Indulge in a culinary journey with our golden rice cakes, a harmonious blend of glutinous rice flour, coconut milk, and palm sugar, steamed to perfection. These delectable treats are a staple in Southeast Asian cuisine, often served as a sweet or savory dish. Accompanying these rice cakes is a symphony of sauces, each offering a unique flavor profile. The sweet potato ginger sauce, a vibrant orange hue, tantalizes the taste buds with its sweet and tangy notes, complemented by the warmth of ginger. For those seeking a savory delight, the spicy peanut sauce, a rich and nutty concoction, adds a piquant kick. And for a refreshing twist, the coconut cream sauce, with its delicate sweetness and creamy texture, provides a delightful balance to the other flavors. Whether you prefer them sweet, savory, or somewhere in between, these golden rice cakes, paired with their delectable sauces, are sure to satisfy your cravings and leave you wanting more.
Here are our top 3 tried and tested recipes!
GOLDEN GINGER CAKE
Not your traditional gingerbread, this cake is flavored with familiar spices and enhanced with freshly grated ginger. (And yes, of course, there is still molasses.) Unlike a brittle cookie or dense loaf, this cake has the texture of what can only be described as a very good cake doughnut, crunchy on the outside and delightfully fluffy on the inside. It's best served just warmed, with a generous helping of whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.
Provided by Alison Roman
Categories cakes, dessert
Time 1h
Yield 8 to 10 servings
Number Of Ingredients 16
Steps:
- Heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9-inch springform pan, cake pan or tart pan with nonstick cooking spray (or grease with softened butter) and sprinkle with a bit of Demerara sugar to coat the interior of the pan; tap out excess and set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, turmeric, salt, cinnamon, baking powder and baking soda; set aside.
- Using a stand mixer or an electric mixer and a large bowl, beat together butter, brown sugar and molasses until the mixture is light, fluffy and the color of a very pale latte, 3 to 4 minutes. (Feel free to periodically scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula to make sure all the ingredients are mixing properly.) Add fresh ginger and beat to blend.
- Add eggs, one at a time, until they are totally incorporated and the mixture looks extremely light and fluffy, almost like cake frosting, 5 or so minutes. (Be sure to wipe off any ginger that may have stuck to the beaters.)
- Combine buttermilk and oil in a bowl or a measuring cup. With the mixer on low, beat 1/3 of the dry ingredients into the cake batter, followed by 1/2 of the buttermilk mixture. Repeat with 1/3 of the dry ingredients and the remaining buttermilk mixture. Finish by adding the remaining dry ingredients.
- Pour cake batter into prepared pan and scatter with more Demerara sugar. Bake, rotating once or twice if your oven has hot spots or tends to be uneven, until the cake has started to pull away from the sides of the pan, it's evenly golden brown on top and it springs back ever so slightly when pressed, 45 to 50 minutes.
- Remove from oven and let cool on a wire rack if you have one. (If not, just let it cool away from the oven.) Do not remove cake from the pan until it is 100 percent cool. Serve with lightly whipped cream or the ice cream of your choice.
GINGERY RICE WITH SWEET POTATOES AND PEAS
In the classic Thai dish, white rice is combined with white potatoes. Though it sounds rather redundant, the seasonings and embellishments make it delectable nonetheless. I took the general idea of this recipe and revved it up to include the two main ingredients' more nourishing counterparts-brown rice and sweet potatoes. This may still sound like an odd combination, but honestly, it works very well. Like any dish using brown rice, this will take about forty minutes, but hands-on time is limited, allowing you to prepare any accompaniments at a leisurely pace.
Yield 6 servings
Number Of Ingredients 12
Steps:
- Combine the rice with 3 1/2 cups water in a small saucepan. Bring to a rapid simmer, then lower the heat. Cover and simmer gently until the water is absorbed, 30 to 35 minutes.
- Meanwhile, microwave the sweet potatoes until just done but still nice and firm. Start with 3 minutes total, then test. A knife should go through with some resistance. If needed, microwave for another minute at a time. Once done, plunge the sweet potatoes into a bowl of cold water. Set aside until needed.
- When the rice is nearly done, peel the sweet potatoes and cut them into 1/2-inch dice.
- Heat the oil in a stir-fry pan. Add the white parts of the scallions and the garlic, and sauté over medium-low heat until just turning golden. Add the scallion greens and the sweet potatoes; turn the heat to medium-high and stir-fry for a minute or so.
- Stir in the ginger, curry powder, and turmeric, then add the rice. Turn the heat to medium-high and cook, stirring, until the ingredients are well blended. Add the peas and cook, stirring frequently, for 3 to 4 minutes.
- Season with salt, stir in the cilantro, and serve. Top each serving with some chopped nuts if desired.
- Serve with a platter of baby corn, sliced tomatoes, half-sour pickles, and sliced baked or smoked tofu. Complete the meal with steamed broccoli or Spicy Sesame Broccoli (page 197).
- If you have time to make a companion dish, I recommend Tempeh Fries with Horseradish or Wasabi-Dill Mayonnaise (page 78). Embellish the plate with sliced tomatoes, baby carrots, and bell peppers.
- Calories: 278
- Total Fat: 6g
- Protein: 6g
- Carbohydrates: 51g
- Fiber: 4g
- Sodium: 45mg
NIAN GAO (BAKED SWEET POTATO STICKY RICE CAKES)
Nian gao is a homonym for the Chinese phrase "nian nian gao sheng," which means increasing prosperity year after year. It is a dish indigenous to southern China in sweet and savory forms, and traveled with the diaspora to southeast Asia. This modern spin on classic nian gao comes from the food writer Christopher Tan, who wrote a book on Singaporean pastries titled "The Way of Kueh." He incorporates coconut milk, butter and mashed sweet potato into this nian gao for richness. The rice cake is usually steamed, but Mr. Tan bakes the batter in small molds for the contrast of a fudgy inside and crisp outside. The key to a smooth texture that stays soft after baking is resting the wet glutinous rice dough overnight.
Provided by Clarissa Wei
Time 2h
Yield 24 to 42 nian gao, depending on pan size
Number Of Ingredients 9
Steps:
- Combine the glutinous rice flour and ¾ cup/180 grams water in a bowl to form a dough. Cover tightly and refrigerate for at least 6 hours and up to 24 hours.
- Heat oven to 400 degrees. Wash and scrub the sweet potatoes and pat them dry thoroughly with a clean kitchen towel. With a fork, poke holes all over the sweet potatoes. Bake on a foil-lined pan until a fork can pierce it with no resistance, 40 to 50 minutes.
- When cool enough to handle, peel off the skin. Pass the sweet potato through a ricer or mash with a fork. Measure out 1¼ cups/320 grams of the mashed sweet potato. (Reserve any remaining for another use.)
- Heat oven to 350 degrees.
- Combine coconut milk, sugar and salt in a large saucepan. Set the saucepan over medium-low heat, and whisk until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is hot but not boiling, about 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and add the butter, stirring until it melts. Mix in the sweet potato mash, followed by the tapioca starch, then add the refrigerated wet glutinous rice flour gradually in chunks, whisking as you go. Add the egg and whisk until smooth.
- Heat 1 or more kuih bahulu pans in the oven until very hot, 7 to 8 minutes. If you don't have a kuih bahulu pan, a decorative cakelet pan or mini muffin tin made out of cast iron or aluminum works (see Tip). The batter yields 24 to 42 nian gao, depending on the size of the hollows; work in batches if needed (see Tip). Remove the pan from the oven and, using a silicone or pastry brush, lightly and quickly brush its hollows with oil. Stir batter, then quickly pour it into the hollows, filling them 80 to 90 percent full.
- Bake on the center rack until golden brown on top and a toothpick inserted into the center of one emerges moist and sticky, but with no pasty raw batter on it, 20 to 40 minutes. The exact baking time will vary depending on the size and heft of your pan.
- Use a wooden skewer or butter knife to pry out and remove the nian gao from the pan. If the pan was properly heated and oiled, the nian gao will not stick. If needed, repeat with the remaining batter. If the pan cools off too much while you are removing a batch of nian gao, heat it for a couple of minutes in the oven before baking the next batch.
- These nian gao are best served slightly warm while the edges are still crisp and the centres are soft and chewy. They are best the same day they are made. You can keep leftovers in a covered container in the refrigerator and steam, pan-fry or microwave them to reheat the next day, but they will not completely recover their freshly cooked texture.
Tips:
- For the perfect texture, use a combination of glutinous rice flour and regular rice flour. Glutinous rice flour gives the cakes a chewy texture, while regular rice flour helps to keep them light and fluffy.
- Don't overmix the batter. Overmixing will make the cakes tough.
- Be patient when steaming the cakes. It takes about 30 minutes for them to cook through.
- To make sure the cakes are cooked through, insert a toothpick into the center of one. If it comes out clean, the cakes are done.
- The sweet potato ginger sauce is the perfect complement to the golden rice cakes. It's sweet, tangy, and slightly spicy.
- To make the sauce, use fresh ginger. Grated ginger will give the sauce the best flavor.
- If you don't have brown sugar, you can use granulated sugar instead. However, brown sugar will give the sauce a richer flavor.
- The sauce can be made ahead of time and stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
Conclusion:
Golden rice cakes with sweet potato ginger sauce are a delicious and easy-to-make dessert. They're perfect for a special occasion or a simple weeknight treat. The cakes are chewy and slightly sweet, while the sauce is tangy and slightly spicy. The two flavors complement each other perfectly. These cakes are sure to be a hit with everyone who tries them.
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