 cups water
Instructions
- Wash and rinse all the dried ingredients. If the jujubes have seeds, de-seeded them and cut into small edible pieces. Portion all the ingredients into separate bowls, cover with water, and let them soak until they are softened. Do not soak the rock sugar. This can take up to 1 hour.
- When the ingredients have softened start prepping them before adding to the pot. Cut the seaweed into 2 inch strips and rinse it one more time. You choose to rinse out the softened fruits before adding them to the pot. PROTIP the water that dried fruits have been soaking in is sweet can will add a nice flavor to the dessert.
- Fill a medium size pot with 10 cups of water and add the barley pearls. Turn the stove on high and let it cook. When the water starts to make small bubbles add the ziziphus jujubes, longan, jujubes, goji berries, and seaweed. Let it cook until there is a rolling boil. Then turn down the heat to medium.
- Add the rock sugar and use a spoon to mix it thoroughly. Taste and add more according to your prefences. If it is too sweet you can always add a ¼ cup of more water at a time to balance out the flavor. Lastly add the chia seeds. Mix and stir. Wait for it to cool and enjoy! Enjoy warm or over ice!
Notes
- Wash thoroughly wash seaweed by running it through water a few times. Soak it in water and add a spritz of lemon to help eliminate any fishy smell.
- Store in a covered container for up to 3 days in refrigerator.
Nutrition
The provided nutritional information is an estimate per serving. Accuracy is not guaranteed.
There are so many ways to make chè sâm bổ lượng. I hope you enjoyed my recipe. If you added anything different to your recipe, drop me a message!
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