Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Pak Thong Koh (Steamed White Cake)

I made this Pak Thong Koh (Steamed Rice Cake) a few days ago. I always like the yeasty smell and the unique springy texture of this kueh (cake). I google for the recipe and many of the recipes out there need 6-8 hours of fermentation but not this recipe. From start to finish it took me about 3 hours. The process took a bit longer because the weather here is still very cold so the batter need a bit more time to ferment. In warm weather all it need is about 2 hours.

Ingredients:
Recipe adapted from Rose Kitchen

280 grms rice flour
280 grm sugar ( I used only 200 grm)
600 ml water
1 tsp dried yeast + 3 tbsp of lukewarm water
3 pandan leaves – knotted
½ tsp salt
½ tbsp cooking oil

1. In a mixing bowl add in rice flour and 300 ml water. Mix well and set it aside.
2. In a small saucepan, boil the balance 300 ml water, sugar, salt, and pandan leaves. Once boil remove the pandan leaves. Pour the syrup right away inside the rice flour mixture and leave it aside to cool.
3. Dissolve the yeast in the lukewarm water and pour it into the cool rice flour mixture. Stir well and cover and let it ferment for 1 ½ or 2 hours or until small and tiny bubbles appears on top of the batter.
4. Prepare the steamer; bring the water to rapid boil. Grease and pre-heat an 8” baking round or square tray.
5. Add in ½ tbsp of vegetable oil to the mixture, stir well and pour into the heated tray and steam for 20 minutes or until skewer comes out clean when tested.
6. Cut and serve once it is cool.

59 comments:

Mat Gebu said...

Waaa....saya pun ada salin ini resipi, nanti nak buat juga...hehe

Reanaclaire said...

wow... sounds easy.. wonder whether i can manage to do that or not.. :p

Quinn said...

Gert, why is it so white??? Any tricks apart from the vinegar-water to steam? I tried it before, didn't work.

Shabs.. said...

woooww....we have a similar version of steamed cake, but we add coconut for that extra rich tropical taste....just yum yum....this looks so similar to tthat one...

Angie's Recipes said...

I love white sugar cakes...much lighter yet flavourful.

Sonia ~ Nasi Lemak Lover said...

this look not that difficult to do, but I'm lazy to do this as here is so easy to get this cake, hehehe. Anyway, well done.

MaryMoh said...

Wow...this looks perfect. I remember eating a lot of this when I was young. It was my favourite. I would love to try this. Thanks for sharing.

ICook4Fun said...

Mat, hope you like this kueh :)

Renaclaire, yes this is very easy to make. Hope you try it out.

Quinn, no trick whatsoever. I didn't even put vinegar in the steaming water. Do try out this recipe. It is much easier than other version out there.

Shabs, I have to check out your version of this steam cake :)

Angie, yes and this cake is not oily too. Much healthier :)

Sonia, yea is much easier to buy this in Malaysia since they sell it everywhere. Here we have to make everything if we want to eat it :)

Mary, this is easy to make. Hope you try it out.

ReeseKitchen said...

Eh I want to make this!! So happy to read this. Thanks! This is my mom's favourite, and I had few failure on this kueh..:( Hope I can handle this. Thanks again!

ann low said...

I've never tried to make Pak Thong Koh before. Like the colour and looks so soft.

Honey Bee Sweets said...

This Pak Thong Koh is my sister's absolute favorite. She has pestered me to make this for her a few times but I never seem to get to it. :P Thanks for sharing this great recipe...now I have one less excuse not to make these...

Pei-Lin said...

Gert, this is one of my faves, too! Love its springiness! So fun to eat!

I've tried making this when I was in the U.S. The method required long hours of proofing. Thanks for sharing this recipe. It's definitely a change from the usual method. ;)

I love the distinct honeycomb texture in yours!

Aimei said...

This looks good though you took less than the usual time needed. Like the honeycomb texture. ;)

Little Corner of Mine said...

Looks good! I made it once, it had the nice honeycomb effect too but too stinky I had to throw it away. :P

Swee San said...

oh i love this kuih!! Will have to make this soon ... thanks

shereen said...

Yum!Yum!Your kueh looks perfect....beautiful with honeycomb effect all over.I've made before this kueh but it didn't turned out to well.Taste not so good and also a bit oily.I will definately try your recipe.Will let you know the result.Thank you for posting this.

ICook4Fun said...

Reese, this recipe is easy and hope you make it for your mother.

Anncoo, yes this really white :)

BeeBee, hope you sister like this :)

Pei-Lin, thank you. I love the comb too.

Aimei, thank you.

LCOM, how come it was stinky. You proof it too long?

Swee San, looking forward to your posting on this.

Sis, thank you and hope you try this recipe out.

Mary Bergfeld said...

This really looks cloud-like. I've never made a steamed cake. Yours is so beautiful I'm starting to think it's time to master it. I hope you had a wonderful day. Blessings...Mary

Blessed Homemaker said...

I used to make this as my dad likes this kuih. I've not made this for the longest time, at least 2 years. The recipe I have needs 8 hours of fermentation and I always prepare the night before and steam the next morning. Thanks for the reminder.

Your pak thong gor looks very springy.

Ann said...

Yummmmy! looks extremely soft and fluffy. I want that now .. so tempted

Cheah said...

Your kueh looks so fresh and springy, may try out one day.

Elin Chia said...

Gert, this is great...2 hrs instead of the usual 6 hrs. Will try this out for sure since it takes 2 hrs only. Thanks for sharing :)

Elin Chia said...

Gert, btw I have a gift award for you, pls do drop by and collect it when it convenient for you :))

tigerfish said...

The honeycomb texture is so similar to that Indonesia kuih ..oh gosh, I have forgotten the name. I guess you know what I am talking about ya?

Ayu said...

Hi, Gert,
I came across your blog while blog walking..I made this kuih using the ragi..understood that your steps took faster , but mine was 2-3 days from making the fermented rice to steaming it..

was it suppose to be a bit sour and sweet?..or just sweet..you can come and visit me at my blog and look at the recipe..http://curlybabesatisfaction.blogspot.com/2010/03/pak-thong-koh.html

WendyinKK said...

Great to hear u've made it using her recipe with success.
I tried her recipe once, and I don't know why it came out tasting floury... I even extended the steaming time by another 5 minutes than stated in her recipe..

gertrude said...

Ann :)

Cheah, do try it out at this recipe is much easier.

Elin, yea I saw some recipes out there that takes too long to ferment.

Tigerfish, I think Elin made that kueh before.

Ayu, this kueh is not sourish at all. I will check out your recipe.

Wendy, mine was fine. Do you think maybe it the type of rice flour you used?

WendyinKK said...

I don't think it has to do with the Rice flour. I used the same brand as Rose. And I've also successfully made pak thong gou with another recipe, that has tang mein in it. That was good. Just that I wanted to try another version out.

Samantha said...

Hi,
I've got some questions here, I hope someone might be able to help me.

1. it says that only to use rice flour, is this glutinous rice flour?
2. can the cooking oil be replaced using olive oil? some people reckon that olive oil have some sort of particular smell and taste

thanks

ICook4Fun said...

Samantha, this kueh uses only rice flour and not glutinous rice flour and yes you can use olive oil for it but it has to be some light olive oil. Nothing too strong.

Sam said...

Great success tonight upon first attempt..
Thanks a lot for sharing your recipes..
It's great!!

ReeseKitchen said...

I did it Gert...:) Very nice recipe...my mother said "wa..very good horr" after her 1st bite..hahaha! Thank you so much for sharing the recipe..;)

ICook4Fun said...

Sam, you are most welcome.

Reese, glad that you tried this out. Now your mother don't have to buy this kueh anymore. You can make it for her :)

CheezyHeart said...

Hi,
When leave to ferment, what to use to cover? also, need place at warm place? if no oven or microwave which place is more suit to ferment? hee..thks

ICook4Fun said...

CheezyHeart, just leave it on the kitchen counter and cover it with a plastic wrap or kitchen towel.

BKE said...

Thanks for your recipe....tried to cook it,it looks and taste good....but i don't know why and what to do as the texture is very sticky....
Shall I reduce the water level?
please advice....Thanks

veron said...

May I know you steam it on high fire or medium fire? Thks.

cre8tone said...

Thanks for the share.. My daughter love this.. And I hope I can make it for her to eat soon..

Carrie said...

this was too sweet for me. would also change to glutinous rice flour instead of regular rice flour for a chewier texture.

Anonymous said...

I was so happy when I found your Pak Thong Koh recipe which was not complicated at all but after I had let the mixture proof, I could see lots of wonderful bubbles coming up through the mixture. But when I put it into a greased pan to steam, it came out without ANY of that honeycomb texture. Just flat. So disappointing. Did I need to let it proof again after I put it into the pan?

ICook4Fun said...

Anon, I am not too sure what happen after the fermentation step. Did you stir it too long when you add in the oil before steaming it? No you don't have to proof it again after pouring the batter into the pan.

Six Bittersweets said...

Hello! I'm thinking about trying this this weekend. Did you use active dry yeast for the cake in the photos or did you use Chinese wine yeast? I'd like to use Chinese wine yeast. How much do you think I should put? Thanks!

aileen chew said...

I will try out your recipe this weekend! Thanks for posting & sharing !

Audrey said...

I tried out your recipe today and was disappointed that it wasn't springy. Hardly any honeycomb and solid. Wonder what I did wrong.

ICook4Fun said...

Audrey, I made this a few time and each time it turns out well. Many people had tried this recipe from the original creator and all give very good reviews. I am not sure what happen to yours. You might want to check on your yeast.

Anonymous said...

I by chance come across your recipe and I try the same day. It come out very good. I am surprised myself☺. Thank you very much for sharing with us.

Anonymous said...

Hi, I by chance come across your recipe today 5/11/2014, and I try immediately. It turn out very good and I am surprised myself. Thank you so much for sharing with us��. Wish you always happy and have more good recipes to share with us.

Anonymous said...

Hi, was looking for a good Pak Tong Gou recipe. Then I stumbled yr website. With all those positive reviews I tried making it but it did not turn out right. It's edible but it is not soft and springy. A bit on the dense side. Not as white as yours as well. Where do I go wrong here ? 1. Do I need to sieve the flour ? 2. Do I need to wait for the yeast to be foamy first before I add in to the batter? 3. While adding the oil into the batter it still appeared on the surface even I stir to mix it. Is that norm ? Appreciate yr advice on this so I can try again. Thank you

ICook4Fun said...

Anon (9.06 and 9.14), thanks for trying this out and glad it turns out well.

Anon (7.51) I am not sure what went wrong with your PTK. I didn't sieve the flour. If your yeast is old it will be better that you leave it to form before pouring it into the batter. This is just to be sure that it's alive. Yes the oil will surface after you mix it.

Anonymous said...

hi there, i've been looking for a recipe for this rice cake, is there a way you can convert the:

280 grms rice flour
280 grm sugar ( I used only 200 grm)
600 ml water

into CUPS please?

thank you in advance.

ELA

Unknown said...

Hi there. Sorry I don't know your name as you didn't state so on your blog. Anyhow, I am thankful I found your blog for so many great recipes. If you don't mind me asking, can you please tell me how your pak tong koh comes out so white? Doesn't the pandan leaves make the water lightly brown, therefore making the cake not white? Please email me back. Thanks so much.

Unknown said...

Another question regarding this Pak Tong Koh. Do I dump the yeast mixture right into the flour mixture without letting the yeast to bloom? Most recipes ask to have yeast proof a little before pouring into the flour. Please reply. Thank you.

Unknown said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Unknown said...

Hi, i tried this today and it turned out great! I was wondering if i can replace the water with coconut milk? To have more coconut/pandan flavor? Thanks!

ICook4Fun said...

Dianne, you can always try it out but you PTK might not be as fluffy as coconut milk is heavy. Maybe coconut water might be better. Do let me know the result if you try it.

Anonymous said...

Hi, i tried cooking it with half water and half coconut milk and it turned out good! More coconut flavor to it! Thanks again!

neesie said...

This looks so yum...I'm not sure if I can access pandan leaves...do the leaves give the cake flavour

ICook4Fun said...

Nessie, the pandan leaves will give a nice fragrant to the kuih.

Unknown said...

Wow your recipe turned out really good. I'm not sure if you're still answering questions but whenever I try to make this it never turns out right. When the cake is finished steaming it always has a really watery top and my batter is dark like the colour of the yeast. And there isn't the honeycomb structure in it, instead it just looks like white cake. I don't know whether it's my batter or my steaming method since I don't have a steamer ive been putting a metal stand at the bottom of my pot and putting the pan with the batter on top.