“Pandan is cake flavor in plant form!” says Kelly Jacques, co-owner and chef at Ayu Bakehouse in New Orleans. “The sweet, vanilla aroma draws you in and feels familiar, while the grassy ...

Inventive dishes that feature pandan, a tropical plant widely used in Southeast Asian cooking, have been popping up across kitchens from New York to London – but what exactly is pandan?

And although it has the same light green hue as matcha, the taste is wildly different. “Pandan is cake flavor in plant form!” says Kelly Jacques, co-owner and chef at Ayu Bakehouse in New Orleans.