What is pandan?

It seems like there’s a new food or drink going viral on social media every five minutes. Remember when matcha felt new?

Since then, there’s been pistachio, ube and hojicha, to name just a few. If you’re a foodie who loves to stay on-trend, it can sometimes feel difficult to keep up.

One ingredient you may not have heard of yet is pandan, a popular Southeast Asian plant used in sweet and savoury dishes alike. So, what is it, how is it used and what does it taste like? Here, BBC Bitesize takes a look.

Pandan – also known as the screw pine or Pandanus amaryllifolius – is a spiky tropical plant that grows in Southeast Asia. It's called the ‘fragrant plant’ in Chinese because of its nutty, vanilla-like smell.

You might think the fruit itself looks a bit like a pineapple, but the plant is actually cultivated for its leaves. Long, upright and bright green in colour, they resemble those of palm trees.

Pandan leaves are used to add flavour to dishes, particularly desserts, in Thai and other Asian cuisines. But they can also wrap savoury food, like chicken or rice, and when used as a powder, extract or paste, they tint food green.

There’s no straightforward answer to this, unfortunately – there isn’t much scientific research on the health benefits of pandan.

However, it’s been used in traditional medicine to treat things like joint pain and to manage blood sugar levels. We do know that pandan is a source of beta carotene, a form of vitamin A, which is important for eye health and the immune system.

Pandan paste is also high in iron, which helps oxygen circulate around the body properly, while the raw fruit is a good source of fibre. This helps maintain gut health and keeps the digestive system healthy.

Likewise, little is known about its potential side effects, though pandan may cause diarrhoea if it’s eaten in large quantities. Like most fruits, it’s also quite high in sugar – so it’s always a good idea to consume it in moderation.

On their own, raw pandan leaves can taste quite bitter and grassy. Once they’re cooked or steamed, they have a strong, sweet taste that blends flavours like vanilla, almond and coconut.

That earthy note is still present, though. Pandan shares an aromatic compound with basmati and jasmine rice, so cooks sometimes choose to add it to plain rice to achieve a similar flavour.

Pandan has been described as the ‘vanilla of Southeast Asia’, because it plays a similar role in these cultures as vanilla does in Western cuisines. Both add a warm, comforting taste and are commonly used in desserts.

However, vanilla comes from the fermented seed pods of orchids, and its extract is dark brown rather than green. It’s also creamier and lacks pandan’s more grassy, nutty taste.

But that’s not to suggest pandan isn’t versatile – far from it.

It’s used in both sweet and savoury dishes. As we’ve already seen, whole pandan leaves can be used as a wrap when steaming or frying other foods, similar to banana leaves. They can also be cooked with rice and coconut milk to make nasi lemak, or used to make a coconut milk jam called kaya.

The extract, juice and powder give desserts like pastries, cakes and cookies a bright green colour. Pandan complements flavours including coconut, brown sugar and mango especially well, with only a small amount needed.

One particularly popular recipe is pandan chiffon cake. Vegetable oil, eggs, caster sugar, coconut milk, self-raising flour and pandan extract combine to create a light, airy cake that's a vibrant green inside.

And it’s not all about food – dried pandan leaves can be used to weave baskets and mats.

That vivid green might remind you of matcha, the Japanese green tea that’s become popular on social media in recent years. But do they have anything in common?

Other than their colour and the fact they’re derived from plants, not really. Matcha has a much stronger earthy, bitter taste than pandan, and it contains caffeine, while pandan is caffeine-free.

The two are sometimes compared because pandan is also used in drinks. Pandan tea is made by steeping cut, dried or fresh leaves, while pandan syrup, extract or paste is used to flavour coffee or matcha lattes.

Hojicha, another type of Japanese green tea, is toastier and nuttier than matcha, and brews a deep amber or reddish-brown colour. It’s often paired with pandan because their flavour profiles complement each other – like in pandan hojicha lattes or flavoured tiramisu.

Another popular Southeast Asian dessert flavouring is ube, which has exploded in popularity in the UK recently. This purple yam native to the Philippines has a sweet, nutty taste that’s been compared to white chocolate. Both ube and pandan are often combined with other flavours like coconut, but ube lacks the floral, grassy notes pandan has.

It can be difficult to source fresh pandan leaves because the plant grows in hot, humid conditions, but specialist Asian supermarkets and online grocers often sell them. Pandan extract or powder can be easier to come by.

If you do get your hands on some, fresh leaves need to be used immediately or wrapped in a damp towel and placed in the fridge for up to four days. You can also buy frozen leaves, which will last in the freezer for around six months.

Dried leaves, paste, extract and powder can all be safely kept in a cool, dark place until opened, while homemade or opened paste and extract should be kept in the fridge for up to three weeks. It’s important to make sure fresh leaves aren’t brown or shrivelled, and that frozen ones aren’t covered in ice crystals.

This article was written on October 2026

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