Pandan Extract

Pandan leaf is a frequently used ingredient in Southeast Asia.

Whenever I purchase some from my Asian supermarket, the scent immediately transports me back to my home in Northern Thailand. Hardly surprising since we let it grow wild in our garden there! During the monsoon season (the time of year I'm most likely to visit), the mix of petrichor and the scent of pandan is nothing short of dreamy.

The plant also goes by the name "screwpine" or "vanilla grass" the latter of which is a relatively accurate description of the scent the leaves have. They can be used for many dishes - savoury and sweet - even brewed into a refreshing tea.

For desserts (such as Khanom Chan), an extract is often required. It is relatively simple to make - it just requires blending the fibrous leaves in some water and squeezing out the juice. The juice is then left to settle for a while (I normally make this an overnight step) and the dark green chlorophyll that settles at the bottom is the liquid you want! Normally when I make this I reminisce of the days when I worked in the lab and had equipment to separate phases of liquids within minutes...

To make the extract you need:

• 200 g (about 30 leaves) fresh pandan leaves

• 1 L water

-Use some clean scissors to chop up the leaves into about 2 cm pieces into the blender.

-Add enough water to just cover the leaves, I used about a litre.

-Blend the leaves until you get a paste like consistency.

-Pass the liquid through a muslin cloth, try and squeeze out every last drop!

-Let the liquid settle in the fridge overnight, be gentle to not to disturb the liquid too much!

-You'll see a relatively clear liquid and a dark green thicker liquid at the bottom, pour off as much of the clear liquid as possible.

-The dark green liquid you're left with is your pandan extract, ready for all your food needs! It will store in the fridge for about a week. For the amounts I've given, you should get about 100 ml of extract.

Note: The clear liquid you get rid off has plenty of pandan goodness! I boil it and have it as an iced tea with some honey and lemon. I used Buckwheat blossom honey from a local honey store in Edinburgh.