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Homemade Sai Mai Lo – 西米露

Home Made Chinese Coconut Tapioca Dessert Recipe

There’s nothing more refreshing on a hot day, or just a blah day than a bowl of tapioca pudding (or better yet, soup) which is thick, flavourful and creamy!

Ingredients (makes 2 Chinese bowls)
1/4 Tapioca Pearls – 西米 (dried)
1/4 cup rock sugar
1 can coconut milk (165mL)
1/2 can 2% milk or evaporated milk (about 82.5mL)

First, rinse the tapioca pearls off well, it helps with getting rid of the “tapioca starch” sediments, so rinse with cold water. Then, let the pearls sit and soak for a few hours until it has at least doubled or tripled in size. The longer they soak, the less time it takes for them to cook!

I like to rinse the pearls again, before putting them in a pot of boiling water. So, bring some water up to a boil and pour the pearls in there. Don’t step away long if you have to, these pearls do cook up fast! The pearls will become clear or translucent – but pour them through a fine mesh strainer when there is a bit of whiteness still in the centre! Rinse WELL under cold water to stop the cooking process.

Meanwhile, pour the can of coconut milk and half a can (the can the coconut milk was in) of either milk or evaporated milk. Dissolve some brown rock sugar in the milk making sure the milk never comes to a full boil – otherwise, you’ll start getting a film on top when it begins to cool. You can also dissolve the sugar in some boiling water if you’re afraid of the film.

Once the mixture has combined thoroughly, stir in the pearls and you’re ready to enjoy! I like my sai mai lo both hot and cold, and since I can make 2 bowls with this recipe, I normally eat one right away and the other goes into the fridge!

If you don’t really want to make your own, a delicious option would be to get it at T&T Supermarket! They make a really good one, and it comes in a convenient cup, and it’s the same portion size! Their Sai Mai Lo is actually not bad at all!

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Homemade Ma Lai Go – 馬拉糕

Home Made Chinese Steamed Sponge Cake

I didn’t know what to make – besides knowing I wanted to make a cake. I’m no good at baking, so I opted for a steamed cake. The first one that came to my mind was the ma lai go which is a common cake that you’d get during dim sum. This is a simple recipe for a small batch, which was all I needed!

Ingredients:
1/2 cup cake flour
1/2 cup of sugar
2 eggs beaten

First you cream the eggs and sugar together until it becomes “thick” and forms kind of “ribbons” from your whisk. This does take a long time, so use an electric beater or have lots of energy! Make sure you get your steamer ready as you need it right away! The steamer and everything has to be hot and ready – or the cake won’t rise and you’ll just get a block of cake.

Once the mixture is creamy, thick and frothy, then you’re ready to add in the flour. Mix the flour in gently until incorporated – do not over mix!

Then, just pour the batter into the container of choice. I used 2 small ramekins, which worked great for my purpose!

Steam for 30 minutes and you’ll know it’s ready when the cake starts pulling away from the sides. You can do the clean toothpick test too just to verify!

Serve hot/warm, and I just pulled my little cake out of the ramekin so you can see the great bubbles.

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Homemade Chinese Spicy Steamed Tofu

Home Made Spicy Tofu Recipe

Some night, I don’t know what to make – a quick and simple dish to go with rice would be tofu! I like to buy a medium firmness tofu as it’s most versatile. After you steam the tofu it because really silky, smooth and soft. As I only cook for 2 people, I either use half or even a quarter block of Sunrise Tofu which can be purchased from the grocery stores with an Asian aisle (or of course the Asian market). If you know how to handle your tofu, I recommend buying the soft or silken tofu for this recipe! It will become almost a savoury custard.

Ingredient:
1/2 block Tofu
1/2 tsp chili flakes
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 tbsp maple syrup
dash of hot sauce

First, you rinse the block of tofu, and dry it well. The better job you do of drying it, the better the soy sauce will stick to the tofu as an end result.While the tofu is drying, set up the steamer. I then cut up my tofu into little cubes and arrange on a heat proof dish, and sprinkle the chili flakes on top. Cover the dish with aluminum foil so water doesn’t get into the dish while it’s steaming. While the tofu is steaming, prepare the soy sauce mixture by combining the soy sauce, maple syrup and hot sauce.

Steam the dish for about 13-15 minutes depending on the thickness of your tofu. Once it’s soft and heated through, it’s ready to go! Take the dish out of the steamer carefully and pour the soy sauce mixture over top. Serve hot and enjoy. The soy sauce taste really good over rice!

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Starbucks – Hot Cocoa Classic

Lately, I’ve been looking for a decadent drink to melt stress away. I bought a canister of Starbucks – Hot Cocoa, which really seemed to work! This rich and delicious drink is simple to prepare and a pleasure to enjoy!

I heated some milk to try this classic hot cocoa mix, which I did in a cup for a few minutes in the microwave. I really wanted to try this, so I didn’t feel like spending the time boiling it in a pot. Once the milk was hot enough, I put about 1 1/2 tablespoon of the hot cooca mix into the hot milk.

It was rich, and creamy with decadent dark chocolate notes, and it coated my tongue perfectly with some cocoa! All I need is to purchase some marshmallows and this would be heavenly!

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Homemade Bor Lor Bao – 菠蘿包

Home Made Chinese Pineapple Bun Recipe

Ingredients (makes 4-6 mini buns):
Dough:
1 1/2 cup flour
1/2 tbsp yeast
1/2 tbsp butter
1/4 cup milk
1 egg beaten
pinch of salt
pinch of sugar
oil

Topping:
2 1/2 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp butter
1 egg yolk
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 tbsp milk
1/2 cup flour
1 tbsp baking powder

First, you make the yeast solution for the yeast to activate by mixing the yeast with a pinch of sugar, 1/2 cup of flour and 1/4 cup warm water

Once the solution has become frothy and has doubled in size, you’re ready to start making the dough. Melt butter, then add milk to the butter.

In a large mixing bowl, combine eggs to the flour and then incorporate the milk mixture and yeast mixture. Knead for a few minutes until a ball of dough forms. You may need to add more water or flour depending on the consistancy.

Once the ball of dough is formed, take another mixing bowl and grease the sides. Put some plastic wrap on the top – or a wet tea towel and wait for 2 hours for the dough to rise. In the mean time, you can make the topping as it needs some time to set in the fridge. To make the topping, cream together the butter and sugar until smooth. Then, add in the egg yolk with milk and mix again. Next comes the flour, baking soda and baking powder. Once this comes in, be sure to mix to combine only. Do not over work this mixture. Form into disks and refrigerate.

After you proof the dough, cut it up into the portion size you’d like your pineapple buns to be. Keep in mind they will rise again, so they’ll be bigger than you make them!

Once you got them portioned out, place the topping and place it on the bun with egg wash. Then, let them rise for a second time. You can score diamond markings on the top of the topping or just leave it – as the diamond texture simulates the look of a pineapple.

When you’re ready, bake in a 375F oven for 10-12 minutes when a toothpick can come out clean – then you’re ready to enjoy!

To get the shiny topping which I didn’t do, you can brush the top with some egg wash (beaten egg with some water mixture).