Savoring life's delicious moments
To keep cool and hydrated during this scorching summer heat, I’ve been slurping these Vietnamese drinks: iced coffee with condensed milk, chilled artichoke tea, basil seeds & malva nuts, avocado smoothie, and grass jelly.
One of my favorite ways to stay cool during this past summer’s heatwave is with this Vietnamese basil seed and malva nut drink. The basil seeds (hột é) look very similar to chia seeds, but they are slightly smaller and don’t need to soak for as long. The seeds are often paired with malva nuts (đười ươi), which puffs into an algae-looking blob. It, too, has a slightly gelatinous texture and imparts a subtly earthy flavor. Both seeds have a very mild flavor, so the drink needs a little bit of sugar to give it more body.