Step 1

Cook the dark brown sugar slabs and water on medium heat until the sugar has melted. Let it cool until warm.

Step 2

Combine the glutinous rice flour and wheat starch in a bowl.

Step 3

Pour the sweet syrup into the flour mixture bit by bit while stirring it through. Do this until it's all mixed into a thick but runny batter.

Step 4

Lightly oil the surface of your cake tin. We used a 20cm (8") cake tin with a removable base to make to easier to take out.Pro Tip: Keep the oil layer thin so it doesn't make the steamed surface lumpy.Note: When Aunty made it, she used four 15cm (6") round foil trays so she could give them as gifts.

Step 5

Use a sieve to hover over the cake tin and pour the batter through. This will help to remove clumps.

Step 6

Hold the cake tin and gently tap the base against the counter to force any air bubbles to rise. Use a toothpick to pop the bubbles and smooth out the surface.

Step 7

Wrap the top of the cake tin with aluminium foil. Make sure there are no gaps.

Step 8

Set your steamer up and steam the batter on high heat for 1 hour or until cooked.

Step 9

When ready, take the rice cake out and insert a red date in the middle. You can push the whole date in or halve it and place it on top.

Step 10

Slice and serve the Nian Gao immediately as is or lightly pan fry them with egg!