Che!

This is Che--pronounced JAY-uh. This version of it we enjoyed on the streets of Hoi An is one I hadn't had before and which I much prefer to the version that is often offered as a treat in Saigon. Both have in common tapioca and a kind of sweet bean paste that is used in lots of deserts here. This one has just a little of those ingredients swimming in sugary water and ice cubes. It was very refreshing on a hot afternoon.

Ilene is crazy about the kind we have here in Saigon. It's more like a tapioca pudding--thick like a very sweet yogurt. You usually get it to go in a little plastic bag with a spoon and it's pretty common for friends to show up a grocery sack full of them as a gift.

-Robert