Chia Seed Pudding

Name: Chia Seed Pudding
Total time: 1 h
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients: 20 whole dried apricots, plus more as needed; 1/3 cup passion fruit juice or nectar (passion fruit-pear is fine); 3 tablespoons sugar; 1 1/2 teaspoons lemon juice; Salt; 2 cups unsweetened almond milk; 1/2 cup coconut milk; 1/2 cup chia seeds; 1/4 cup toasted kasha, optional (see Tip); Chopped roasted almonds, toasted unsweetened coconut flakes and/or sliced banana, for serving (optional)

Recipe from Gerardo Gonzalez

Adapted by Melissa Clark

Updated Feb. 16, 2024

Chia Seed Pudding — Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.

Total Time: 1 hour
Rating: 4(899)
Comments: Read comments

Chia seeds are nutritionally dense seeds that will thicken any liquid you add them to. Mix them up with coconut and almond milks and you’ve got an almost instant pudding with a tapioca-like texture and gently sweet flavor. This recipe is meant for breakfast, but if you add a little honey to the seeds as they swell, it will be sweet enough for dessert. You can use either black or white chia seeds here, or a mix. The pudding will continue to thicken as it sits, so feel free to thin it out to taste with a little more almond or coconut milk before serving. —Melissa Clark

Featured in: Chia-Seed Pudding for Breakfast: Tart, Sweet and Good for You

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Ingredients

Yield:4 servings

20whole dried apricots, plus more as needed
⅓cup passion fruit juice or nectar (passion fruit-pear is fine)
3tablespoons sugar
1½teaspoons lemon juice
Salt
2cups unsweetened almond milk
½cup coconut milk
½cup chia seeds
¼cup toasted kasha, optional (see Tip)
Chopped roasted almonds, toasted unsweetened coconut flakes and/or sliced banana, for serving (optional)

Ingredient Substitution Guide

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Preparation

Step 1
Coarsely chop half of the dried apricots. Place chopped apricots in a small pot with passion fruit juice, 1½ tablespoons sugar, the lemon juice and a pinch of salt. Simmer very gently over low heat until apricots are soft and liquid has turned syrupy, about 30 minutes.
Step 2
While chopped apricots cook, put remaining whole apricots in a bowl and cover with boiling water. Let soak until plump, 10 to 20 minutes. Drain and reserve plumped apricots and the apricot sauce.
Step 3
Meanwhile, in a quart container with a lid (or use a cocktail shaker), combine almond and coconut milks, remaining 1½ tablespoons sugar and a pinch of salt. Stir in chia seeds and kasha, if desired; shake thoroughly so that seeds are evenly hydrated. Let rest at least 20 minutes or until pudding has a rich, creamy texture. Seeds should be fully hydrated. (Pudding will keep for up to 3 days but may require rehydrating with more almond or coconut milk as the seeds continue to absorb liquid.)
Step 4
To serve, spoon pudding into bowls. Top with apricot sauce, plumped apricots and almonds, coconut flakes and/or banana, if desired.

Tip

Toasted kasha, also known as buckwheat groats, can be hard to find. But you can easily toast raw kasha in a dry skillet for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring often. Or leave it out.

Ratings

4 out of 5

899 user ratings

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Comments

R2 years ago

Here is my recipe 1/2 cup chia seeds 2 cups of milk 1 tsp of vanilla Whisk, let it sit, whisk 10-15 minutes later. Let it sit overnight and stir it again the next morning. Maybe add some strawberries or cocoa powder. It is fairly low calorie and high in fiber. You don't need to add sweeteners.

Karen2 years ago

WAY too many 'rules' here. Been making Chia pudding for years. Simply add 1/3 C chia seeds to each C of liquid. Coconut Milk is quite heavy in fat so be aware! T'Joe's has MANY varieties of fruit juice that you can choose from depending on fruit you are using. Any fruit juice works depending on amount of sweetness (and calories) you want! Any 'milk' will also work, whisk in some coco powder to taste if using the black chia esp. so you don't end up with 'grey' pudding. Frozen fruit works!

LMZ5 years ago

This was fantastic! I improvised a little since I didn’t have almond milk or dried apricots or passion fruit nectar (I used oat milk, dried mango, and guava nectar) and it still turned out lovely. I get the impression it’ll work with most substitutions. One thing: I didn’t add any of the added sugar, and it turned out perfectly sweet (I was nervous about over sweetening it, and I figured I could always just sweeten it later if needed). The mango and nectar was perfectly sufficient

KiwiKate1 month ago

I have tried multiple times and never managed to get this to gel into a pudding. I have always used soymilk as I am not an almond milk fan and coconut milk is scary. I am thinking soy milk is too thick to absorb the chia? Will try again with regular cows milk. Anybody have any advice?

Kevin2 weeks ago

Follow the recipe

Julia1 month ago

Can anyone tell me if soymilk would make a decent alternative to the almondmilk? I don't usually have almondmilk around.

Livit2 months ago

I loved this recipe, having discovered the joys of chia seeds last year. I left out the sugar and added a bit of powdered stevia. I too would use all the apricots for the sauce next time. I'm also a huge fan of protein, and with other chia puddings I've tried adding protein powder, but it changes the taste too much in the wrong direction. I've also added cottage cheese but the mix became watery. I'd like to get at least 20g of protein per serving. I'll keep trying to find the perfect blend.

Ellie3 weeks ago

@Livit you can use half a cup of milk and half a cup of Greek yoghurt for a thick protein filled pudding. Add 1tbsp of seeds, and whatever flavours or toppings you like. Pretty good’

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