Ruam Mit (Thai Dessert)

Ruam Mit is a colorful and refreshing Thai coconut milk dessert. ‘Ruam’ means gather, and ‘mit’ means friends, which refers to all the different ingredients in this dessert. This chilled dessert is perfect in the summertime, and it’s a popular street food dessert in Thailand.

Ruam mit uses my Red Rubies dessert as the base of this recipe. Once you have made the coconut milk and red rubies, it’s simply a matter of adding the other ingredients. Just like the red rubies, this dessert is best served chilled with some crushed ice.

Ingredients Needed

These are the ingredients you’ll need to make Ruam Mit, which can be found at most Asian grocery stores. I’ve also linked them on Amazon, but keep in mind that the price is typically higher than purchasing them from a store.

• Coconut Cream Powder– I prefer using this powder over canned coconut cream because it has a smoother texture. You can adjust the consistency by adding more or less water.
• Sugar- Regular white sugar is fine. This will add sweetness to the coconut cream. You’ll want the cream to be on the sweeter side since the ice will dilute the taste when serving.
• Water Chestnuts– Use canned whole water chestnuts and slice them into bite-sized pieces. I’ve seen some people use Jicama as an alternative, but after testing it, I wasn’t a fan.
• Red Food Coloring– I used a natural food coloring, which has a deeper hue. You can use regular food coloring if you like.
• Tapioca Starch– I’ve only tested this recipe with the Asian brand of tapioca starch. However, this is essential for creating the chewy outside coating on the water chestnuts.
• Coconut Jelly– Coconut jelly or nata de coco is a semi-firm jelly that can have diffeent flavors. I’ve linked the Jubes brand that you can find online.
• Green Jelly– This asian green jelly is less firm and has a hint of pandan flavor, which complements the coconut milk. This jelly will give the dessert a slight green hue, so add it in just before serving.
• Jackfruit – I forgot to include a picture of the jackfruit, but you want to use yellow jackfruit, either fresh/frozen, or canned. I bought mine frozen at the Asian market. If you decide to use fresh jackfruit, it can be difficult to find and is challenging to cut. It’s a large fruit with hard bumps around it.

Making the Coconut Milk

In a large bowl, add the coconut powder, water, sugar, and salt. Use a whisk to mix until combined. Taste for sweetness, keeping in mind that you want it to be sweeter, as the dessert is served with crushed ice. Also, add a few ice cubes to the coconut milk once it’s done to keep it chilled.

See my post on how to make the Red Rubies.

Assembling Ruam Mit

Once you have prepared the red rubies, add them to the bowl of coconut milk. Drain the coconut jelly and add it in. The green jelly needs to be drained and sliced into cubes. I prefer to add this last, since it can give the milk a green tint.

Slice the jackfruit into strips and add them to the bowl. This is everything I used, but some other options include: Toddy Palm Seeds, young coconut meat, sweet corn kernels, red beans, or tapioca pearls.

Ruam mit is best served within a day of making it. Otherwise, the red rubbies will start to get soggy the longer it sits in the coconut milk. If you need to make it a few hours in advance, that’s fine; just store it in the refrigerator. Serve the dessert with crushed ice for a refreshing Thai treat.

More Thai Desserts