Dried Longan Drink with Agar Agar "Noodles"

I know this drink doesn't look very appetizing. The brown color from the dried longan makes the liquid a cola brown. I used to order this drink in Vietnamese restaurants back home but I don't see it on menus out here. Vietnamese restaurants have the best dessert-drinks. You will usually find three-color bean drink (layered sweet beans, pandan flavored chendol, and coconut milk), shinh to (tropical fruit smoothies), salty plum soda, egg soda, fresh squeeze orange juice, Vietnamese coffee (Cafe Du Monde coffee with chicory), and other yummy and not so yummy drinks. I love the Avocado shinh to but only if it is made correctly. You couldn't pay me enough to drink egg soda.

One of my friends told me that the dried longan can be found in the grocery store. I tried to recreate the drink. The version at the restaurant had other ingredients that I did not recognize. My version has dried longans and noodles made from agar agar powder.

2 boxes dried longan, rinsed and soaked
1 tablepoon agar agar powder
sugar, to taste
water

1. Rinse the longan in hot water. Soak a few minutes and rinse again.
2. Bring a small pot of water to a boil. Boil the dried longan until soft. Discard boiling water.
3. In another pot, bring about 1.5 cups of water to a boil. Add agar agar powder and 2 tablespoons of sugar. When agar is dissolved, pour into a flat pan (I use a small square cake pan).
4. In a pitcher, dissolve some sugar in cold water. Add boiled longan.
5. When the agar is set, cut into long "noodles". If you use a serrated knife you will get nice ridge edges on your noodles. Add noodles to pitcher. Serve with ice.

Dried longan comes in little square boxes.

Agar agar (or kanten) is supposed to be really good for you. It contains fiber.

Boiled longans:

Agar noodles: