Deep fried rice cakes with syrup! These are a classic deep fried rice cake from the Sichuan province - a popular sweet snack for really whenever, but especially common along side something quite spicy like Chongqing hotpot.We decided to do a description box recipe for this this week (mostly because I - Chris - am feeling a bit lazy). I think we'll do the Reddit posts for about half of the recipes moving forward :)INGREDIENTS, RICE CAKES:- 200g long grain glutinous rice (e.g. Thai or Laotian sticky rice)PROCESS, RICE CAKES:- Thorough rinse the rice, ~3-4 times, then fill ~1 inch over the rice and soak for 4-10 hours- Transfer the rice over to a steamer lined with food safe cloth. Poke some 'holes' with your fingers- Steam for 15 minutes- Open it up, sprinkle some water over it: we used ~1/2 cup- Steam another 15 minutes- Transfer over to a heavy chopping board or large mortar. The rice should still be steaming hot when pounding. If using a chopping board, oil the board first. If using a wood mortar, wet the sides of it.- Pound for ~5 minutes until it reaches a smooth, sticky consistency that can 'pull' when you pound with the pestle. - Transfer over to a board lined with seran wrap. Fold the wrap over the rice, shape it a bit by smacking it, fold it like a box. Freeze for 4-10 hours- Take the rice cake out of the freezer, let it thaw for 30 minutes- Cut into 2cm strips. For this recipe we will also turn them on their side and cut them in halfWe used half. These freeze very well.INGREDIENTS, TOASTED SOYBEAN POWDER- Dried Soybeans, 30gPROCESS, TOASTED SOYBEAN POWDER- Over a medium flame, toss the dried soybeans in a dry skillet- Toast for ~3 minutes until the soybeans are hot, then swap the flame to low. The reason we started at a higher flame is just that the whole thing would take a bit too annoyingly-long if kept at a low flame the whole time- Toast for ~10 minutes over a low flame, until the soybeans've cracked open- Transfer to a mortar or spice grinder, grind.- Sift, then grind the remaining.- Sift again. The remaining coarse bits are the soybean shells and can be discarded.- Jar it up.This makes a big batch and more than is needed for the recipe. If you're looking for ways to use it up, uh... it's good in lattes. INGREDIENTS, SYRUP- Dark Brown Sugar, 50g- Water, 50gBe sure your sugar is dark brown. If light brown, add a bit of molasses in as well.PROCESS, SYRUP- Add both water and sugar to a small saucepan, melt over a low flame, 5-6 minutes.TO FRY AND SERVE THE RICE CAKES:- Deep fry the rice cakes at 170C for ~30 seconds. If you are having too much problem with them sticking it is totally ok to go only two at a time (not what we did in the video, but probably recommended)- Once floating and *ever* so lightly browned, transfer over to a paper towel lined plate- Smother with toasted soybean powder, then with syrupJust remember that as soon as you sauce up your rice cake, your shot clock is ticking. For pounded rice cakes, you've probably got a ~20 minute window there until it softens.And check out our Patreon if you'd like to support the project!http://www.patreon.com/ChineseCookingDemystifiedOutro Music: คิดถึงคุณจัง by ธานินทร์ อินทรเทพFound via My Analog Journal (great channel): https://youtu.be/GHaL5H-VYRgABOUT US-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Learn how to cook real deal, authentic Chinese food! We post recipes every Friday (unless we happen to be travelling) :)We're Steph and Chris - a food-obsessed couple that lives in Shunde, China. Steph is from Guangzhou and loves cooking food from throughout China - you'll usually be watching her behind the wok. Chris is a long-term expat from America that's been living in China and loving it for the last eleven years - you'll be listening to his explanations and recipe details, and doing some cooking at times as well.This channel is all about learning how to cook the same taste that you'd get in China. Our goal for each video is to give you a recipe that would at least get you close to what's made by some of our favorite restaurants here. Because of that, our recipes are no-holds-barred Chinese when it comes to style and ingredients - but feel free to ask for tips about adaptations and sourcing too!
