Homemade Halo-Halo: Making the Goodies From Scratch
Sweetened saba bananas, langka, beans, tapioca pearls, ube halaya and leche flan—all coming together in one of my favorite Filipino desserts.
There are many ways to make halo-halo, and that's part of what makes this Filipino dessert so much fun.
You can certainly buy most of the ingredients already prepared in jars or cans. But when I make halo-halo at home, I like preparing many of the goodies myself.
Sweetened bananas. Langka. Red beans. White beans. Tapioca pearls. Ube halaya. Leche flan.
Some take only a few minutes to prepare, while others require a little more patience. But once everything is lined up on the counter and it's finally time to build the halo-halo, it's worth it. ❤️
And don't worry—you don't have to make every ingredient from scratch. Make the ones you enjoy preparing and use good store-bought ingredients for the rest.
That's the beauty of halo-halo.
🍧 What Is Halo-Halo?
Halo-halo literally means “mix-mix” in Filipino, which is exactly what we do before eating it.
Different sweetened fruits, beans and other goodies are layered in a glass or bowl, followed by finely shaved ice and milk. Then come the toppings—often ube, leche flan and sometimes ice cream.
Every household can make it a little differently.
This is how I make ours.
👣 The Homemade Goodies in My Halo-Halo
For this batch, I prepared:
• Brown Sugar Tapioca Pearls
• Sweetened Langka
• Sweetened Red Beans
• Sweetened Saba Bananas
• Sweetened Cannellini Beans
• Ube Halaya
• Leche Flan
• Green Gulaman
Then we bring everything together with shaved ice, milk and our favorite toppings.
🧋 Brown Sugar Tapioca Pearls
Ingredients
• 1 cup tapioca pearls
• 4 cups water, plus more as needed for cooking
• 4 cups water for the brown sugar syrup
• 1 cup brown sugar
How I Make It
Bring 4 cups of water to a full boil. Add the tapioca pearls and stir immediately so they don't clump together.
Keep the water at a steady boil, stirring occasionally. Add additional water as needed so the pearls have plenty of room to move and cook evenly.
Cook until the pearls are almost completely translucent with only a tiny white spot remaining in the center.
Turn off the heat, cover the pot and allow the tapioca to rest in the hot water until completely translucent.
Drain and rinse under cold running water for about 30 seconds to remove some of the excess starch.
For the syrup, bring 4 cups water to a boil and dissolve 1 cup brown sugar in it.
Add the cooked tapioca pearls and simmer over medium heat for about 5 minutes.
Once the liquid begins to thicken slightly, turn off the heat and let the tapioca cool in the brown sugar syrup.
👣 Emie's Tip
Keep an eye on the water while the tapioca cooks. If the water gets low or the pearls become crowded, simply add more water.
💛 Sweetened Langka
Ingredients
• 1 can langka (jackfruit)
• Liquid from the can or about 3 cups water
• ½ cup light brown sugar
• Additional water as needed
How I Make It
Drain the langka, saving the liquid from the can if you'd like to use it.
Cut the langka into thin strips.
Place it in a saucepan and add either the reserved liquid or approximately 3 cups fresh water.
Boil for about 15 minutes, or until the langka becomes softer. Add more water along the way if needed.
Once softened, add ½ cup light brown sugar and continue cooking for another 5 minutes.
Transfer the langka and some of its syrup to a container and let it cool completely.
👣 Emie's Tip
You don't have to use the liquid from the can. I sometimes use it, but fresh water works just as well.
🫘 Sweetened Red Beans
Ingredients
• 1 cup red beans
• 2 cups water, plus additional water for soaking
• 1 cup sugar, or adjust to your preferred sweetness
How I Make It
Rinse the beans and soak them in plenty of water for at least 3 hours. Overnight is even better.
Discard the soaking water, rinse the beans again and drain.
Place the beans in a heavy-bottomed pot with 2 cups fresh water and 1 cup sugar.
Cover and bring to a boil, then lower the heat and gently simmer for approximately 45 minutes, or until the beans are tender.
The goal is to soften the beans while still allowing them to hold their shape.
Once they're tender, turn off the heat and allow them to cool.
👣 Emie's Tip
Don't overcook the beans. We want them tender and sweet—not mushy.
🍌 Sweetened Saba Bananas
Ingredients
• Saba bananas, peeled and cut into bite-size pieces
• 8 cups water
• 1 cup brown sugar, or more according to your preferred sweetness
How I Make It
Bring approximately 8 cups water to a boil.
Add the saba bananas and cook for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally and gently so they don't stick to the bottom of the pot.
Once the bananas have softened, add 1 cup brown sugar. Add a little more if you prefer a sweeter syrup.
Let everything simmer for another 5 minutes, or until the liquid begins to thicken.
Turn off the heat and let the bananas cool in their syrup.
🛒 Finding Saba Bananas
I usually find saba bananas at an Asian grocery store. Look for them in the produce or frozen section.
🤍 Sweetened Cannellini Beans
This one is my shortcut.
Instead of starting with dried white beans and soaking them overnight, I use canned cannellini beans.
I found Dakota's Pride Cannellini Beans at ALDI, but another canned cannellini bean should work too.
Ingredients
• 1 can (15.5 oz) cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
• 3 cups water
• ½ cup granulated sugar, or adjust to taste
• ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
How I Make It
Drain and gently rinse the beans.
Bring 3 cups water to a boil and add the beans.
Cook for approximately 10 minutes, stirring gently so the beans don't break apart.
Add ½ cup sugar and simmer for another 5 minutes.
Add ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract and continue simmering for about 5 more minutes, or until the liquid reduces and begins to form a light syrup.
Turn off the heat and allow the beans to cool completely in their syrup.
👣 Emie's Tip
Using canned beans makes this one of the easiest halo-halo components to prepare. They're already tender, so there's no overnight soaking or hours of cooking.
💜 Ube Halaya
I use frozen grated ube, which I find in the freezer section of an Asian grocery store. It saves me the work of peeling and grating fresh purple yam while still allowing me to make the ube halaya at home.
Ingredients
• 16 oz frozen grated ube, thawed
• 13.5 oz coconut milk
• 14 oz sweetened condensed milk
• 12 oz evaporated milk
• ½ cup butter
• 1 cup sugar
• 2–3 drops ube extract, optional
• 1 cup shredded processed cheese, such as Eden
How I Make It
Thaw the frozen grated ube completely.
Place it in a wide, heavy-bottomed or nonstick pan with the coconut milk, condensed milk, evaporated milk, butter and sugar.
Cook until everything is well combined, then continue over lower heat, stirring regularly and scraping along the bottom and sides of the pan.
As it cooks, the mixture will gradually become thicker and creamier.
Add a few drops of ube extract if you want a little more ube flavor and deeper purple color.
Stir in the shredded cheese and continue cooking until everything is incorporated and the ube has reached a thick, smooth, jam-like consistency.
Transfer to a container and let it cool completely.
👣 Emie's Tip
Frozen grated ube is a wonderful shortcut, but the cooking itself still requires patience. As the mixture gets thicker, keep an especially close eye on it and stir frequently so the bottom doesn't burn.
🍮 Homemade Leche Flan
Leche flan is delicious all by itself, but I especially love adding a piece on top of halo-halo.
Ingredients
For the Custard
• 12 large eggs, yolks only
• 1 can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 can evaporated milk
• ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
• Fresh lemon zest
For the Caramel
• 1 cup white sugar
How I Make It
Preheat the oven to 375°F.
For the caramel, place the sugar directly in the llaneras and melt it carefully over low heat.
Once the sugar has melted and developed a beautiful golden caramel color, gently tilt the llaneras to coat the bottom. Set them aside while you prepare the custard.
Separate the eggs and place the 12 yolks in a bowl.
Gently combine the yolks with the condensed milk. Add the evaporated milk, vanilla and fresh lemon zest.
Mix gently so you don't introduce too many bubbles.
Pass the custard through a fine-mesh strainer for a smoother finished flan.
Pour the mixture into the caramel-lined llaneras and cover them with foil.
Place the molds in a larger oven-safe dish and add approximately 1 inch of water to create a water bath.
Bake for approximately 40–50 minutes, depending on the size of your molds. Check the center with a toothpick; when it comes out clean, the flan is ready.
Allow it to cool before refrigerating.
👣 Emie's Tip
Mix gently and don't skip the straining. That little extra step helps give leche flan its wonderfully smooth texture.
💚 Green Gulaman
For this batch, I used green gulaman that I purchased from an Asian grocery store. If you’d like to make it from scratch, here is a simple version.
Ingredients
• 1 pack (25g) green gulaman powder or 2 bars of green agar-agar
• 4 to 5 cups water or coconut juice (use slightly less liquid for a firmer jelly)
• 1/3 to 1/2 cup sugar (optional; adjust to taste)
• 1/2 teaspoon pandan extract or a few drops of green food coloring
How I Make It
Pour 4 to 5 cups of water or fresh coconut juice into a saucepan. If you’re using gulaman bars, shred them into very small pieces first, or soak them in the liquid for 15 to 30 minutes.
Add the green gulaman powder—or the soaked bar pieces—to the pan along with the sugar. Stir well.
Set the pan over medium-high heat and bring the mixture to a boil, stirring constantly until the powder or gulaman pieces have completely dissolved. Stir in the pandan extract or green food coloring.
Turn off the heat and pour the mixture into a flat tray or mold. Let it cool completely at room temperature until firm. You can place it in the refrigerator afterward to help it chill more quickly.
Once firm, cut the green gulaman into small cubes. It’s ready for halo-halo and also works beautifully in desserts such as buko pandan salad or drinks such as sago’t gulaman.
🍧 Putting My Halo-Halo Together
Once all the homemade goodies have cooled and are ready, layer your favorites in a tall glass or bowl.
Add finely shaved ice and milk, then finish with your favorite toppings, including homemade ube halaya and a generous piece of leche flan.
And then comes the best part:
Mix, mix—and enjoy! 🍧❤️
Every glass can be a little different. Add more of the ingredients you love and less of the ones you don't.
That's part of the fun of making halo-halo at home.🛒 Shop the Halo-Halo Ingredients on Amazon
🛒 Shop the Halo-Halo Ingredients on Amazon
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These are the ingredients and practical kitchen tools used throughout this homemade halo-halo recipe. I’ll add links to the products I personally recommend as I select them.
Specialty Ingredients
• Canned langka (jackfruit) — available at Asian or Filipino grocery stores
• Saba bananas, when available — available at Asian or Filipino grocery stores
• Frozen grated ube, or powder when available
• Green gulaman powder or agar-agar bars
• Eden processed cheese or a similar processed cheese
Pantry and Dairy
• Large eggs — available at most supermarkets
• Butter — available at most supermarkets
• Fresh lemon — available at most supermarkets
Helpful Kitchen Tools
• Fine-mesh strainer or cheese cloth
• Wide nonstick or heavy-bottomed pan
• Saucepan
• Tall halo-halo glasses or dessert bowls
• Airtight containers for storing the prepared goodies
🛒 Where I Find My Ingredients
Specialty ingredients such as saba bananas, frozen grated ube, langka, tapioca pearls and gulaman can often be found at Asian or Filipino grocery stores. Look in the produce, canned-goods and freezer sections, depending on the ingredient.
For the white beans, I used Dakota's Pride Cannellini Beans from ALDI. Another canned cannellini bean should work too.
I have left these ingredient names unlinked for now so I can add appropriate product or affiliate links later.
👣 A Little Footprint From My Kitchen
Halo-halo may look like one dessert, but for me, part of the fun is preparing all the little goodies that go into it.
Some are homemade, some are shortcuts, and every batch can be a little different. Once everything is chilled, lined up on the counter and covered with shaved ice and milk, all that preparation becomes one colorful Filipino favorite.
Mix, enjoy and make it your own. ❤️
From my kitchen to yours,
Emie
