This 10-minute coconut sauce is made with canned coconut milk, sweetened with sugar and thickened with cornstarch. It is an essential topping used in Asian desserts, but it can also be used as a coconut syrup to spread over pancakes and french toasts to add a tropical twist to your brunch menu.
Growing up in Vietnam, coconut is pretty much my life! If you have had a chance to enjoy a popular Vietnamese dessert – Chè – like this Chè Đậu Đen (Vietnamese sweet black bean soup) or Thai dessert like mango sticky rice, you might notice this creamy coconut sauce drizzled on top, adding delicious sweet coconut flavor to them.
But don’t be mistaken, this easy yummy sauce is not limited to just Southeast Asia, it is also use in this Samoan coconut buns where the dinner rolls are baked in a pool of creamy sauce, so good! And believe me, it is amazing as a coconut syrup over some banana bread french toast or macadamia pancakes!
Table of Contents
Ingredients and substitutions
As always, you’ll find the complete list of ingredients and quantities in the recipe card at the end of this post. Below are some notes and substitution tips:
- Coconut milk – you’ll need full fat canned coconut milk or coconut cream. Coconut cream will yield a slightly richer sauce due to the higher fat content.
- Sugar – you can use granulated sugar or brown sugar, both will work but I think brown sugar will yield deeper and richer flavor like the coconut sauce I made for these tropical “cinnamon rolls” with macadamia and coconut.
- Cornstarch – this is used to thicken the sauce. You can substitute tapioca starch, arrowroot starch or agar agar powder, but cornstarch is the cheapest and most common thickener that you likely already have in your pantry.
- Salt – just a pinch to enhance the flavor and complexity of the sauce.
How to make coconut sauce
The following instructions, step-by-step photos, and tips are here to help you visualize how to make the recipe. You can always skip straight to the printable recipe card at the end of this post.
A note on equipment: I use a small stainless steel saucepan to make my coconut sauce using just 1 can of coconut cream. If you want to double the recipe, you’ll need to use a larger pan. Any pan will work just fine, no need for anything special.
Measure out ¼ cup of room temperature coconut milk, whisk in the cornstarch until smooth.
Tip: Cornstarch needs to be dissolved in cold or room temperature liquid. If you add cornstarch directly to hot liquid, it will not dissolve and become lumpy.
Heat the rest of the coconut milk with sugar and salt in a sauce pan over medium heat until simmering. Stream in the cornstarch mixture and stir continuously until the liquid thickens very slightly, this should take only a few minutes.
Testing notes
This coconut sauce does not seem like it thickens at all when it is still cooking, but will continue to thicken as it cools. I like the consistency that 1 tablespoon of cornstarch gives the final sauce – viscous like maple syrup and pourable.
If you use 2 tablespoons of cornstarch, the sauce will thicken very quickly as soon as you adds the cornstarch slurry but I think it gets too thick when cooled. It’s spoonable but doesn’t have a “coconut syrup” consistency. You’ll get globs of sauce instead of a smooth syrup that spreads freely on your pancakes.
And then if you add 1 more tablespoon of cornstarch for a total of 3 tablespoons, you’ll end with a soft pudding like this Haupia pudding, which is unnecessary, but I think this gives you a clear visualization of what an additional tablespoon of cornstarch can do.
Storage
You can store your coconut sauce in a clean jar in the refrigerator. It will last up to 1 weeks. Or you can freeze it for up to 3 months. You can defrost frozen sauce at room temperature, stir and serve as you would freshly made sauce.
Hungry for more?
4-Ingredient Coconut Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 can coconut milk, or coconut cream, 13.5 oz, 400 ml
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar, or brown sugar, 66 g
- A pinch of kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
Instructions
- Whisk the cornstarch with about ¼ cup of room temperature coconut milk until completely dissolved. Set aside.
- Add the remaining coconut milk to a small saucepan along with sugar and salt. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently until the sugar dissolves completely and the mixture starts to simmer.
- Drizzle the cornstarch slurry into the simmering coconut milk, stirring constantly. Continue to cook for another 2 – 3 minutes until the sauce starts to thicken.
- Take it off the heat and allow it to cool. The sauce will thicken further as it cools.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like this recipe? Rate & comment below!This post may contain affiliate links. For more details on how we utilize affiliates, ads, and sponsored content, see our full disclosure policy. Thank you for your continued support, which enables us to keep bringing you delicious recipes, at no extra cost to you.
