Strawberry sago is a chilled Southeast Asian dessert made with chewy tapioca pearls, condensed milk, coconut milk, jelly, and strawberries! Ready in under 30 minutes, it’s the perfect dessert for warm sunny days. ❤️
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What is Strawberry Sago?
Strawberry sago is a popular dessert in Southeast Asia. It’s made with sago (small tapioca pearls), milk, strawberries, and other mix-ins. The texture is amazing—chewy from the sago, with satisfying bites from the fresh strawberries. Plus, it’s light, creamy, and refreshing on a warm summer day!
My recipe includes sago, fresh strawberries, condensed milk as the sweetener, coconut milk to thin it out, and coconut jelly. I served it at a party and it was such a hit, that I made it again the next day because my family couldn’t get enough of it, haha!
The best part is that you can make this recipe your own. Add different mix-ins, try different milks, or change up the fruit. There’s lots of room to get creative in terms of flavor!
❤️ Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- It’s super easy and quick. The tapioca pearls are boiled over the stove and the strawberry mixture is made with a blender. Those are the “hardest” steps of this recipe—the rest is just mixing everything else in a bowl!
- It’s perfect for strawberry lovers. There’s two pounds of strawberries in this sago recipe. Enough strawberry in every single bite!
- It’s versatile. Add your own twist with different mix-ins! For example, you can add other fruit like lychee or raspberries and include different extracts/spices.
Looking for more strawberry recipes? Try my creamy strawberry cold foam or white chocolate strawberry cookies!
Ingredients
To make the best strawberry sago from scratch, you’ll need the following ingredients:
I was able to purchase all of these ingredients at my local Asian supermarket. In case you don’t live near one, I included links below to buy them on Amazon!
- You’ll need some small tapioca pearls (sago), which are super chewy and so satisfying to eat.
- The riper the strawberries, the better. You’ll blend 1 pound of strawberries with some sweetened condensed milk to make a strawberry mixture. The other pound will be diced, ensuring each spoonful of sago has strawberry in it!
- As decoration, I saved a few strawberries and cut them into hearts. I placed them on top of the finished sago right before serving!
- I like to add a can of unsweetened coconut milk to the sago, along with nata de coco (coconut jelly). I highly recommend the nata de coco—it’s flavorful and very chewy.
For the full list of ingredients and measurements, see the recipe card below.
💡 Variations and Substitutions
- If you want to try a different flavor, swap out the strawberry for mango and make mango sago!
- Add different mix-ins, like diced lychee, raspberries, etc.
- Swap out the sweetened condensed milk for another sweetener, like brown sugar, granulated sugar, honey, agave, etc.
- Use a different type of milk, like whole, soy, or oat.
How to Make Strawberry Sago
Step 1: In a medium-sized pot, boil tapioca pearls uncovered for 10 minutes, until pearls turn from white to mostly translucent. Cover pot with lid and let tapioca sit for another 10 minutes, or until fully translucent.
Step 2: Blend 1 pound of strawberries with sweetened condensed milk. Taste for sweetness, adding more condensed milk to your liking.
Step 3: In your serving bowl, add cooked tapioca pearls, diced strawberries, and nata de coco.
Step 4: Stir in blended strawberries and coconut milk. For decoration, top with cut out strawberry hearts, and serve!
For full instructions, see the recipe card below.
“Can you make this again tomorrow?” – my family 🙂
Storage
Store in airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days!
I do not recommend freezing it since the tapioca may become too hard.
🍓 More Strawberry Dessert Recipes
Did you try this recipe?
Please leave a review & share it with me on Instagram, Facebook, Tiktok, or Pinterest!
Thank you so much! -Bianca ❤️
📖 Recipe & Video
Strawberry Sago
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Equipment
- medium pot
- blender,
- 1 large serving bowl
- Ladle for serving
Ingredients
- ¾ cup (114 g) small tapioca pearls
- 1 pound (453.59 g) strawberries washed and stems removed
- 4 tablespoons (80 g) sweetened condensed milk adjust to taste
- 1 pound (453.59 g) strawberries diced
- 12 ounces (340.2 g) nata de coco (coconut jelly) drained
- 13 ½ ounces (400 g) coconut milk canned
Instructions
Cook the tapioca pearls:
- In a medium pot, bring about 5 cups of water to a rolling boil. Stir in ¾ cup small tapioca pearls. Slightly lower heat and gently boil uncovered for 10 minutes, or until tapioca turns from white to mostly translucent.
- Turn off heat and cover pot with lid. Let tapioca sit for 10 minutes, or until pearls are fully translucent. If the pearls still have small white dots in the center, cover pot with lid again and let sit for another 2-3 minutes.
- Transfer tapioca pearls in fine mesh strainer. Rinse with cold water to stop them from cooking and get rid of excess starch.
Make the strawberry mixture:
- In a blender, add 1 pound strawberries and 4 tablespoons sweetened condensed milk. Blend until smooth, about 15-30 seconds. Taste for sweetness, adding more condensed milk as needed.
Assemble:
- In your large serving bowl, add cooked tapioca pearls, strawberry mixture, diced 1 pound strawberries, 12 ounces nata de coco (coconut jelly), and 13 ½ ounces coconut milk. Stir until fully combined.
- Divide among serving glasses. If you'd like the strawberry sago even colder, add ice. See notes for storage information.
Notes
- If you want to try a different flavor, swap out the strawberry for mango and make mango sago!
- Add different mix-ins, like diced lychee, raspberries, etc.
- Swap out the sweetened condensed milk for another sweetener, like brown sugar, granulated sugar, honey, agave, etc.
- Use a different type of milk, like whole, soy, or oat.
