Bua Loy — Rice Flour Balls in Coconut Milk / บัวลอย

Central Thai — bua loy is considered a comfort food and is associated with the cool season (it is often eaten warm); the ginger version is considered particularly warming in the Thai medicinal tradition

Bua loy (floating lotus) are small glutinous rice flour balls poached in sweetened coconut milk — the simplest of the Thai dessert preparations and one of the most universally eaten. The dough is glutinous rice flour kneaded with water (or pandan extract for green, butterfly pea flower for blue, beet for pink) into a smooth, slightly sticky dough that forms perfectly smooth balls. These are boiled in water until they float (indicating the starch has fully gelatinised), then transferred to the warm sweetened coconut milk to serve. The coconut milk is seasoned with pandan leaves and salt. In the ginger version (bua loy nam khing), the rice balls are served in sweetened ginger broth rather than coconut milk.

Bua loy's simplicity is its virtue — the combination of silky-chewy rice balls, warm fragrant coconut milk, and the slight salt note produces a dessert that is simultaneously comforting and carefully calibrated.