Unique Ca Mau crab dessert blends sweet and savory flavors

This special dessert is the creation of young chef Nguyen Ai Linh from Dat Mui Commune, inspired by Hue’s well-known che heo quay bot loc (tapioca balls stuffed with savory roasted pork cubes).

Instead of using roasted pork inside the glutinous rice dough, Linh replaces it with Ca Mau crab meat combined with mung beans and other suitable ingredients.

A sweet soup with crab meat filling

To prepare the dish, the chef selects firm, meaty crabs rich in tomalley, which gives the filling its eye-catching red-orange color.

After steaming, the crab meat is sautéed with mung beans, then wrapped in a smooth glutinous rice dough and formed into small balls.

According to Ai Linh, the crab-and-mung-bean filling carries a savory richness, while the dough and soup offer the gentle sweetness of rock sugar and pandan leaves.

This contrast mirrors Ca Mau itself, a region shaped by the meeting of fresh water and salty tides.

The crab-filled glutinous rice balls are first boiled in water to prevent the outer layer from becoming tough, then simmered in a fragrant syrup of rock sugar, ginger, and a pinch of salt for balance.

The finished dish combines a chewy exterior with a filling that blends savory crab and mung bean, together with the aroma of pandan.

The dough balls are also often colored with the natural purple hue of butterfly pea flowers.

Diners’ approval

Ca Mau, Vietnam's southernmost province, is not only known for its vast mangrove forests but also for producing some of the country’s finest seawater crabs.

These crabs are prized for their firm, sweet meat and rich tomalley.

Locals have long turned this high-quality ingredient into standout dishes such as cua rang me (crab in tamarind sauce), cua hap bia (steamed crab with beer), cua sot bo toi (butter garlic crab), noodle soups of banh canh cua and bun rieu cua.

Now, this innovative crab dessert is a game changer.

This creative twist is expected to take Ca Mau crab even further, opening up possibilities for new and ‘unusual’ culinary applications.

“When I first heard about crab cooked in a dessert, I thought it was strange but it tastes really good — sweet like che troi nuoc (glutinous rice balls in ginger syrup), but the filling is savory with a crab aroma and not fishy at all,” Truong Hong Loi from Tan Thuan Commune said.

Sharing the same surprise was Le Hoang Khoi, a coastal resident with nearly ten hectares of crab farms in Tan Thuan Commune.

“I only ate crab boiled, in a hotpot, or stir-fried with tamarind or salt. I never imagined crab could go into a dessert soup,” Khoi said.

“I’m proud that our Ca Mau crab is famous far and wide,” he added. “I’ll try making this at home with my own crabs to see if it turns out as delicious as the one they sell.”

Meanwhile, Le Thi Thanh Lam from Ly Van Lam Ward was hesitant at first, assuming it would taste fishy and be difficult to enjoy.

“But after trying it, it was delicious,” she commented.

“The dessert ball is chewy, the filling is savory-sweet and rich, and the soup has ginger and pandan, so it’s very fragrant.”