Steamed Yam Cake (Wu Tow Kou)

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There are some foods which, to my mind, are very 'Ah Pek' (i.e. old man) and steamed yam cake is one of them. Other types of foods which fall under this Ah Pek category include Soon Kueh, Peng Kueh, Orh Nee (yam paste), Bak Zhang (rice dumpling), Ang Dao Teng (red bean soup) and Sweet Potato in Ginger Tong Sui (ginger-flavoured sweet soup). I can't really explain the rationale behind my categorisation. Perhaps it refers to all those foods which I would not be persuaded to eat as a child. I mean, foods like Chwee Kueh, Chee Cheong Fun, You Tiao etc may seem traditional enough but were still very tasty and palatable to me when I was little.  But that taste for yam, sweet potato, tapioca and ginger, unfortunately, appears to be something that people only acquire with the passing years. Make that very many passing years.

I could tell many stories of how I was very disappointed with my father's 'Ah Pek' taste buds when I was little. I remember how, standing at the ice cream counter at Yaohan, my father would always, without fail, choose one of two flavours: red bean or sweetcorn. Ah Pek flavours. When all I wanted was the Chocolate, Strawberry or that bright orange one which I imagined was mango-flavoured. When faced with my request for something different, he would always refuse, saying it was "bu hao chi" (not nice to eat).

Growing up, it seemed to me that my parents were also nuts about yam. Yam rice, yam cake, yam paste, yam abacus seeds... not that I found any of them yammy, I mean, yummy.

Much as I used to detest such 'Ah Pek' foods, I noticed a change in my tastebuds in the last few years. I started making my own yam dishes. Either because I miss that taste of home, or this is a sign that I am slowly but surely becoming more Ah Soh (the distaff version of an Ah Pek).

Last week I was seized with a tremendous craving for Yam Cake. I have never had a craving for yam cake before. Thank goodness I am pregnant and have a convenient excuse on which to attribute this aberrant behaviour.  I called up my mother for some tips, and (because she can never tell me precise amounts of anything) also researched some recipes.  In the end, the one I made was based on Amy Beh's and Auntie Lily's recipes, with some adjustments after consulting with mother.

I may not be a fan of yam cake (although that might be changing) but I have been forcibly fed enough in my traditional family to be able to appreciate a good one. And this recipe makes a pretty decent one, if I may say so myself. At least that's what my similarly-aged friends thought as we demolished it over supper last week. My contributions to the recipe are:

1) Fried bacon. Traditionally you are supposed to add fried pork belly strips, but I have been using fried bacon strips for yam rice to good results and I like its taste here as well.  A "cheating" way to improve the flavour ;)

2) Fried udang gerago. This is a type of very tiny shrimp that is used commonly in Malay cooking. Smaller than Hae Bee (i.e. the dried shrimp used for Chinese cooking) and possessed of a greater propertion of shell than meat, udang gerago is one of my favourite ingredients and adds a lot of flavour to the dish.

3) Boiled Chilli Sauce.  This is the result of my experimentation after the chilli sauces used in other recipes (which tended to be uncooked versions) proved disappointing. 

There are many versions of yam cake, with some only using dried prawns as a main topping ingredient. My family likes it with lap cheong and shitake mushrooms, so that has also been included here.

Recipe for Steamed Yam Cake (adapted from Amy Beh and Lily Wai Sek Hong)

Ingredients:

250g yam, cubed and coated with 1 tsp 5 spice powder
1 cup water

(B) Mix together and sieve:

125g rice flour
20g tapioca flour
1 cup water
1/4 tsp alkali water (optional)
150 g yam, sliced thin, steam then mashed

Seasoning:

1 tbsp chicken stock granules*
1 tsp soya sauce
1 tsp salt
1 tsp sesame oil
Dash of pepper
1 tsp sugar


(if you want to avoid using chicken stock granules, you have to adjust the other seasoning ingredients accordingly ie increase to taste)

For garnishing:

60g dried prawns, soaked and chopped coarsely
8 shallots, sliced and mix with enough oil to cover, microwave on high at 2 minute intervals until crispy
1 Chinese sausage, diced
1 handful udang gerago
200g bacon, cut into thin strips
3 dried Chinese mushrooms, soaked to soften, and chopped coarsely
2 stalks spring onions, sliced thinly
2 red chillies, sliced thinly
A handful of coriander leaves, chopped




Method:

Heat shallot oil (from frying the shallots) and fry bacon strips until crispy, remove and drain. In same oil, saute udang gerago dried prawns till fragrant and crispy.  Remove and set aside. 

Next, fry dried prawns until fragrant, and set aside. 

Fry Chinese sausage and mushrooms until cooked, then add dried prawns back into wok and fry for short while to mix, then set aside this dried shrimp-mushroom-sausage mixture (Mixture C). 

Add 2 tbsp oil to the remaining oil in the wok, add cubed yam and stir fry well. Mix in water and bring to a boil. Do not boil for too long if you prefer the yam cake to have a pieces of yam and a bit of 'bite' in it.

Add in (B), Seasoning and 1/4 of Mixture C, and cook till batter is fairly thick. The consistency should feel like trying to stir a pot of peanut butter. That is, stirrable but with a fair amount of resistance. If the mixture gets too thick too fast (which can happen if you boiled for too long in the step above, or if your wok is too hot), don't fret, just add hot water slowly until consistency is right.

Pour thick batter into a well-greased 25cm round tray, or a 8" by 8" pyrex dish. I like to use the pyrex baking dish because I can serve directly from it, and cut in it without fear of scratching the pan.

Steam till kuih is set and cooked through. This may take 40-45 minutes. 

Test for 'doneness' with a chopstick - the kuih should not adhere to your chopstick, although your chopstick may come out a little moist and gummy.  The kuih when hot should feel a little softer than what you want the end result to be. It will firm up upon cooling. The end result you want is a kuih that is soft and smooth but firm, and moist (not dry and hard).

Spread remaining Mixture C, bacon bits, udang gerago, fried shallots, chillies and spring onions, on top of yam cake and press down lightly. 

Leave aside to cool. When cooled garnish with coriander leaves.

Serve yam cake with chilli sauce (see below) and sweet dark sauce.

Chilli Sauce for Yam Cake:

6 big red chillies + 4 chilli padis (use only big chillies if you can't take spicy)
1 tbsp tomato ketchup
1 tbsp sugar
2 tsp salt
2 tbsp lemon/lime juice (can be substitue with vinegar)
1 garlic clove
2 teaspoons hoisin sauce
1/2 teaspoon dark soya sauce
1/2 teaspoon cornstarch mixed with 5 tablespoons water

Method: Blend/pound all ingredients till fine, and boil with a cornstarch water until mixture turns dark red and has thickened slightly (should not be too thick).  Adjust with salt/sugar/vinegar for taste if necessary.