Radish Kueh/Cake (Steamed); Carrot Cake-Steamed

There're four kinds of 'carrot cake' as far as I'm concerned, and they are all terrific in their respective ways...let's first omit the western recipe in this case--By CARROT CAKE here (as featured) I meant the kinds that have nothing to do with the delicious cafe-style sweet nutty cake dessert baked from the grated flesh of orange carrots, which I love by the way and will feature here another time, I promise.

Well this photographed carrot cake I've just made is made from white daikon radish.  It's also a steamed cake or 'kueh' with a savoury taste rather than sweet.  It can be eaten on its own as pictured as  a steamed version of carrot cake.

This brings me to the third--which I prefer, and by a simple twist of texture it brings this kueh to a whole new level: simply by pan-frying after steaming. You can order this pan fried version of the same kueh at yum cha restaurants.  Apparently its origins are from Hong Kong.

The final (and my favourite) carrot cake is the fried version of the above steamed kueh, diced into cubes and stir-fried with preserved turnips, kecap manis and eggs. Mmn..just delectable. I'm including the fried carrot cake recipe soon after this. Meanwhile, you still have to get through making this basic carrot cake before it can be turned into the fried version. Have fun! I did!

Ingredients (flour mixture):
450g rice flour
50g tapioca flour
1200ml water

Ingredients (stir-fry):
500g daikon radish (or 1 big root)
50g dried shrimps (soaked in hot water till soft)
a few shitake mushrooms; dried or fresh
150g chicken or pork (chopped finely)
150g shallots
1 small clove of garlic, minced

Seasoning:
3 T vegetable or peanut oil
1 T sesame oil
2 T soy sauce
1 T oyster sauce
2 tsp salt
1 T sugar
1 tsp white pepper
1 stalk of spring onions, diced into small pieces
bunch of coriander leaves, diced into small pieces
2 small bird's eye chillies, diced

Method:
1. Pour the 2 kinds of flour into a deep bowl.  Adding the water gradually into a 'well' or 'hole' made by your fingers in the middle of the flour mixture, mix the batter well using a whisker till no lumps are visible.
2. Heat up a wok with the sesame and vegetable/peanut oil.
3. Stir-fry some shallots till browned and fragrant, add the dried shrimps and meat and fry for about 2-3 minutes. Add the radish and the seasoning sauces.
4. Pour the flour batter gradually and mix well, stirring until the mixture starts thickening and gets slightly dry, but not completely dry.
5. Transfer the thickened mixture into a steaming tray and steam on high for half an hour or till done. 
6. (CRUCIAL TIP): Pan fry in shallow oil and brown all sides before serving! It tastes so much better! Add the chillies, coriander and spring onions as garnish.

My Barang Barang Nasi Lemak - 'Barang style' (blend of Singapore & Malaysia)

I love Nasi Lemak and never thought that running a restaurant would grow me a loathing for nothing less than what was our bestselling dish at the time! Recovery arrived slowly but surely--and at some point after we had given up the restaurant did I find the courage to eat or cook Nasi Lemak again.  On hindsight, it might've been a case of 'Nasi Lemak Overdose' simply from endlessly handling the ingredients on a daily basis with factory precision at a feverish pace. Then eating it all the time. I mean, ALL the time!  Love cupcakes? Don't start a bakery selling cupcakes! You get the idea, yes.


Well, back to this amazing dish, I hope I've not discredited it in any way citing my gag reflex--afterall it was the past...I did come to love it again, as you can see.  There're virtually hundreds of versions of Nasi Lemak (translates to 'rice in fat'; the fat is derived from cooking the rice in coconut milk) everywhere in Asia but mine is my very own special blend that used to be the best seller at our cafe and restaurant, BARANG. The generic Singapore style version is comprised of coconut rice, fried kuning fish, fried egg, a side condiment of fried chilli-anchovies-peanuts and cucumber, and of course Nasi Lemak won't be what it is without a generous dollop of its signature spicy yet tangy sambal chilli dip that's so tantamount to its taste. I enjoy it even more with some otak-otak and piquant fried crispy chicken wings. Our BARANG version of Nasi Lemak included Beef Rendang and Nyonya Chicken Potato curry, and fried chicken wings.

BEEF RENDANG:

To be pounded in a mortar (till very fine 'rempah' is achieved):
5-6 shallots
8 big red chillies
4 small bird's eye chillies
1 clove garlic
knob of ginger; 2-3 cm, crushed finely
galangal; 4-5 knobs crushed finely
3 stalks lemon grass (only the white part)
6 candlenuts (optional)

120 gm grated or dessicated coconut

1.5 kg cubed chuck or rump beef (I use osso bucco which cost more but is very tender)
1 tsp belachan (shrimp paste); toasted

seasoning:
1tsp salt
1tsp sugar
1 T soy sauce
2 T thick dark soy sauce (not kecap manis!)
3 T curry powder (blend with some water into a dry thick paste)

1/2 C coconut milk extracted from 1/2 coconut, OR: 1 can of 450ml thick coconut cream
1 C water, or skim milk.

Method:

1. Heat about 10 T of vegetable oil and fry first the dessicated coconut, belachan, then the curry powder, and finally all the grounded ingredients or the rempah paste, until fragrant.

2. Add beef cubes and seal all the sides. Add the seasoning and stir-fry for about 6 minutes or until the beef is no longer pink.

3. Add the coconut milk, water, and simmer (pay attention to stir it often to prevent burning)for 3 hours until tender, or alternatively use a pressure cooker and cook for 20 minutes. The final gravy texture should be thick (not soupy like a curry is), and the oil should have risen to the surface.

Coconut Rice: (about 4 servings of rice)

2.5 C white jasmine rice (for about 4 people)
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 whole garlic, with skin on
3 pandan leaves, tied into a knot
1 stalk of lemon grass
2 stalks of curry leaves
150 ml of coconut milk (slightly more than 1 cup)

[Cook the above together in a rice cooker. You can't go wrong!] AT our restaurant, we used to use pandan juice in place of water for the rice to give it an even nicer aroma and flavour...the greenish rice also made it a unique Nasi Lemak.