Pandan leaf, also known as screwpine leaf, is a herb used throughout South Asian cooking. It takes the form of a longleaf and comes from pandan trees, aka screwpine trees – hence the nickname.
It is a herb used most often in sweet meals and many south Asian desserts. However, even when shopping in Asian markets, it is hard to find outside of South Asia. So what can you use instead?
Our 4 Substitutes for Pandan Leaf
Pandan leaf is used not just for its very sweet taste but also for its aroma. In fact, it is this aroma that helps to make pandan’s sweetness so strong. Its signature green colour is another reason that it is used in desserts, giving sweet treats a fun, vibrant colour.
As it’s used in both savoury and sweet dishes, there is a huge array of substitutions you can make for pandan.
Here are our top 4 substitutes for pandan leaf:
1) Vanilla Beans
It is better to use vanilla beans than vanilla extract in any baking situation, especially when using vanilla as a substitute for pandan leaves.
Vanilla beans fresh from the pod will have a lot more fragrance to them and will make your dish taste sweeter than the extract. The beans will not be diluted with soy or water like vanilla extract.
Some people tend to add vanilla beans to sweet baking recipes that don’t require it. This is because vanilla is such a desirable yet basic baking flavour and can work to elevate other flavours, too.
Find the Right Supply
The main issue with vanilla beans is that they can be far more expensive than vanilla extract. So, hunt around and find a more affordable supplier.
2) Matcha Tea
The first thing to note about matcha tea is that it does include a lot of caffeine. Though this caffeine will not taste as bitter as using freshly ground coffee in your bake, it can make cakes and baked good taste bitter.
Only use half as much matcha tea powder as you would pandan leaf to avoid an overly bitter bake.
Matcha is a concentrated green tea that comes in a variety of forms. Though it is mostly sold as a finely grounded powder.
Being so concentrated means that matcha is a very strongly flavoured ingredient with a robust green colour to match – not too dissimilar from pandan leaf.
Know the Health Benefits
Like most green tea varieties, matcha is very healthy and full of antitoxins. But it is only healthy if you buy matcha that isn’t full of added sugar. If you are being health conscious, make sure to check the packet.
3) Ginger
Used very often in both baking and main meals, ginger pairs well with a range of flavours.
But it especially does well when used in baked goods to add a sweet but spicy kick to cakes and biscuits.
Ginger is a very strong flavour in its own way with a fragrance to match. However, when cooked, ginger will become milder and more palatable. This is what makes it work as a pandan leaf substitute.
You may be tempted to cook ginger for longer to make it taste more like pandan leaf, but if you cook it for too long, it will just turn bitter.
Instead, if you are not a fan of the strong ginger flavour, then use less to begin with.
Use Fresh
Ground ginger will be a lot stronger than fresh ginger and may be too overpowering as a pandan leaf substitute. Use fresh ginger if you can.
4) Collard Greens
Collard greens may not be the first thing you think of when it comes to replacing such a notoriously sweet ingredient.
But collard greens are the perfect pandan leaf substitute in the few savoury dishes it is used in.
Collard greens belong to the cabbage family, so they will have an earthier flavour than pandan leaf.
That being said, if you remove the hard stems and prepare them in the exact same way as pandan leaf when following a recipe, you can still get the same flavour results as pandan leaf in a savoury dish.
Boil Before Use
To replicate the texture of a pandan leaf, make sure to boil your collard greens before adding them to your recipe.
Other Substitutes for Pandan Leaf
When you don’t have any of the above substitutes to hand or are unable to find them, here are a few more that you can look for:
- Cilantro or Coriander – Mostly used as a garnish, coriander should only be used to replace pandan leaf in savoury dishes. It is very similar to parsley in flavour but is more tangy than sweet.
- Pandan Essence – If you do live near an Asian market, but they don’t have pandan leaf in stock, they will most likely have pandan essence. It works similarly to replacing vanilla beans with vanilla essence: still full of pandan flavour but milder.
Summary
Pandan leaf is most commonly used in baking recipes, so it makes sense that vanilla beans can replace it.
Vanilla beans are used all over the baking world and will provide some of the unique sweet pandan flavours.