Steamed Rice Cake (Bai Tang Gao 白糖糕)

Step 1

Wash the pandan leaves and cut them into 6-inch lengths.

Step 2

Sieve the 140 gm of rice flour into a big bowl. Then add 1/4 tsp of salt (optional) and 150 gm of water to the flour and mix well with a whisk.

Step 3

For the syrup, measure out 100 gm of sugar into a pot, then add pandan leaves and 150ml water into the pot. Bring to a boil for about 5 minutes.

Step 4

Remove the pandan leaves and sieve the syrup.

Step 5

Slowly pour the syrup into the rice flour mixture, stirring it constantly to prevent it from getting lumpy and set aside and let it cool until about 30°C or warm. If the mixture becomes lumpy, sieve the mixture to remove any lumps.

Step 6

Dissolve 1/2 tsp of yeast with 1 TBsp of warm water and leave it for 5 mins or until it bubbles. Then add the yeast into the rice flour mixture, and 1 tsp of oil and stir well.

Step 7

Cover the bowl with a cling wrap and leave it in a warm place for about 2 hrs or until it bubbles.

Step 8

Grease a 7.5 inch stainless steel plate with oil.

Step 9

Fill a wok with water and bring to a boil.

Step 10

Loosely wrap a aluminium foil over the steaming plate to form a cover. Once the shape is formed, remove the aluminium foil gently.

Step 11

Place the plate on the steaming rack in the wok. Then using a spoon, stir the rice flour mixture before pouring onto the plate, ensuring that the plate is level. Then cover it with the aluminium foil cover and steam over high fire for about 20 minutes.

Step 12

After 20 minutes, use a satay stick to prick in the centre, if it comes out clean, then it is done.

Step 13

Remove plate from the wok and remove the aluminium foil and let the steamed rice cake / Bai Tang Gao cool completely before cutting. Serve warm or at room temperature. Enjoy!

Step 14

HOW DO YOU KNOW IF THE YEAST IS GOOD? Yeast is the key ingredient that aerates the Bai Tang Gao by introduces air pockets to form its distinctive honey-comb structure. Yeast tends to lose its efficacy after being stored for some time (even if its not yet expired).The Bai Tang Gao will end up dense and undercooked if the yeast is too old, as the heat cannot penetrate well to cook it through.Ensure that you see the bubbles form within 5 minutes of mixing it with warm water to know if the yeast is good.