Sinh To Bo (Vietnamese Avocado Shake)

Ingredients

• 2 avocado, ripe
• 4 tbsp sweetened condensed milk, plus extra to line the glasses
• 1½ dl milk, well chilled
• 1 dl coconut milk, well chilled
• 1 tbsp white sugar
• 1 tsp lime juice
• 1 pinch salt
• 12 ice cube

Method

1. 1.

   Scoop the avocado flesh — Halve the avocados, twist out the stones and scoop the flesh into a blender, scraping the darker green layer closest to the skin — that is where most of the colour lives. Discard any brown patches, which will turn the shake grey.

2. 2.

   Add the milks and lime — Add the condensed milk, the cold milk, the coconut milk, the sugar, the lime juice and the salt. The lime is not meant to be tasted, only to keep the green bright, while the coconut milk carries the richness and the salt sharpens the sweetness.

3. 3.

   Blend with ice until smooth — Blend for 20 seconds on low to break down the avocado, then add the ice cubes and blend on high for a full minute, until the shake is completely smooth with no flecks and thick enough to hold the mark of a spoon.

4. 4.

   Taste and adjust — Taste and adjust: another spoon of condensed milk if the avocado is very grassy, a splash more milk if it is too thick to drink through a straw.

5. 5.

   Serve straight away — Pour into two tall chilled glasses and drink at once — left standing, the shake separates and dulls within twenty minutes. A drizzle of condensed milk down the inside of the glass first makes it look the way it does in Vietnamese cafes.