Thursday, July 30, 2015

Taiwan-style Bowl Rice Cake (台灣小吃 碗粿)

This is a traditional Taiwan-style Snack Food that is often served in the night markets.  We suggest a cooking method that makes it easy to prepare and quick to serve.
  1. Prepare Cooked Rice Flour (熟再來米粉): Get a bag of Rice Flour (16oz; see the bag
    with redletters for a product image, NOT the bag with green letters, Glutinous Rice Flour), pour half the bag into a porcelain bowl, shake the bowl slightly to flatten the surface of the powder, poke 4-5 holes in the rice powder, and cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap. Now place the bowl into a steamer and steam for 30 minutes (add ~15 minutes to allow full steam to build up in the steamer).  Note: The plastic wrap is used to prevent any water from getting into the rice powder.  
  2. Prepare the filling for the rice cake: Taiwan-style Minced Pork Sauce (台式香菇肉燥, see previous post). 
  3. Prepare the toppings for the rice case: sliced pork (1/4 lb of lean pork, slice, marinate, stir-fry, and set aside), minced dry mushroom (keep 1/4 cup from Step 2, or stir-fry and set aside), minced preserved turnip (菜脯), and 1 tsp of Thick Soy Sauce per bowl of Rice Cake (醬油膏).  Note- It seems people also use the salted duck egg yolk (鹹蛋黃) or stewed egg halves (鹵蛋) as toppings. 
  4. For 1 bowl of rice cake: Place 1/3 cup of Cooked Rice Powder into a small rice bowl, add 2/3 cup of hot water (180 deg-F or above), stir evenly till the rice powder is fully dissolved in the water (go easy on the rice powder, but be slightly generous on the water, to make sure the mix is still watery, not thick).  Add 1.5- 2  Tbsp of Minced Pork Sauce into the bowl, stir evenly.  Place the bowl in a Microwave Oven and heat for 60 seconds, for the rice powder mix to turn into soft rice cake texture (for harder texture, go easy on the water).  Note- Proportionally increase heating time for 2 bowls of rice cake.  For more bowls of rice cake, will try using a steamer for 10-12 minutes when I get a chance (For 6 bowls of rice cake, mix 2 cups of cooked rice powder with 4 cups of hot water, then pour 2/3 cups, NOT 1 cup, of the mix into each bowl before steaming.)
  5. Add the toppings from Step 3 (2-3 tsp of each topping).  Heat in the Microwave Oven for 30 seconds, and serve.  Here is a picture of the finished product.  Alternatively, before adding the toppings, the bowl of rice cake can keep in fridge for a week, or in freezer for several weeks, if sealed in plastic wrap. When ready to serve, defrost (if frozen), add the toppings, heat in microwave oven for 30 seconds, and serve.  Note- Will try using a steamer for 5-6 minutes for more than 2 bowls of rice cake, when I get a chance.

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