Kuih Kosui (Gula Melaka)

When everyone was on "Pandan" theme last month, I was so busy with family visiting and travel to Middle East for three weeks. Many blogger made this Kuih Kosui (Kueh Ko Swee) and I'm very keen in trying it out too because this is one of the kuih I grew up eating, I'm glad that I did so. While I was steaming the kuih, the fragrance of the gula melaka which I bought from Glen Waverley Asian Groceries Shop (shipped from Malaysia) is so intense. As usual, my kuih is done without the alkaline water and the texture of it still come out as chewy and springy as what i expected it to be. 

Talking about Melbourne, I have live here for nearly ten months, from the beginning of unfamiliar with the surrounding until love it vast varieties of shopping, it actually provides more than what I can find in Singapore, some of the daily thing just appear in many different forms. For instance you can get pandan and banana leaves in fresh or frozen; you can find kaffir lime leaves in fresh or in bottle. But some of the thing you will never get here are: green tea powder for baking, charcoal powder, etc. 

Not sure whether because I'm getting old, I tend to appreciate what I used to have when I was young, I will never buy this kind of Chinese teacups 蓝鱼大同杯 if I'm still in Singapore, but now, I tend to appreciate it very much and bought it at AUD0.99 per piece. Of course its function is more than making kuih :) Hopefully, my son will grow up recognize himself as Chinese and know the culture of his root is. 

Recipe adapted from TravellingFoodies 
Ingredients:

130g gula melaka
2 tbsp granulated sugar
500ml water
2-3 pandan leaves, rinsed and tied into a knot

75g rice flour
35g tapioca flour
1 tsp alkaline water (Omitted)

50g grated coconutA pinch of salt

Method:

1. Combine gula melaka, sugar, knotted pandan leaves and water in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil and stir until the sugars dissolve, about 10 mins. Remove the pan from heat and set aside to cool. Discard the pandan leaves.

2. Combine the rice flour and tapioca flour together in a bowl. Pour the flour into cooled sugar syrup saucepan. Using a wooden spatula, mix well together to form a smooth mixture. Put the saucepan onto low heat and keep stirring the mixture until the mixture thicken (not boiling)

3. Prepare your steamer, bring the water to boil. And arranged the empty Chinese teacups in the steamer and warm it up for about 5 mins.

4. Use a ladle to pour the mixture to fill each of the teacup to a level of three quarters in depth. Cover the steamer and cook the mixture for about 15~20 mins, the colour of the mixture will turn from light brown to dark brown.

5. While the kueh is cooking in the steamer, prepare the grated coconut, toss it with a pinch of salt and steam for about 2 mins. Remove and allow to cool.

6. To serve, use a fork to tip out the kueh from each teacup. Arrange the kueh on a plate and scatter the grated coconut to toss the kueh evenly.