Sweet Potato Ku

These are before steaming

These are after steaming

I cannot be any happier that these 'ku' turned out exceptional beautiful.  The color was so  natural and sweet, of course it was - no food coloring added - the culprit was orange sweet potato/yam.  The filling is the usual mung bean - oh oh i have a story to relate about this filling, yes this particular bag of mung bean filling.  It was a leftover from one of our cooking sessions(a group of us ladies gather every sunday and we cook and bake). So, one sunday, I was the first to arrive at Nellie's and Nellie went through her freezer and pulled out this bag, she asked if i wanted to eat durian.  Of course i said yes, and we had to defrost it fast before the other ladies turn up, there won't be enough to go around. the durian looked so good, yellowish and looked seedless too.  So, into the microwave it went for defrosting.  After a minute of two, the bag came out of the microwave, Nellie and I laughed until tears came down and me with my incontinense, had to rush to the rest room - It was not durian but a bag of mung bean filling.  The moral of the story was, we were bad hearted, we did not want to share and we got none too. I have learned my lesson and am sharing the mung bean filling with those who turned up for dinner last weekend. Hope they liked these cute bite-size 'ku'.

Ingredients:

For the dough:

150 gm orange sweet potato/yam - mash immediately after steaming and keep it hot.
150 gm glutinious flour
50 ml thick coconut milk
50 ml hot boiling water
1/4 tsp salt
2 tbsp cooking oil

Filling:

Follow the recipe from Angkoo Ah Mah Chew




Method:

Mix the glutinous rice flour, salt and coconut milk to the hot mashed sweet potato.  Knead until dough does not stick to your hands - slightly on the wet side, it will dry out after resting.  If the dough is soft and pliable, do not add in the water.   Lastly add in oil and knead lightly till dough is shiny. Rest dough for at least 1 hr.

Scale the filling and dough according to the size of the mould.  Flatten it and wrap in a filling.  Seal and shape into a round/  Dust the mould with a little glutinious rice flour.  Press firmly into the mould  Knock and dislodge from mould.  Place on oiled banana leaf.  Continue process with the rest of the dough pieces.

Use tap water and wash off excess glutinious rice flour from the surface.  Do it quickly and lightly before steaming the 'ku' over LOW heat for 5 - 10 minutes. Remove the steamer lid after 5 minutes to lower the heat as the pattern will not be as sharp if the heat is too high.  Remove from steamer and brush with oil for a  shiny surface.

 Serves

Taro Ku

When i was growing up, the only 'ku' i know was colored red or orange with a sweet filling.  Nowadays, 'ku' comes in all sorts of colors and shapes with either sweet or savory fillings.  Thank you to enthusiastic cooks who come up with new ideas which kick up a few knotches to the traditional this kuih.  Btw - 'ku' is in hokkien meaning Tortoise and Tortoise symbolizes longevity. When the 'ku'  kuih is shaped like a tortoise shell, it creates a high symbolic and ritual value, very appropriate for ritual offerings during religious events.  These 'ku' , it must be red in color and that is why it is called 'Angku' - 'Ang' means red in hokkien, is an important gift when a child is born (one month old) or during birthdays.  Outside the ritual or gift context, it is also a very popular snack, eaten at all times of the day, be it for breakfast or tea=time.    Have you ever tried pan-frying leftover/overnight 'Angku'? - they are delicious.

Below is a recipe with a new twist - Taro is added to the dough which gives the 'ku' a purplish hue and a fragrance which taro lovers will recognize.  The filling can be sweet or savoury and a spicy one will be met with satisfaction.

Ingredients:

For the Dough:

150 g taro slices - steamed and mashed(keep warm)
150 g glutinious rice flour
50 ml water(use only if the dough is too dry)
50 ml thick coconut milk
1/8 tsp salt
2 tbsp oil
Purple food coloring/taro paste
Extra glutionious rice flour for dusting
Pre-cooked cooking oil for glazing
Banana leaves - cut into rounds and brushed with oil

Filling of your choice or follow this sweet filling recipe

Method:

Sieve glutinious flour with salt.

Add oil and purple food coloring/taro paste to the thick coconut milk and microwave it for 30 seconds.

Add warm mashed taro to the glutinious flour and add in the coconut milk and oil a little at a time, knead until a dough forms.  Water is to be added only if the dough is too dry. Knead dough well until it is shiny. Rest the dough for 30 minutes.

Scale dough according to the size of your mould. 

Flatten dough and roll into a circle.  Put in some filling and wrap dough up.

Dust mould with glutinious flour and knock out all excess flour.

Press filled dough firmly into mould, knock and dislodge from mould.  Place on oiled banana leaf and into steamer rack.

Continue process with the rest of the dough pieces.

Turn on the tap on low and place steamer under the running water to remove excess glutinious flour from the surface of the moulded kuih.

Steam kuih over low heat for 10 minutes.  At 5 minutes, uncover the steamer to lower the temperature of the steam  cos the pattern will be lost if too high heat is used for steaming.  Cover and continue to steam until cooked.

Remove from heat and glaze surface with the precooked oil.

 Serves

Kuih Pandan Lapis Batavia

I was left home alone one day, the silence was killing me.  There were no one to bug me and knowing me, cannot sit still and do nothing - my sister said that 'it must be the catholic schooling' in us - we feel guilty if we are not doing something.'  So, what a good time it was to stand in front of the oven and layer away.  This is a scale down from Kuih Lapis Batavia, not by choice but necessity, cos i had only a dozen eggs.  I have increased the sugar and egg white slightly thus making the batter lighter and the layers browned  faster with the addition of a little baking powder and the batter was sweeter.

Ingredients:

250g butter at room temperature
60g fine granulated sugar

12 egg yolks
60g fine granulated sugar
1 tbsp  brandy
2 tbsp condensed milk

80g cake flour
1 tsp mixed spice
1/4 tsp baking powder

4 egg whites
30g sugar
1/2 tsp cream of tartar

1/2 tsp pandan paste


Method:

1. Preheat oven to 350f . Line a 6 inch square baking pan with greaseproof paper, making sure that it fits exactly the base.Grease only the base of pan and greaseproof paper only.  Do not grease the sides of pan..
2. Cream butter with 60g sugar till creamy.

3. Beat egg yolk with 60g sugar till thick. Stir in  brandy and condensed milk.

4. Sieve flour, baking powder and mixed spice.

5. Mix butter and egg yolk mixture well. Fold in flour mixture by thirds and mix well.

6. Whisk egg white with medium speed till foamy, add in cream of tartar and continue to whisk till white in colour then add in sugar and whisk until thick, soft stiff peak.

7. Fold egg white into egg yolk mixture and mix well. Add pandan paste to 1/3 of the batter and leave the other 2/3 plain.
8. Spread 3 heap tbsp of batter evenly and bake for 10 minutes.  Turn on the top fire only and brown the top of the first layer.  For the second layer, spoon 2 heap tbsp batter into baking pan. Spread the batter evenly, put to grill . Grill  till brown.(time for browning depends on your oven and how close the baking pan is placed near the grilling elements)   Remove from oven, use a cake tester or toothpick to prick holes on the top of cake.   For the third layer, use the pandan paste batter. Repeat the layering, 2 layers plain and 1 layer pandan, till batter finish. (Use the same type of spoons for the plain and pandan batter so that the layers will be even)

9. Unmould cake immediately and turn on to wire rack to cool.

Asian Sesame Balls (Onde-Onde)

It is the most delightful moment when a recipe is successful and i can't wait to share. This will not be possible if i do not have generous friends who have shared many of their tested recipes and tt from Playing With My Food is my 'sifu' who so graciously emailed me this recipe. Thank you, tt, they were the best, with all the tips provided by you, these balls puffed up so well and they tasted umpteen times better than the dim sum restaurants. The family prefers the red bean filling and the restaurants strangely make them with either lotus or mung bean paste, so i had to make red bean filling.

Ingredients:


454 g glutinious rice flour
3 tbsp rice flour
2 tsp baking powder
200 g sugar
450 g water
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp oil
1/2 cup potato flakes (the kind used to make mashed potatoes)

Filling:

1 cup red bean
1 - 1 1/2 cups sugar
a pinch of salt

Method:

To prepare the filling:

Wash the red beans and put in the pressure cooker with enough water to cover the beans.

Cook uncovered for 10 minutes, then drain away the water.
Put the drained parboiled red beans back into the pressure cooker and add in 3 cups water.

Close the lid and pressurized for 30 minutes. Release pressure before opening the lid.

Using a sieve or a slotted spoon, remove the beans into a large microwave-safe bowl.

Add sugar and cook in the microwave on high until mixture is paste. Start with 5 mins at a time, stirring after every interval. Reduce the time as the mixture gets drier.

Cool before using.

To prepare the dough:

Mix together glutinious flour, rice flour and baking powder.

Bring water with sugar, oil and salt to the boil, add potato flakes. Stir to dissolve the potato. Immediately pour the hot mixture into the flour and mix until the flour absorbs all of the water.

Rest dough until it's cool enough to handle, then knead to make a smooth dough.(Dough is less pliable if it is kept for later use, perhaps it is only a problem for me cos of where i am - no humidity and i would advice that all the dough should be wrapped)

To make the balls:

wet your hands with water and take a piece of dough.

Wrap the filling and roll in sesame seeds.

Fry until golden, The frying time should take at least 15-20 mins, if it cooks faster then that the oil is too hot and your balls will not be hollow and will be soft as soon as you take it out of the oil. Press the balls against the wok with the ladle and it will puff up and keep stirring the balls for even browning.

Serves

Curry Puffs

How can anyone be tired of eating curry puffs?  To me, this is comfort food  and I will never refuse one even though i am packed full and looked like the curry puffs that are offered to me. They are the most delicious morsels that i ever ate, with  spicy curry paste for extra oomph and packed with soft potatoes, chicken/beef.   They are  deep fried to a guilty perfection with a crusty and crunchy exterior and to achieve this, the dough has to be rolled very thinly.   

Ingredients:

Pastry:

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
5 tbsp margarine/shortening
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
3 tbsp water


Filling:

1/2 lb chicken meat - dced
1 small onion - chopped
1 tbsp Garam Assam Paste
2 tbsp curry powder for meat
2 large potatoes - peeled and diced.
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp black pepper
5 tablespoons oil

Oil for deep frying

Method:

To make the filling:

Heat oil and fry the chopped onions until sweat through. Add the garam assam paste, curry powder and saute until fragrant. Add the chicken, potatoes, and 1 cup water, cook until potatoes are fork tender.  Add salt and sugar to taste and cook until filling is dry.. Leave aside to cool.

To make pastry:

Using the food processor, add in flour, baking powder and salt, pulse to mix, then add margarine/shortening and pulse until it looked like breadcrumbs.  Add water and pulse until the dough is combined into a ball.. Let it rest for 1/2 hour.

Roll dough out into a long rope and cut into small portions.  Roll each portion into a very thin circle and put the filling in the center(amount of filling depends on the size of the circle). Fold pastry over to make a half circle and crimp the edges.

Deep fry in hot oil until golden.

Serves

Tee nyah kuih

 This 'kuih' is typically 'hokkien' and it is time that i talk about my heritage as hokkien 'lang' after being branded as a 'macau sai' by my paternal grandmother cos me and my siblings do not speak our 'mother tongue' that well or rather not at all. We spoke our Mother's tongue, cantonese, but it should not be our Mother's tongue but my Grandma's - Ah Po, who is cantonese. There was once when i was asked by my Ah Ma to tell this hokkien guy who came to look for my Ah Kong - 'ie kee liao pee la lui lee eh au pit'  - hokkien guy seemed to understand what i said, while i myself took a long time to figure out what i said.  Can any of my 'hokkian lang' readers tell me what i said?. 

This kuih is a speciality and will appear on the table of hokkien families during hokkien festivals.  My one and only Ah Koh, made the best tee nyah kuih and i would like my Ah Ma and Ah Koh to be proud of me by making this kuih although mine is not as good.

Ingredients:

1 lb rice flour
2 tbsps tapioca flour
1/2 tsp borax/ pang sar (optional)
2 tbsps potassium carbonate & sodium bi-carbonate solution
2000 ml/2 liters water
1 ½ tbsps cooking oil
1 tsp salt


Method:

Combine rice flour, tapioca flour, borax, potassium carbonate & sodium bi-carbonate solution, salt together in a microwave-safe bowl. . Add in the water, a little at a time, to prevent lumps. Give it a good mix before adding cooking oil and stir well and make sure borax is  dissolved.

Cook in the microwave until a very thick consistency, stirring after every intervals.
Pour in a greased 9 inches round steaming tray and spoon the 2 tablespoons of tap water over surface of kuih.

Steam kuih over rapidly boiling water for one hour.  Replenish water if necessary.  To prevent condensation, wrap steamer cover with a large piece of cloth(using a bamboo steamer is the best).

Test for doneness with a wooden skewer(lidi) pierced in the centre,  It should come out clean.

Cool kuih for a couple of hours before slicing.

Serve with Hong Bak or Red Cooked Pork or Tau Yue Bak

Serves

KUIH BOM KELEDEK/Sweet Potato Bombs

Kuih Bom Keledek translated from Malay to English is Sweet Potato Bombs.  These would one of the items prohibited to be hand-carried on to a plane,cos of it's namesake.  They are so called for it's round shape and no relation to any explosives but they do explode a mouthful of flavors when bitten into.  Any variety of sweet potatoes/yams can be used and i like the orange colored yams as they give a golden look to the balls.

Ingredients:

Filling:

1 cup grated coconut
1/4 cup or more dark brown sugar(adjust sweetness to your liking) - cook it with 1/4 cup water until sugar dissolves.
2 tbsp glutinous rice (for thickening) -dilute with 1 tbsp water
Pandan leaves(optional)

For the dough

2 1/2 - 3 cups of sweet potatoes/yams - mashed(Bake or microwave to cook them, do not boil unless using yellow or purple sweet potatoes)

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup glutinous rice flour
1 cup water plus a pinch of salt
sesame seeds
Vegetable oil for frying

Method:

To cook the filling:

Mix grated coconut, sugar solution and pandan leaves(if using) and cook over the stovetop or in the microwave until well combined and thickened slightly.

Remove the pandan leaves and add in the glutinous rice solution and mix well.  Cook further until the glutinous rice is totally cooked and thickened.  Taste and adjust sweetness.

Cool before using.


To make the dough:

Mix the all-purpose flour and the glutinous rice flour together with the mashed sweet potatoes.

Add in water a little at a time until a dough forms.  Knead until it is smooth.

Divide dough into 1 inch balls.

Flatten a ball and fill with 1 tsp of coconut filling, bring the edges together and seal well.

Repeat until all the balls are done.

Heat vegetable oil to 350f.

While oil is heating, drop one filled ball at a time in a bowl of water, then roll it with sesame seeds.  Continue this procedure until all filled balls are done.

Deep-fry the balls until golden brown.  Do not crowd otherwise the balls will be soggy.

Serve balls slightly warm or at room temperature.

Serves

Taro Crunch

When i was shredding taro for Yee Sang, i remembered this snack.  I shredded more taro and made this forgotten snack which was so crunchy.  The taro is sometimes called the "potato" of the humid tropics and indeed it is - a good taro will be fluffy in texture just like the potato.  Taro is quite costly and choosing a good one which will be fluffy is crucial to your pocket and the dish you will be preparing. For a good fluffy taro, choose one that is shaped like a vase - narrow on the top and bottom, wide in the middle and it has to be as smooth as possible - no bumps or knotches.  Bumps mean that the taro has been constricted from growing well and that it has been grown in muddy soil.  Taro grown in sandy soil, grows well and will be fluffy. I have given up buying taro with skin on and have been buying peeled ones, although peeled ones are very much more expensive, at least i can see that the taro will be fluffy and not rotten. 

Taro is so versatile and there are endless recipes which are classics, below are some of the tested recipes -

Woo Tau Koh
Taro fatt koh
Woo Tau Kow Yoke

Woo kok
Taro Shredds

Taro and black-eyed pea cake
Taro fragrant rice
Sueen poon cheeBubur Cha Cha

Fried Nin Ko

There are many more recipes that i would like to try - like Or Nee, Taro Cake, Taro Filling for mooncake and many more.

Ingredients:

1 lb shredded taro
1 cup roasted peanuts - chopped
½ cup sesame seeds
3 - 5 tbsp rice flour
1/2 tsp 5 spice powder
1 tsp salt.
Water to bind




Method:

Mix all the ingredients, followed by a little water to bind ingredients.

Heat oil for deep frying and when oil is 350f, using the chopstick, pick up a little taro shreds and deep fry till golden brown and crispy.

Drain well and let cool before storing.

Serves

Happy Valentine Nin Ko

Wishing all A Happy Valentine with this Nin Ko and may this sticky rice cake provide the bond and keep all your love ones together.

Serves

Valentine Bangkit

Love the most powerful emotion on earth is celebrated on Valentine's Day.  Show your love with these heart cookies to make your sweetheart feel special!  This cookie is actually a classic for the Chinese in Malaysia celebrating the Chinese New Year and as we all know, February 14th is also Valentine's Day.  As i was making Kuih Bangkit for the Chinese New Year, i was also thinking of putting some love in the air.  Hearts, color pink and roses - with all these in mind, made some of the bangkit into these cuties.

Ingredients:


One recipe of Kuih Bangkit
Change essence to Rose essence
Pink Food Coloring
Dried Rose Petals
Egg white for glazing



Serves