Nước Rau Má (Pennywort Juice)
A vivid green, grassy-sweet street juice that Vietnamese grandmas swear cools you down on the hottest days.
Ingredients
- 400 g fresh pennywort (rau má), leaves and stems
- 1 l cold drinking water, divided
- 70 g Sugar
- 240 ml water, for the syrup
- 300 g Ice
- 120 ml Coconut milk (optional)
Method
- Simmer the sugar with the syrup water for 3 min until dissolved, then let it cool.
- Soak the pennywort in a big bowl of water and lift it out, then repeat twice more until no grit is left in the bowl. Trim any yellow leaves.
- Blend the pennywort with 500 ml of the cold water for 1–2 minutes until very fine. Strain through a fine sieve lined with muslin, squeezing hard.
- Blend the pulp again with the rest of the water and strain once more.
- Sweeten the juice with the syrup to taste and serve over ice. A swirl of coconut milk on top makes a creamier version.
Tips
- Drink it the same day; the bright green fades to brown as it stands.
- Pennywort is sold in bunches in Vietnamese and Thai grocers, sometimes as gotu kola.
Sources
Written in our own words after cross-checking these recipes:
Open Nước Rau Má (Pennywort Juice) in Nouns Cooking