Fried “Ti Kuih

I haven’t had this for so long and it was soooooo good when I bit into a piece of freshly fried “Ti Kuih"”!! Yum..Yum..Yum..!! I don’t know if there’s any English name to this traditional Chinese (Malaysian) Cake. The best name I could come up with is Sweet Sticky Rice Cake which sort of  defines the taste and texture of this confection. “Ti Kuih” (sweet cake???) is a “Hokkien” name for this traditional cake eaten mostly during Chinese New Year. In Mandarin, this cake is called “Nian Kao” (sticky cake???) where else in the Malay language, I believe this is called “Kuih Bakul” (basket cake??). I only know of 2 ways to eat “Ti Kuih”; the first being sandwiched with yam/potato then coated in a batter and fried, then second being steamed and coated in shredded coconut.

**picture borrowed from www.penangfaces.blogspot.com 

“Ti Kuih” is a sweet and sticky confection which is pretty tedious to make. It’s made from glutinous rice which is soaked and grinded till very fine and sugar. “Ti Kuih” requires hours of preparation as well as cooking time and is traditionally steamed in rattan basket (or empty cans) lined with banana leaves which enhances the flavor. If you dry the “Ti Kuih” really well (and freeze it), it will keep for quite a while. Perfect for you to enjoy some now and save some for later! =) I love homemade “Ti Kuih” steamed in banana leaves which are more traditional and tasty compared to the ones packaged in a plastic container, manufactured in the factory. Anyway, I have a bag of precious dried “Ti Kuih” in my fridge.  Every year, my Grandma makes awesome “Ti Kuih” the traditional way and will give us some. My mom dried the “Ti Kuih” and cut it up in slices for me. =) I decided to fry some up and sandwich the “Ti Kuih” between a slice of Japanese Sweet Potato and Purple Sweet Potato each. The usual way to sandwich the “Ti Kuih” is between a slice of sweet potato and yam. Since, I’m not a big fan of yam (taro) and the purple potato looked so pretty, I used that instead! I dunked the sandwiched “Ti Kuih” in a frying batter using Hup Loong frying powder. I just added some water and a pinch of salt to it and mix it till I get a thick batter. Dip the “sandwich” into the batter and fry the “TI Kuih” over medium low heat till it’s golden brown! I love this frying powder as it gave a crispy crunchy texture to the “Ti Kuih” and “Kuih” even stayed crispy a few hours later! I’m getting hungry writing and thinking about the oh-so-yummy Fried “Ti Kuih”!! And watching Bobby Flay doing another Throw-Down right now does not help either!!! Now, I’m hungry for some Chicken Pot Pie and Grilled Cheese!! =( I need to get my hands on some Pot Pie…..