A Recipe for Bok Tong Go

Bok Tong Go, or sweet rice pudding cake, is a Cantonese dessert that's widely available in Chinese restaurants across the country. It's a deceptively simple recipe, similar to the idlis and other steamed rice breads of India. The batter is traditionally made soaking rice for a few days, allowing it to begin fermenting, then pounding and mixing it into a thick batter. When steamed, the fermented batter cooks in a distinctive honeycomb pattern, and has a spongy, chewy texture. The traditional fermentation method works best in a tropical climate, so simplified recipes shorten the process with yeast. Add this to my Recipe Box.

Combine a teaspoon of sugar with two cups of lukewarm water and sprinkle a package of active dry yeast over the water. Once it's frothy, stir in a pound of rice flour to make a stiff batter. Let it proof overnight.

Simmer two cups of sugar in 2 3/4 cups of water, until it dissolves and forms a light syrup. Let the syrup cool to body temperature.

Pour the sugar syrup and a tablespoon of vegetable oil over the stiff rice batter, and mix well with a wooden spoon. The mixture should now be a thin batter, with a yeasty smell. Let the mixture rest 30 minutes before steaming.

Bring water to a boil in a wok or saucepan. Line an eight- or 10-inch bamboo steamer with two or three layers of cheesecloth, and have put it over the boiling water.

Pour the batter into the lined steamer. Cover, and steam for 20 to 25 minutes. Remove the steamer from the pot, and allow the cake to cool to room temperature before cutting and serving.

Tips

- The cake will steam more quickly in the larger steamer, but the smaller steamer will make a thicker cake with more of the characteristic "honeycomb" patterning. The flavor will be the same in each case.

- The cake is sticky, so oil your knife blade before cutting it.

- There are several regional variations on this cake. One variety uses brown rice flour and brown sugar, while the Vietnamese version uses coconut milk with the sugar syrup. Some recipes flavor the syrup with pandan leaves.