Foodstuff is a freelance food writer who has been exploring the art of fermentation. Traditional Chinese preserves is her latest project.

What Is Tai Tow Choi?

Tai tow choi is preserved kohlrabi. Delicately sweet with a delightfully juicy crunch, it is great in stir-fries and savoury dishes like steamed yam cakes (wu tow guo).

The name tai tow choi comes from the Cantonese for “big head vegetable," which is a perfect description of kohlrabi.

Tai tow choi is often translated as preserved turnip—but this is incorrect. While kohlrabi and turnips are kissing cousins in the broader family Brassicaceae, they could not be more different. Kohlrabi is the stem of the vegetable Brassica oleracea var. gongylodes; whereas turnip is the root vegetable Brassica rapa subsp. rapa.

Chinese cuisine makes frequent use of preserved foods. In addition to tai tow choi, Chinese cooks often use choi poh (preserved radish) and toong choi (preserved Tientsin cabbage).

In This Article

• How to Make Tai Tow Choi (Preserved Kohlrabi)
• Recipe: Mixed Stir-Fry With Tai Tow Choi
• Recipe: Wu Tow Guo (Yam Cake)

How to Make Tai Tow Choi

Making tai tow choi is very easy—all you need is salt and time!

Choose a kohlrabi that is nice and firm with healthy dark green leaves. The leaves are edible and can be preserved with the bulbous stem. Discard any leaves that are wilted or yellowing.

Step 1: Slice and Salt the Kohlrabi

1. Cut the kohlrabi into thick slices (about 2 cm thick) with some of the leaves attached. Thick slices provide more flexibility: you can cut them into a large dice for stir-fries or a fine dice to use as a seasoning.
2. Spread a generous amount of salt as evenly as possible over the slices and leaves. I use grey sea salt for this initial salting.
3. Set aside for 48 hours. After this period, there will be a lot of liquid in the container. There will also be a slight “whiffy” smell. That’s a good sign—it means fermentation is starting to kick in.

What Does Salting Do?

The aim of this initial salting step is to draw the water out of the kohlrabi. As these are thick-cut slices, this initial salting should last for around 48 hours.

Step 2: Rinse, Dry, and Salt Again

1. After 48 hours, rinse the kohlrabi to wash off the first application of salt.
2. Pat-dry to prepare for the second and final salting.
3. Rub a generous amount of sea salt over all the kohlrabi slices (and attached leaves, if any). You can use either coarse or fine salt. I’ve done it both ways and have found it better to use fine salt for this step.
4. Rinse and wring out a tea towel (or muslin or Chux cloth). Stack the salted slices onto the tea towel and wrap the towel around it tightly to form a "brick." Put the brick onto a rack and weight it down with a heavy object (see photo below).

Step 3: Allow It to Ferment

At this point we've reached the waiting game.

1. Leave the wrapped and weighted kohlrabi slices in an airy place to ferment. The fermentation process will take at least three months and could be as long as six months, depending on the ambient conditions. There will be a pleasant “whiffy” scent coming from the kohlrabi during this time.
2. Do the occasional check. It will progressively turn a creamy yellow colour. You want to wait until all of the slices have fully turned this colour.

Step 4: Dry the Slices

1. When all the slices are evenly yellow in colour, take the slices out of the tea towel wrapper and leave to dry out completely on a rack at room temperature.
2. Dehydrator option: You could also finish off the drying in a dehydrator if you live in a humid climate. I haven’t found the need to do this as Melbourne has low humidity. You don’t want the slices to be dried to a crisp; they should still be pliable.
3. Store in an airtight container (or vacuum pack them) in a cool place. They will keep almost indefinitely . . . although that's not likely to happen as I'm sure you'll find yourself using them up very quickly with just the two following recipes!

Recipe #1: Mixed Stir-Fry With Tai Tow Choi

Ok, I admit that "mixed stir-fry with tai tow choi" isn't a particularly inspired name. My personal nickname for this dish is “crunchy chop-chop”. This dish is absolute classic comfort food. Its beauty lies in the symphony of crunchy textures and flavours of the various ingredients.

The only time-consuming part of this dish is cutting up the ingredients into 0.5- to 0.75-centimeter cubes. Try to have roughly the same amount of each ingredient to keep the flavours and textures balanced.

Snake beans are an essential component of this dish because of their dry crunchy texture. If you can’t find them, you can substitute green beans—but it won’t be quite the same.

You can omit the pork if you want a vegetarian version.

Ingredients

• ~120 grams pork, preferably belly pork
• 18 to 20 snake beans
• 1/2 large red capsicum
• ~120 grams firm tofu
• ~200 grams tai tow choi
• Dash light soy sauce + more for seasoning
• Dash sesame oil + more for seasoning
• Dash oyster sauce + more for seasoning
• Dash sugar
• 1 teaspoon tapioca flour
• Oil for frying
• 1 clove garlic, finely chopped
• Ground white pepper, to taste
• ~120 grams roasted peanuts

Method

1. Cut the pork, snake beans, capsicum, tofu and tai tow choi into 0.5- to 0.75-centimeter cubes.
2. Season the pork with a dash each of light soy sauce, sesame oil, oyster sauce, and sugar. Add a teaspoon of tapioca flour and mix well.
3. Heat a wok over moderate heat. Add a few tablespoons of oil. When hot, fry the bean curd cubes until golden brown. Remove from the wok and drain on paper towels.
4. Meanwhile, remove any excess oil from the wok. When very hot, add the pork and fry briefly until it starts to colour. Add the chopped garlic, fry for a few minutes.
5. Then add the tai tow choi and fry for 2 to 3 minutes.
6. Add the capsicum and snake beans. Keep frying until the snake beans are cooked. It will not take long.
7. Add a tiny splash of water to the wok, then season with a bit of salt, soy sauce, oyster sauce, and ground white pepper to taste. The ingredients should only be lightly coated with seasonings; there should not be a “sauce” per se.
8. Add the fried bean curd cubes and roasted peanuts to the wok. Stir the to combine evenly.
9. Serve hot with steamed rice or congee.

Recipe #2: Wu Tow Guo (Yam Cake)

Yam cake is a savoury dish consisting of seasoned yam that has been "set” in a rice flour batter. The cake is eaten steamed or pan-fried, accompanied by a garlicky chilli sauce.

Usually served as a snack or light meal, the particular flavouring ingredients will vary from family to family. It’s also a common street food in Southeast Asia. However, the commercial versions tend to be somewhat light on flavouring ingredients—and in some cases they're even short on the yam itself!

The following recipe is my mother’s version, which she describes as being a heong har (country bumpkin) style. But it’s absolutely delicious, and the addition of tai tow choi adds a lovely umami flavour to the cake.

The rice batter is made with a damp rice flour paste that must be prepared a day in advance. The cooking of the rice flour batter is the key to achieving a well-set cake that cuts cleanly. Inadequate cooking will result in a tacky interior in the cake, regardless of how long you steam it for.

Step 1: Prepare the Rice Flour

Ingredients

• 150 grams rice flour (my preferred brand is the Thai 3-Elephant brand)
• 110 grams water

Method

1. Sift the rice flour into a bowl.
2. Slowly work in the water until you achieve a smooth but stiff chalky paste. It will be very stiff but do not be tempted to add more water!
3. Pack it down tightly into an airtight container and leave it overnight in the refrigerator.

Step 2: Prepare for Cooking

Ingredients

• ~550 to 600 grams yam
• 90 grams Asian shallots
• 2 cloves garlic
• 150 to 160 grams pork, preferably pork belly
• Dash light soy sauce
• Dash oyster sauce
• Dash ground white pepper
• Dash sesame oil
• 30 grams dried shrimp, soaked in hot water
• 50 grams tai tow choi, rinsed and soaked in hot water
• 260 grams damp rice flour (from step 1 above)
• 15 grams tapioca flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 270 grams cold water
• 340 grams boiling water
• Lard or oil for frying

Method

1. Peel and dice yam into 1-centimeter cubes. Set aside.
2. Peel and finely chop the Asian shallots and garlic. Set aside.
3. Dice the pork belly into small cubes. Marinate with a little bit of light soy sauce, oyster sauce, ground white pepper, and sesame oil. Set aside.
4. Drain the dried shrimp, reserving the soaking water to be used to make up the 270 grams water for making the batter. Chop the shrimp and set aside.
5. Drain the soaked tai tow choi. Dice into small cubes and set aside.
6. Make the rice flour batter: Place the damp rice flour (from step 1) into a large bowl. Break it up and mix in tapioca flour and salt. Gradually add the 270 grams cold water, stirring all the time with a whisk to create a smooth batter. Set aside.

Step 3: Fry the Wu Tow Guo

1. Heat a large pan over moderate heat. Add lard or oil.
2. When the pan is smoking hot, add the pork and fry until it starts to brown.
3. Add the minced shallots and garlic and continue to fry. Then add the shrimp and tai tow choi. Continue to fry for 2-3 minutes. Season with salt and ground white pepper to taste.
4. Remove pan from heat. Transfer the fried ingredients to a large bowl.
5. Return the pan to heat. Add more lard or oil and add the diced yam. Fry until most of the yam cubes change colour from white to an off-white/light grey shade. The yam cubes will only be partially cooked; the cooking will be completed during the steaming step.
6. Remove pan from heat. Transfer the fried yam to the bowl with the other fried ingredients and mix well. Check the seasoning and adjust as necessary.
7. Finalise the batter by stirring the rice flour batter and whisking in the 340 grams of boiling hot water.
8. Return pan to low to moderate heat. Add the batter to the pan and cook, stirring continuously. Cook until the batter turns into a thick creamy paste.
9. Remove pan from heat. Add the yam mixture to the paste in the pan. Mix well to ensure the yam mixture is evenly coated with the paste.

Step 4: Steam the Wu Tow Guo

1. Oil a deep 26-cm heat-proof plate. (I like using old-fashioned enamel plates for this. However, you can use a pie dish or even a loaf tin if you prefer a rectangular cake.)
2. Spread the yam mixture evenly on the plate, smoothing the surface.
3. Fill a steamer with water and bring the water to a steady boil. Place the dish in a steamer and steam for about 50 to 60 minutes, or until a skewer inserted at an angle comes out clean.
4. Remove the yam cake from the steamer. Allow it to cool on a rack before cutting. Do not slice it straight out of the steamer; the interior still needs time to be completely set.

Wu Tow Guo Serving Suggestions

• Temperature: This dish is best eaten hot or warm.
• Steamed cake: If you are eating it as a steamed cake, it can be served immediately on the same day that it is made.
• Pan-fried slices: If you would like to serve it as pan-fried slices, you must first refrigerate the steamed cake overnight, covered tightly with cling film. The next day, slice and then pan-fry it. Personally, I like my wu tow guo pan-fried so that it has a crisp exterior that contrasts with the soft interior.
• Storage: The cake can be kept for up to a week in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
• Reheating: Reheat it by steaming the required portion for around 10 minutes.

Foodstuff is a freelance food writer and published author from Australia who enjoys exploring various recipes and techniques.

Nutty and Fragrant Cake

The nutty fragrance of brown butter and toasted almonds has made this cake a firm favourite with friends since I started making it a couple of years ago. Rich in flavour yet light as a feather, it is a perfect way to end a meal.

As this cake calls for a lot of egg whites—approximately nine large eggs will be required—it is best to make this cake when you have a lot of surplus egg whites on hand.

How to Store and Use Egg Whites

It’s easy to build up a stash of frozen egg whites in the freezer because they freeze very well. Egg yolks change in texture when frozen so it’s always better to use them fresh.

When making things like shortcrust pastry or custard which require only the yolks, put the egg whites into small tubs and freeze them. This way, you can defrost the approximate amount required.

You don’t have to remember how many whites are in each tub. Unless otherwise specified, most recipes use 60-gram eggs. One 60-gram egg typically consists of a 10-gram shell, a 20-gram yolk and a 30-gram white. So if you see a recipe calling for two egg whites, just work on the basis of 2 x 30 grams = 60 grams egg whites.

I allow the egg whites to defrost in the fridge (about eight hours). Once defrosted (or semi-defrosted), I leave them on the kitchen bench to let them come to room temperature before using.

Recipe: Brown Butter Almond Cake

Ingredients

• 140 grams whole blanched almonds (see note in step 3, below)
• 150 grams caster sugar
• 105 grams cake flour
• 8 grams double-acting baking powder
• Pinch salt
• 140 grams unsalted butter
• 60 grams full-fat sour cream
• 2 tablespoons dark rum
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 270 grams egg whites, room temperature
• 150 grams caster sugar
• Approximately 100 grams flaked almonds (for sprinkling on top of the cake)

Method

1. Grease a 25.5cm round springform pan. Line the bottom and sides with baking paper. (Note: I prefer to use expandable cake rings which can be set to any size you need. It saves a lot of storage space!)
2. Preheat the oven to 180°C (conventional) /160°C (fan-forced).
3. Toast the whole blanched almonds in a 180°C oven for about 10 minutes or until they are golden brown and aromatic. Leave aside to cool. (*Note: I start out with about 145g blanched almonds to allow for some weight loss during toasting process. After they are cooled, I weigh out 140g toasted almonds. I also toast the almonds the night before so that they are ready to use the next day when I start making the cake.)
4. Place the almonds in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse to chop them up roughly. Then add 150g caster sugar and run the machine until the nuts are finely ground. Add the cake flour, baking powder and pinch of salt. Whizz together to combine. Set aside.
5. Melt the butter in a saucepan over moderate heat. Swirl the butter around in the pan until the milk solids turn a deep hazelnut brown. Transfer immediately to a heat-proof bowl to stop the cooking. Leave to cool slightly; then mix in the sour cream, dark rum and vanilla extract.
6. Using a stand mixer or hand mixer, whisk the egg whites at low speed until they start to foam. Then increase the speed to medium and beat until they just start to hold peaks. Beat in the 150 grams sugar gradually until the mixture holds soft peaks.
7. Add a scoop of egg whites to the melted butter mixture and stir it in gently. Then add about half the almond-flour mixture to the rest of the egg whites and fold it in gently. Fold in half of the butter mixture, followed by the rest of the almond-flour mixture and finally with the remaining melted butter mixture.
8. Pour the batter into the prepared springform tin. Smooth the top with a spatula. Sprinkle the flaked almonds evenly over the top.
9. Bake in the preheated oven for about 45 to 50 minutes. Leave to cool in the tin for 30 minutes. Remove the cake from the tin and peel off the baking paper. Leave the cake on a rack until ready to serve.

The cake can be served warm or cold with just a dusting of icing sugar over it. Accompany with some double cream.

Variation: Freeze-Dried Plums

Recently I took a risk and broke the old rule of “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!” with this cake. I had a packet of freeze-dried plum slices that had been sitting around in the pantry for ages and thought that they would add an interesting touch of red fruit acidity to this cake without messing up the dry:wet ingredients ratio.

It was a highly successful experiment: the freeze-dried plums elevated this cake to a whole new level of delicious!

Level It Up With Plum Powder

Then I decided to try a version using a combination of freeze-dried plum slices and Davidson plum powder. The Davidson plum is a native Australian fruit. It has a wonderful intense red-fruit acidity. (The dried fruit is a great addition to breakfast cereal.) This second variation turned out even better than the first one. The long-standing fans of the original cake have voted this latest variation as “the best”.

As I was just messing around when I did these the two recent variations, I didn’t bother to note the precise measurements of the amounts of freeze-dried plum slices or Davidson plum powder used.

I filled the cake tin with about two-thirds of the batter and then scattered the freeze-dried plum slices around. I simply eye-balled what I thought was a reasonable amount without upsetting the fundamental nutty flavour and aroma of the cake.

When I did the variation with the Davidson plum powder, I put the powder onto a small plate. It tends to clump and I used a skewer to help scatter the powder on the surface of the batter and then gently drag the powder through.

The remaining batter is then poured over the plum slices and Davidson plum powder, followed by the finishing layer of flaked almonds.

From memory, I used about 20 grams of the freeze-dried plums in the first variation with only the plums. I wasn’t sure how it would turn out and so I didn’t empty the entire 30-gram pack into the cake. I now think that this cake can actually take the entire 30 grams quite comfortably.

In the second variation, I added the Davidson plum powder (another thing I had sitting around in the pantry for ages!) to compensate for the small amount of freeze-dried plums left on hand from the first experiment.

As it turned out, this Davidson plum powder and freeze-dried plum combination worked even better than the freeze-dried plum on its own. So, I will be making this second variation from now on.

Happy Baking!

Freeze-dried fruits of all varieties are now readily available. In my opinion, red fruits complement the aromatic nuttiness of this cake best: their acidity profile is much softer than that of citrus. Freeze-dried raspberries—either whole or powdered or maybe a combination of both—is another red fruit option I am thinking of testing at some stage.

The Davidson plum powder might be more difficult to track down outside of Australia. However, even if you can’t find the freeze-dried plums or Davidson plum powder, don’t let that stop you from making this cake. It’s utterly glorious on its own without any of these variations. In fact, I would strongly encourage you to try making the original cake first before doing one with additions.

I'd love to hear what you—and your loved ones—think of this cake!

Comments

Linda Crampton from British Columbia, Canada on April 14, 2021:

Your cake sounds wonderful, especially with the addition of plums or plum powder. Thank you for sharing the recipe.

Devika Primić from Dubrovnik, Croatia on April 14, 2021:

I like the idea of this recipe and new recipes are good ass well. This sounds delicious and easy to make.

Peggy Woods from Houston, Texas on April 14, 2021:

Wow! I'll bet that this cake is as delicious to taste as it is in the photos. I'll be pinning this recipe. Thanks!

Iqra from East County on April 14, 2021:

This almond cake is so delicious, I must follow this recipe thank you

Foodstuff is a freelance food writer who has been exploring the art of fermentation. Traditional Chinese preserves is her latest project.

What Is Dongcai?

Dongcai (or toong choi in Cantonese) is one of the most famous forms of Chinese preserved vegetables. Made from Chinese "celery" cabbage (Brassica rapa subsp. pekinensis), it is sold in distinctive dark brown earthenware jars that are labelled "Preserved Tientsin Cabbage".

Widely used in home cooking, its distinctive savoury flavour sparks up many Chinese home-style dishes, from steamed meat "cakes", soups and noodle dishes to stir-fries.

Dongcai Recipe

Dongcai is extremely easy to make; there are only three ingredients and four steps. Let's take a look at the overview, and then we'll discuss each step in greater detail, below.

Ingredients

(Scroll down for information about amounts and proportions).

• Chinese cabbage
• garlic
• salt

Instructions

1. Wash and chop the cabbage.
2. Dry the chopped cabbage.
3. Rub a salt and garlic paste through the dried cabbage (or just salt if the dongcai is intended for consumption by strict Buddhist vegetarians).
4. Pack the seasoned dried cabbage pieces into jars and wait for it to mature.

I strongly recommend making a very large quantity for two reasons: shrinkage and the length of time to maturity.

As this vegetable has very high water content, there is massive shrinkage on drying. You will lose around 75 to 80% of the fresh weight during the drying process. So start with what might seem an almost an obscene amount of fresh Chinese cabbage. You won’t regret it!

The other reason for preparing a large quantity is because the maturing process is extremely long. In the trials that I have done, I found that it takes over 12 months before the preserve reaches optimum flavour development. This is the point where the cabbage has turned a rich caramel brown colour and developed a strong yet mellow umami (or savoury) aroma and flavour.

Now, let’s go through each step.

Step 1: Prepare the Cabbage

1. Wash and chop the leaves up into rough dice. You don’t need to do a very fine dice. The diced leaves will shrivel up when you dry them, and you don’t want to end up with overly tiny pieces.
2. Transfer the chopped leaves into a very large container as you go. Once you’ve finished cutting up all the cabbages, use a large salad spinner to dry off the diced cabbage. Getting rid of excess moisture reduces the drying time.

Step 2: Dehydrate the Cabbage

1. Load the dehydrator trays with diced cabbage that have had excess moisture removed in the salad spinner.
2. Dry the diced cabbage in the dehydrator at 35°C until they are fairly dry to the touch but not crisp dry. It takes me about 12 hours to achieve this level of dehydration.
3. With my dehydrator, I move the trays around from top to bottom after about 6 hours to ensure even drying.

Step 3: Prepare the Salt and Garlic Paste

1. Weigh the dried cabbage pieces: note the weight.
2. Then weigh out sea salt equal to 20% of the weight of the dried cabbage, and peeled fresh garlic cloves equal to 5% of the dried cabbage weight.
3. Place the salt and garlic cloves in a mortar and pound them into a smooth paste.
4. Add the salt and garlic paste to the dried cabbage pieces. Mix thoroughly by hand, making sure that all the cabbage pieces are evenly coated with the paste.

Step 4: Allow Maturation (12 Months)

1. Pack the seasoned cabbage pieces tightly into glass or ceramic jars. Seal and leave to mature in a dark place. It will take at least 12 months for the dongcai to develop its rich mellow flavour and deep caramel colour.
2. After a day or two, you may see some liquid in the jars. This is just the remnant moisture in the cabbage being drawn out by the salt. Any exuded liquid is soon reabsorbed by the cabbage pieces.
3. There should be no visible liquid in the jar. However, if you pressed on the cabbage pieces with a spoon, a lot of liquid will be released. Do not try to remove this liquid. I have found that the presence of the liquid actually assists in the development of the dongcai.

In the first trial, I used a spoon to press down on the cabbage pieces to extract as much liquid as possible. I drained off all the excess liquid so that the cabbage pieces were quite dry; not bone dry but devoid of any surplus moisture. This ended up impeding the development of the dongcai.

As you can see in the comparison picture below, the colour of the dongcai from the first trial (lower jar) has remained at a pale beige and the flavour is actually quite insipid.

With the second trial, I only removed excess moisture after around 12 months. I did this simply by pressing down on the cabbage pieces in the jar with a spoon and draining off all liquid that exuded.

What you want to end up with are fermented cabbage pieces that are still moist but are not water-logged.

The mature dongcai will keep indefinitely in a cool dry place or in the refrigerator.

Toong Choi Ching Chee Yoke (Steamed Pork With Dongcai)

This classic home-style Cantonese dish is the ultimate comfort food. A generous slice of this steamed meat “cake” mashed into hot steamed rice is my idea of heaven.

Dongcai serves as a seasoning agent for the pork. It is not meant to be the dominant ingredient. I recommend a ratio of about 25% of dongcai to minced pork as a rough guide.

Dongcai is quite salty so be careful when seasoning the minced pork. You can always adjust for the level of saltiness with light soy sauce during the meal.

Note: Commercial dongcai should be rinsed before use to get rid of excess salt. You can actually see salt crystallised on the cabbage pieces! I have not found it necessary to rinse the home-made dongcai.

Serves 2

Ingredients

• 300 grams coarsely minced pork
• 75 grams dongcai
• 3/4 teaspoon tapioca flour (or corn starch)
• 3/4 teaspoon light soy sauce
• 3/4 teaspoon sesame oil
• Ground white pepper

Instructions

1. Mix all the ingredients together.
2. Spread the pork mixture in a shallow sided heatproof dish to make a patty around 1.5cm thick.
3. Steam the minced pork “cake” over boiling water for 25 – 30 minutes.
4. Serve hot with steamed rice and a dish of stir-fried vegetables.

Dongcai Pork Balls and Noodle Soup

The addition of dongcai to minced pork and to the soup base as well makes for a tasty noodle soup. I tend to use around dongcai equal to around 15% to 20% of the weight of minced pork.

Finely mince the dongcai for making the pork balls: this prevents the pork balls from falling apart when they are boiled.

You don’t need stock to make a tasty soup; the addition of some dongcai to water along with pork balls and vegetables are enough to make for a very tasty clear broth. You can use any vegetables you like. I like leafy greens for soup noodle dishes like this.

Serves 1

Ingredients for the Pork Balls

• 100 grams coarsely minced pork
• Approx. 15 to 20 grams dongcai, finely minced
• 1/4 teaspoon light soy sauce
• 1/4 teaspoon sesame oil
• 1/2 teaspoon tapioca flour

Ingredients for the Soup

• Approx. 750 milliliters water
• Generous pinch dongcai
• Leafy greens or other vegetables of your choice
• Mung bean thread noodles or rice noodles or rice vermicelli
• Salt and ground white pepper to taste

Optional Garnishes

• Fresh coriander sprigs
• Garlic oil
• Freshly sliced red chillies

Instructions

1. Make the pork balls by mixing all pork, finely minced dongcai and seasoning ingredients together. Form the pork mixture into small balls.
2. Prepare the noodles according to instructions on the pack. Mung bean thread noodles and rice vermicelli need to be soaked in hot water until softened and then rinsed in cold water. Fresh rice noodles simply need to be blanched briefly with boiling water and drained.
3. For the soup: Bring water to boil in a saucepan. Add a generous pinch of dongcai to the water.
4. When the water is boiling, add the pork balls. Cook for about 5 minutes. Add the leafy green vegetables to the soup. Boil briefly until the vegetables are just cooked. Taste the soup and adjust for salt.
5. Place the noodles in a large bowl. Ladle the pork balls, vegetables and soup over the noodles. Garnish as desired. Enjoy!

Dongcai, Pork and Mushroom Sauce on Rice Starch Noodles

This is the Chinese equivalent of “spag bol” with a rich savoury meat sauce over rice starch noodles.

Rice starch noodles are fat translucent white noodles. They may be long or short in length. The short ones are also called “rice drops” (aka “lo shee fun” in Cantonese, which is literally “mouse noodles”). This type of noodles only needs to be blanched very briefly before using it. You can find these noodles in most Asian grocery stores.

Rice starch noodles or rice drops are smooth and slippery but with a nice al dente texture. They can be used with soup dishes, stir-fried or briefly “braised” with a sauce as in this recipe.

Serves 2

Ingredients

• 250 grams minced pork
• 1 teaspoon oyster sauce
• 1 teaspoon light soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• 1/2 teaspoon tapioca starch
• Ground white pepper
• 3-4 dried shitake mushrooms, soaked in boiling water
• Approx. 50 grams dongcai
• 1-2 cloves garlic, finely minced
• Oil for frying
• 1-2 tablespoons sweet dark soy sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon corn starch
• Green leafy vegetables such as bok choy, choy sum, mustard greens, etc
• Rice starch noodles or rice drops

Instructions

1. Mix the minced pork with the oyster sauce, light soy sauce, sesame oil, tapioca starch and ground white pepper. Set aside.
2. Drain the shitake mushrooms, reserving the soaking liquid. Cut the shitake mushrooms into small dice.
3. If the dongcai pieces are very large, chop them roughly into medium-fine pieces. What you want if to have them roughly proportional in size to the diced mushroom.
4. Blanch the rice starch noodles or rice drops briefly in boiling water. Then run under cold tap water. Drain and set aside.
5. Heat a few tablespoons of oil in a wok until smoking hot. Add the seasoned minced pork and fry, breaking up any clumps, until the pork is browned. Add the minced garlic and continue to fry until the garlic starts to colour.
6. Add the diced shitake mushrooms and dongcai. Continue to fry for a few minutes.
7. Drizzle the sweet dark soy sauce over the meat mixture and toss to evenly coat the mixture.
8. Add some of the reserved mushroom soaking liquid to the mixture. You want just enough to create a small amount of sauce in the wok About 125 – 150 ml should suffice.
9. Blend the corn starch with a bit of water and add to the wok. Stir and check that your meat mixture is evenly coated with a lightly thickened sauce.
10. Add the vegetables of your choice. Fry briefly until the vegetables are just cooked.
11. Add the rice starch noodles or rice drops and toss until evenly coated with the meat sauce. Check and adjust seasonings to taste.
12. Serve hot. You can accompany this with some fresh sliced chillies or a chilli sauce of your choice.

Questions & Answers

Question: Do you need an airlock for the maturation process or would a tightly sealed jar do?

Answer: I would use an airlock. You do need to allow gases to escape during fermentation. A tightly sealed jar might explode.

Comments

Karen on July 17, 2020:

I think I've over-dehydrated the vegetables because my old dehydrator does not have temperature control. I've got it in the maturation stage for about 3 weeks now but there's no liquid appearing. I didn't press it with a spoon though. Is there anything I can do to correct it?

Foodstuff is a freelance food writer who has been exploring the art of fermentation. Traditional Chinese preserves is her latest project.

Chinese Sweet-Salty Preserved Radish Recipe

If you’ve ever wandered through the aisles of Asian food stores, you would have seen a huge range of packets and tins of dried and preserved vegetables. They are not exactly visually attractive with many being dull brown in colour. So what’s the appeal?

Preserved vegetables have been pantry essentials in Chinese households. The tradition of preserving all sorts of vegetables is centuries old. There are literally hundreds of types of traditional Chinese preserved vegetables. Different regions have their specialties. For example, the Sichuan region is renowned for its chilli-coated preserved stem mustard, made by drying, pressing and salting a knobbly stemmed variety of mustard greens. They may be simply dried and rehydrated when required. For example, dried lotus roots are a good substitute for the fresh variety when making lotus root and pork bone soup.

More often, the vegetables are fermented in a number of ways. This results in the complete transformation of the flavour and texture of the underlying vegetable. By combining any one of these preserved vegetables with meat, eggs, noodles or other basic ingredients, you get a uniquely flavoured dish. These types of dishes are the ultimate Chinese home-style comfort food.

Chinese preserved vegetables are cheap as chips. However, due to increasing concerns about use of chemicals and preservatives in commercially produced preserved vegetables, I have decided to experiment with making my favourite preserved vegetables.

What Is Choi Poh? How Is It Used?

I am starting this series on home-made preserved Chinese vegetables with a universal favourite: 'choi poh', the Cantonese name for a sweet-salty preserved radish (daikon). A choi poh omelette is the ultimate comfort food in Chinese home cooking. Commonly eaten with congee, it’s great with steamed rice.

Choi poh is also an essential ingredient in many street food dishes. It’s used in Pad Thai, the universally popular Thai fried rice noodle dish. Interestingly, Choi poh seems to work best with rice noodles. It doesn't marry as well with wheat noodles.

If you have choi poh on hand, you can quickly whip up a delicious stir-fried rice vermicelli dish. Just toss in some green leafy vegetables, crack in a couple of eggs and you've got dinner! Choi poh adds crunch and flavour to Char Koay Kak, a Penang hawker favourite of fried radish rice cakes.

A generous mound of choi poh gives a sweet-salty kick to steamed rice cakes known as 'woon chai koh' (literally 'small bowl cake') which is also called 'chwee kueh' in Hokkien. The latter was a great favourite of my late father.

Comparison: Commercial vs. Home-Made Choi Poh

How to Make Choi Poh at Home

In essence, there are 4 stages in the process:

• Stage 1: Getting rid of the water content in the radishes by salting.
• Stage 2: Fermentation.
• Stage 3: Soaking in sugar syrup.
• Stage 4: Final drying.

The amount of radish is significantly reduced during the process. In a recent batch, I started with about 2.5 kilgorams of radishes. After trimming the tops and peeling the radishes, I ended up with just over 2 kilograms of radishes. This was reduced to just under 1.5 kilograms at the end of Stage 1. By the end of Stage 4, I only had 612 grams of preserved radish.

So I would recommend that you make a large batch. Once preserved, the choi poh will keep almost indefinitely. Although you only need small amounts of the preserved radish in a dish, the various choi poh dishes are so delicious that you’ll go through a large quantity in no time at all.

Stage 1: Removing Water From Radishes

1. Remove the tops of the radishes. (Tip: Try to choose radishes with minimal green tops as the greenish bits are visually off-putting after fermentation. This is more a visual than a flavour issue.)
2. Peel the radishes and cut into batons. Place the radish batons into a large glass container. Rub a generous amount of coarse sea salt into the radishes, making sure that all the batons are well-coated with salt.
3. Cover the bowl with cling film and leave to stand overnight.

By the next day, the radishes will have exuded much of their water content. They’ll be sitting a large amount of liquid.

Stage 2: Fermentation

Rinse off all the salt. Dry the radish batons. The easiest way to do this is to spin dry the radish baton in a salad spinner.

Weigh the Radishes and Add Sea Salt

Weigh the rinsed and dried radishes. Place in a bowl and add coarse sea salt equal to 20% of the weight of the rinsed and dried radishes. Rub the salt into the radishes.

Wrap the Radishes and Add Weight

Place the salted radish batons onto a clean cloth like a tea towel. Wrap the radishes up. Place the radish parcel on a rack and weight it down with a heavy object.

Allow Them to Ferment

Leave them in a warm place to undergo fermentation. The length of time for fermentation depends on the ambient temperature: the warmer the temperature, the faster the fermentation process. The radishes should be left until it develops a strong 'whiffy fragrance' (not a bad smell; rather the unmistakable smell of fermentation) and the radishes turn a pale brown colour. This ensures maximum flavour development.

When I did my batches, the ambient temperature was about 17°C to 19°C for most of that time. While it did start developing that distinctive 'whiffy' scent after a week, it took 16 days at this temperature to achieve the really pronounced scent and the colour change I wanted.

Additional Tips

My observation over a couple of trials of this process is that it is best to keep it away from direct sunlight. I left one batch next to a window to try to increase the heat exposure. I found that it dried out radishes at the edges of the package too much and probably hindered the fermentation process of those radish batons.

Stage 3: Soaking in Sugar Syrup

Once the radishes have reached the desired level of fermentation, prepare a sugar syrup based on a ratio of 200 grams sugar to 250 grams water.

1. Combine sugar and water in a saucepan and bring to the boil, stirring constantly to dissolve all the sugar. Once the syrup comes to the boil, remove from the heat. Set aside to cool completely.
2. You need enough syrup to completely submerge the radish batons. With the batch of 1.4 kilograms radishes at the end of Stage 1, I used a sugar syrup made with 600 grams sugar and 750 grams water.
3. Place the fermented radish batons (along with the salt coating the batons) into a large non-reactive container e.g. glass or ceramic container. Make sure the radishes are all fully submerged in the syrup. You can weight them down with a plate or use clingfilm pressed against the surface of the syrup.I use an olive brining jar that comes with a weight to keep the radishes submerged in the syrup.
4. Leave in a warm place for at least 24 hours. I leave it for up to 2 days.

Stage 4: Final Drying

1. Remove the radishes from the syrup. Discard the syrup. Leave the radishes on racks overnight to drain off excess syrup.
2. Dry the radishes in a dehydrator at 35°C for about 8 hours or until completely dry. You want them to be dry but not to a crisp.
3. Pack into an air-tight container or bags. I vacuum pack them in small batches (about 50 grams per pack). They will keep indefinitely at room temperature. However, as no preservatives are used, it’s best to refrigerate them once you’ve opened a packet.

Recipe: Choi Poh Omelette

I don’t know anyone who doesn’t love this home-style dish. So simple yet so satisfying. The eggs in a Chinese home-style omelette are cooked firm (rather than creamy as in a French omelette) to a golden brown.

Ingredients

• Use about 10–15 grams minced choi poh for 1 large (65 grams) egg. Do not add any salt as the choi poh is salty.
• For a 2-egg choi poh omelette, coarsely mince about 20–30 grams choi poh.

Instructions

1. Whisk 2 eggs thoroughly. Add 1–2 tablespoons water to the eggs to lighten the mixture.
2. Season with ground white pepper.
3. Heat a wok (or frying pan) to moderately hot. Add enough oil to coat the wok.
4. Add the minced choi poh and fry for a few seconds.
5. Add the beaten egg. Swirl the egg mixture around the wok to get an even layer and to distribute the choi poh.
6. Once the egg mixture is set and the underside is golden brown, flip the omelette over and cook until golden brown.
7. Serve immediately with congee or steamed rice.

Variations

• You can also add diced snake beans to the omelette. Just increase the number of eggs.
• Fry the diced snake beans until the beans about 75% cooked through. Then add the choi poh and follow the process in the above recipe.
• You can also add finely sliced chillies if you wish to spice it up a little.

Questions & Answers

Question: Can the choi poh be used in soup? How long should I cook it in soup?

Answer: Yes, choi poh can be used in soup although that is not how it is traditionally used. The preserved vegetable that is normally used in soup (and steamed dishes) is "toong choi". "Toong choi" is preserved Chinese cabbage and I will have an article on how to make it very soon. Anyway, if you were to use choi poh in soup, it doesn't really need to cook for very long. It can be added towards the end of cooking time. However, you can add it at the beginning to maximize the flavour in the soup. Please note that it should be used as a condiment, not as the main ingredient.

Question: What is another option instead of using a dehydrater?

Answer: You could try drying it at a very low temperature (about 35C) in the oven with the door slightly ajar. Alternatively, you could leave it out on wire racks to air dry either indoors or outdoors (subject to weather conditions). The time required will obviously depend on the ambient humidity and temperatures.

Question: I love Choi Poh. But I want to do a spicy version. Do you know how I could make a spicy Choi Poh?

Answer: Traditionally, Choi Poh doesn't come in a spicy version. I think what you may be after is what is known as the Preserved Sichuan Vegetable. That is made from a special variety of mustard greens. Unfortunately, this variety is not readily available in stores. It's on my list to develop a process for making that spicy preserved vegetable. However, my current challenge is to successfully grow that specific variety of mustard greens.

Question: This is happening during the fermentation period. It has been about 10 days over at this keeping this room temperature of 26-28°C. It turned slightly brownish already and the part that worried me is that there is some white stuff developing on the fermented radish. Is it okay?

Answer: There shouldn't be white stuff developing on it. The room temperature is fine. To be on the safe side, I'd get rid of the bits with the white stuff.

Question: Must I soak in the sugar syrup? I am supposed to reduce sugar intake so I am wondering if I can get away without the sugar.

Answer: You probably could side step it but it does change the flavour of the choi poh. Frankly, the sugar syrup soak is not going to end up adding that much sugar to the preserves. Also note that you do not use huge quantities of choi poh in a dish. So my recommendation is to just follow the recipe as it's not going to make that much difference to your sugar intake. You would probably achieve much greater impact on your sugar intake by cutting out the obvious villains like soft drinks, sweets, added sugar into your coffee or tea, etc. Also, read food labels very carefully: you'll be astonished at how much sugar there is in apparently "healthy" foods like low-fat yoghurt!

Question: Is monosodium glutamate pork gluten?

Answer: No. Monosodium glutamate has nothing to do with pork.

Question: Can you confirm that it is indeed 20% salt weight of the radishes after Stage 1 of 1.5kg is 300g of salt?

Answer: If the rinsed and dried weight of your radishes is 1.5kg, you would use 300g salt (i.e. 20% of 1.5kg).

Question: Can I use turnip instead of radish?

Answer: The flavour would be slightly different. Preserved turnip (called "tai thow choi" in Cantonese) is also a very popular Chinese preserved vegetable. It is made in a similar way but the last step of steeping in syrup is omitted.

Question: Where did you buy your olive brining jar?

Answer: From a food and equipment supplies store. With the huge popularity in fermentation these days, you should be able to find it pretty easily in stores specialising in fermentation equipment.

Question: Do you have any idea how this compares to "sunning" instead of fermenting it in a dark place?

Answer: I don't ferment the radishes in a dark place. In fact, they are wrapped and left in a relatively sunny spot. It's only Preserved Tientsin Cabbage that is fermented in a dark place.

Question: How would I store Chinese Sweet-Salty Preserved Radish, either homemade or store-bought versions? Should I refrigerate it?

Answer: I pack mine into vacuum sealed bags. Once opened, it would be fine stored in a cool dry pantry. However, unless your pantry remains cool and dry around the year, it is best to store it in an air-tight container in the fridge.

Comments

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on June 03, 2020:

MiMi, My olive brining jar doesn't have a brand name on it. I found it in a kitchen supplies store. Good places to look around for a similar jar would be Italian supplies stores and stores that specialise in fermentation equipment.

Liza from USA on June 02, 2020:

This is something I definitely would make at home. Pair with steamed white rice. Thank you for the recipe.

MiMi on February 08, 2020:

Do you know the brand name of your olive brining jar?I want the specific one you have.

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on May 11, 2018:

Hi John, Happy to be of help. Enjoy!

John on May 11, 2018:

Thank you very much for this recipe, I am very much looking forward to making it. I was searching for this and had a hard time finding it, so am very grateful to you!

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on April 04, 2018:

Hi Tanya, Yes use weights. 250g water and 200g sugar.

Tanya on April 04, 2018:

200g sugar to 250g water for the syrup is this weighed (both) ? Thanks looks great, my fav ethnic food store closed (well only one near me) so this will help greatly with one ingredient!

Foodstuff is a freelance food writer who has been exploring the art of fermentation. Traditional Chinese preserves is her latest project.

A crime of passion was perpetrated on India's gloriously diverse and complex cuisine some time in the 17th century, and its effects have been felt ever since. Curry powder, the ultimate insult to Indian cuisine, was created as an export commodity for the nabobs of the Raj and employees of the East India Company employees returning to England, many if not all of whom had developed a fatal attraction to India's spiced and sauced dishes. To paraphrase Indian food writer Madhur Jaffrey: curry powder is about as Indian as chop suey is Chinese.

The word curry is a British corruption of the Tamil word kari, meaning sauce. It came to be used as a blanket term for all Indian foods cooked in a sauce and has since been extended to include all Asian spiced, stewed dishes. A common misconception is that spicy means incendiary heat. However, chillies did not enter India (or Thai) cookery until the 16th century.

Curries, along with piquant Worcestershire sauce, chutneys and pickles, were all the rage in Victorian England. The then common British version of curry was meat cooked with curry powder, onions, apples and desiccated coconut, finished off with cream and lemon juice. Somewhere along the line, sultanas got thrown in as well.

The convenience of curry powder popularised curries but equally led to their being relegated to the role of using up leftovers. David Burton records in The Raj At Table that a Mr Arnot of Greenwich suggested that anything could be curried—“old shoes should even be delicious, some old oilcloth or stair carpet not to be found fault with (gloves if much worn are too rich)”. The French never came to grips with curry. Their idea of a curried dish was meat, poultry, eggs or fish dressed with a white sauce flavoured with a touch of curry powder.

How to Use Curry Powder

Curry powder will never give the same results as a freshly ground spice paste, but it has the advantage of convenience. You can get a very respectable dish if you use a quality brand and the blend appropriate for the main ingredient. The ready-made mixtures tend to be for Indian, Malay or Nonya curries. The spices used for a meat curry are different from those used for fish. Hence you'll find that separate curry powder mixtures for meat and fish.

Check the use-by-date before you buy to ensure that the curry powder hasn't been sitting on the shelf for years. Once you've opened the packet, always store in an air-tight container in a cool dry place and use it up as soon as possible. Ground spices lose their fragrance very quickly. To make a curry using curry powder:

• Blend a few tablespoons of the powder with a little water to make a paste. Fry some chopped onions until golden and then add the curry powder paste and fry until fragrant. Depending on what style of curry you are making, you might also add other aromatic herbs like curry leaves (for a South Indian style curry) or perhaps a bruised stalk of lemongrass (if you are making a Malay or Nonya style curry).
• Once the spices are fragrant, add your meat or chicken and toss to coat thoroughly with the paste. Fry for a few minutes and then add coconut milk.

There are some dishes where curry powder is preferred over a spice paste. With curry puffs, for example, the diced meat and potatoes for the filling are always tossed with curry powder, never a curry paste. Curry powder also serves as a flavouring ingredient in dishes like Singapore Fried Rice Noodles and curried egg for sandwich fillings.

How to Use Curry Pastes

There has been a proliferation of ready-to-use curry pastes over recent years. You can now find pastes for just about every type of curry: Thai green, red and massaman pastes; various Indian curries from vindaloo, madras through to butter chicken; Indonesian rendang pastes; etc.

They come in jars, pouches or frozen packs. As with curry powder, the quality varies. (There are some really bad ones out there with more additives and thickeners than spices!) Even amongst the good brands, there are flavour variations for a single type of curry paste as every producer has his or her proprietary combination of spices, just as every chef has his or her own take on a dish. Try them out to decide which you like best.

With most of these ready-to-use pastes, the aromatics like onions, ginger, garlic etc have already been added and the pastes have been cooked to develop the flavour. So all you have to do is add the meat or fish and appropriate liquid such as coconut milk or water. However, do read the ingredient list and the instructions as to check if you need to fry up some onions before adding the paste or add kaffir lime leaves or lemon grass etc.

Despite the convenience of quality curry pastes, nothing beats a curry made from freshly roasted spices blended freshly pounded or ground onions, garlic, ginger and other aromatics and then gently fried with loving care and attention for full flavour development. In addition, there is such a vast universe of curries that it seems a shame to restrict yourself to the most "commercially popular" (which obviously is what manufacturers focus on).

It's not difficult to make up your own spice pastes especially with the convenience of food processors and electric grinders. Purists will insist on the use of mortar and pestle as the pounding (rather than the cutting action of blades) makes for a superior paste. But that does take a lot of effort and time and better to have a fresh made paste with electrical appliances than not at all.

You can also make double or triple the quantity of spice paste and freeze the excess for use in the future. Fry the paste, allow it to cool and then wrap in clingfilm and freeze. I always do this with curry pastes that require the use of Asian red shallots as part of the base such as the Kari Kapitan (recipe below). These shallots are not always available in Melbourne, Australia and when they are around, I make the most of it.

How to Make Curry Paste Quickly

• Buy spices in whole rather than powdered form. The powders lose their fragrance very quickly. Roast the whole spice in a small pan just before grinding to bring out their fragrance.
• Use a food processor for grinding chillies, garlic and onions. Cut the chillies up and onions into small pieces. Fit the food processor with the steel blade and with the machine running, drop the pieces progressively through the feed tube.
• The food processor is not effective for grinding tougher herbs like lemongrass and rhizomes like ginger, galangal and turmeric. These are best cut up and then ground with a herb grinder and then added to the rest of paste in the food processor.
• If you don't have a herb grinder, use the spice grinder. Always wash the grinder out immediately after you have processed lemongrass. The acidity will rust your blade. Alternatively, you can use a microplane grater to grate rhizomes and add the finely grated ginger etc to the onion paste in the food processor.

Curry Recipes

Here are two examples of chicken curries. I will add more curry recipes to this hub over time. As you'll see, curries are not necessarily accompanied by rice. Thick cut slices of white bread as excellent with the Kari Kapitan, a Hainanese chicken curry that is a speciality of Penang.

Opor Ayam

There are many Indonesian spicy stews but only a few are terms kare. This Javanese dish is a perfect illustration of curry misconceptions. While no Indonesian would call the following chilli-less, fragrantly spiced white stew of chicken a curry, it's usually described as such on menus. Such is the synonymity of incendiary heat with curry that one uninformed restaurant critic wished the impossible in his review - he would have liked it "hotter"!

Ingredients

• a 1.2 to 1.5 kg chicken, preferably organic corn-fed
• 4 to 5 tablespoons oil for frying
• 600 ml thick coconut milk
• 2 daun salam (Indonesian bay leaves)
• 1 stem lemongrass (white section only), lightly bruised
• 4 to 5 cm cinnamon stick
• 1 tablespoon thick tamarind extract
• Sea salt, to taste
• Fried shallots for garnish

Spice Paste

• 4 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
• 6 kemiri nuts (candlenuts), chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper
• Small knob (approx. 20 grams) fresh ginger, peeled and roughly chopped
• 4 to 5 cm (approx. 7 to 8 grams) fresh galangal
• 3 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon ground fennel
• 1 teaspoon salt

Method

1. Chop chicken into casserole-sized pieces. Pound the spice paste ingredients to a fine paste with a mortar and pestle or grind them in a coffee grinder (which should be kept only for grinding spices!) A food processor can be used but it doesn't give as fine a paste. (See tips for making curry pastes above).
2. Rub the paste evenly over the chicken pieces and set aside to marinate for at least an hour.
3. Heat oil in a large heavy casserole. Fry the chicken pieces over moderate heat until they start to colour.
4. Add coconut milk, daun salam, lemongrass and cinnamon. Simmer, uncovered, over low heat, stirring occasionally, for about half an hour or until the chicken is tender. Stir in the tamarind extract and salt to taste and simmer for a few more minutes.
5. Remove whole spices. Serve hot, garnished with fried shallots, with steamed rice.

Serves 4 accompanied with a vegetable dish.

Kari Kapitan

This Hainanese curry is a speciality of Penang. Many of the cooks for the British in Malaya were of Hainanese origin. The apocryphal tale behind the name of this dish is that a ship's captain asked his cook what was for dinner that night. And the cook replied, "Curry, Kapitan!"

The aromatic spice paste is built primarily on fresh ingredients. As you can see, it doesn't include any of the seed spices usually found in curry pastes such coriander, cumin etc. A generous amount of belachan (dried shrimp paste) is essential.

Asian red shallots make a huge difference to the flavour of this curry. You can substitute onions but the dish loses much of its characteristic flavour. If you can't find these red shallots, French shallots or Golden Shallots would be preferable to onions.

Kari Kapitan is a medium-dry curry with a rich red colour. That means a lot of chillies so to keep it mild, choose big chillies with rounded ends. The general rule of thumb is that the more pointy the tip of the chilli, the hotter it is.

Servings

Serves 4 with rice and vegetable side dish.

Ingredients

• a 1.5 kg chicken, preferably organic corn-fed
• 4 to 5 tablespoons oil for frying
• 400 ml of coconut milk
• 1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper
• Sea salt, to taste
• juice of 1 lime (or lemon)
• fried shallots for garnish

Spice Paste

• 350 grams Asian red shallots
• 10 fresh red chillies (approx 100 - 120g)
• 10 large dried chillies, soaked in hot water until softened
• 4 cloves garlic
• 2 cm chunk ginger (approx 10 - 12g)
• 4 cm fresh turmeric (approx 8 -10g)
• 2 stalks lemongrass, white portion only
• 6 candlenuts
• 0.5 cm thick slice belachan (dried shrimp paste) (approx 20 grams)

Method

1. Joint and chop the chicken into casserole-size pieces.
2. To prepare the spice paste ingredients: Cut the belachan into thin slices. Dry roast the slices in a small frying pan over moderate heat until crisp and dry. (Warning: Belachan has a very pungent scent when roasted. You either love it or hate it.) Grind to a fine powder.
3. Cut the lemongrass into very thin slices.
4. Grind all the spice paste ingredients together to get a reasonably smooth paste. It doesn't have to be superfine as bits of chilli appearing in the sauce is quite characteristic of this curry.
5. Heat the oil in a large heavy casserole over moderate heat. When the oil starts to smoke lightly, add the spice paste. Gently fry until the paste is fragrant and starts to release oil.
6. Add the chicken pieces and toss to coat evenly with the spice paste. Fry for a few minutes until the chicken pieces start to change colour.
7. Add the coconut milk, ground white pepper and sea salt to the casserole. There should be enough liquid to barely cover the chicken pieces. Add a bit of water if necessary. Lower the heat and simmer, covered, over low heat for 30 - 40 minutes or until the chicken is tender. Stir occasionally.
8. Stir in the lime (or lemon) juice. Check the seasoning and adjust to taste.
9. Serve hot, garnished with fried shallots. This dish goes well with rice as well as chunky slices of white bread. Note: I strongly recommend using good artisanal white bread that has the body to absorb the curry sauce without turning into a cotton wool mush. I use a homemade milk loaf (pain au lait) for this curry.

Comments

Miebakagh Fiberesima from Port Harcourt, Rivers State, NIGERIA. on June 14, 2020:

That is great. Hoping for the best for you.

Miebakagh Fiberesima from Port Harcourt, Rivers State, NIGERIA. on June 14, 2020:

Thanks for sharing.

Paul Levy from United Kingdom on November 29, 2017:

bought a pestle and morter recently - looking forward to grinding some spices into a powder for making my own pastes.

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on April 02, 2014:

Thanks, DDE

Devika Primić from Dubrovnik, Croatia on April 02, 2014:

Awesome! The great tasting foods with interesting spices are so good to try to enjoy

Foodstuff is a freelance food writer and published author who has been exploring various recipes.

A steamed-jam sponge pudding is one of the ultimate comfort foods. A joy to behold and to eat, this hot, light, buttery sponge with a dense, fruity jam "cap" is the perfect finish to a hearty winter roast or casserole. It's homely, yet elegant enough to serve for a dinner party.

It's easy to make, and in fact, you can make it well in advance and freeze it. The secret to achieving a truly glorious rendition of this simple dessert is the quality of the butter, eggs, and jam.

The basic proportions for the sponge pudding are as follows:

• Weigh your eggs. Use the same weight of butter, self-raising flour, and caster sugar. Add 1 tablespoon of milk for each egg.

• Add the jam of your choice to a depth of about 2 to 2.5 cm at the bottom of the pudding bowl before pouring the sponge batter in.

From this basic recipe, you can create an endless number of variations by the choice of jam, by adding dried or candied fruit that mirrors the jam. For example, if you are using thick-cut orange marmalade, you could add chopped candied orange peel to the batter. You could also vary the choice of sauce to serve with the pudding.

Here are two recipes to get you started.

Steamed Cumquat Marmalade Sponge Pudding

Instructions:

• 2 eggs (let's say the weight is 133g)
• 2 tablespoons milk
• 133g butter, at room temperature
• 133g caster sugar
• 133g self-raising flour, sifted
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Extra butter to grease the pudding bowl
• Cumquat marmalade to line bowl

Method:

1. Using a mixer at medium speed, cream the butter with caster sugar until the mixture is pale, light and fluffy. The sugar should be completely dissolved, ie., there is no graininess in the texture.
2. Beat in about a tablespoon of the flour into the butter mixture.
3. Beat the eggs with the milk.
4. Add a few tablespoons of the egg and milk mixture to the butter mixture, beating continuously until the egg is fully incorporated into the butter before adding another few tablespoons. If you add the egg mixture too quickly, your batter will curdle. Repeat until all the egg is added.
5. Beat in the vanilla extract.
6. Using a spatula, gently fold in the sifted self-raising flour.
7. Grease a 800ml pudding bowl with softened butter. Put a few dollops of cumquat marmalade into the bottom of the bowl. The marmalade should be about 2-2.5cm deep.
8. Pour the sponge batter into the bowl. Don't fill it right up to the top. Leave about 1 cm space from the top of the bowl.
9. Get your steamer ready. The water must be at a rapid boil when the pudding goes in.
10. Cut a sheet of greaseproof paper and a sheet of foil into a large circle, sufficient to cover and overlap the sides of the pudding bowl. Butter the greaseproof paper. Place the greaseproof paper, butter-side down, over the pudding bowl and then place the foil on top. Both the paper and the foil should have enough slack over the top of the bowl to allow for the pudding to rise.
11. Tie kitchen string to very tightly just under the lip of the pudding bowl to ensure that the pudding mixture is tightly sealed and no water gets in.
12. Steam the pudding for 1 ½ to 1 ¾ hours. Check occasionally to ensure that there is enough water in the steamer. If it starts to get dry, top up with boiling water.
13. Unmould the pudding onto a plate. Serve hot with warm custard sauce. I also serve a bowl of brandied cumquats as an optional extra to accompany this pudding.

Custard Sauce:

• 500ml full cream milk
• 6 large egg yolks
• 125g caster sugar
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions:

1. Bring the milk to a simmer in a saucepan. Meanwhile, whisk the yolks and caster sugar until it's thick, pale and forms a ribbon.
2. With the mixer running at low speed, add the simmering milk to the egg and sugar mixture. Increase the speed and continue to whisk for a few minutes.
3. Wash out the pan. Return the custard mixture to the pan. Cook over low to moderate heat, stirring continuously with a wooden spoon, until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of the spoon. Be very careful not the let the mixture get to a boil (or even simmer) or you will end up with scrambled eggs.
4. Strain the custard through a fine sieve into a clean bowl. Stir in the vanilla extract. Set the bowl over ice water and keep stirring until the mixture is cool. This prevents a skin forming on the top of the custard.
5. If you've made this ahead of serving, warm the custard over low heat in a saucepan, stirring continuously.

Steamed Sour Cherry Chocolate Version

This is what I call my "Black Forest Pudding" because it has the key elements of the classic Black Forest Cake.

Ingredients:

• 2 eggs (let's say the weight is 133g)
• 2 tbp milk
• 133g butter, at room temperature
• 133g caster sugar
• 100g self-raising flour
• 33g natural cocoa*^{see note}
• Approx. ¼ teaspoon baking powder*^{see note}
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Extra butter to grease the pudding bowl
• Sour Cherry Jam

*Note: What I've done here is substitute about 25% of the flour weight with cocoa. Baking powder is added to compensate for the lack of leavening in cocoa. If you are expanding the recipe, the rule of thumb for adding baking powder is 1 teaspoon (5g) for every 125g of cocoa.

Most of the cocoa you get in the supermarkets is Dutch-processed or alkalised cocoa. You can use this but it's preferable to use natural cocoa. The alkalinity of the cocoa can impact the rising capacity of the mixture.

DO NOT use baking soda if you are using Dutch-processed cocoa as this cocoa will neutralise the baking soda and you will lose the leavening effect.

Method:
The procedure is exactly the same as for the cumquat marmalade pudding. The only difference is that you should sift the cocoa, flour and baking powder together.

Serve this pudding hot with a warm chocolate sauce.

Chocolate Sauce:
This is a truly decadent chocolate sauce. Use top quality dark chocolate or coverture, with 60 - 70% or more cocoa solids.

• 200g dark chocolate
• 150 ml full cream milk
• 2 tablespoons double cream
• 30g caster sugar
• 30g cold butter, cut into small pieces

Method:

1. Melt the chocolate in a bowl set over simmering water. Stir from time to time to ensure it is melting evenly. Remove from heat.
2. Combine milk, double cream and sugar in a saucepan. Bring to the boil over moderate heat, stirring continuously.
3. Pour the milk mixture over the hot melted chocolate, stirring continuously until well combined.
4. Return the chocolate sauce to the pan over moderate heat and bring it to a simmer. Allow to simmer for about 15 seconds and then remove from the heat.
5. Whisk in the cold butter pieces. Strain though a fine sieve into a clean bowl. Serve warm.
6. You can keep this sauce for several days in the fridge, covered with cling film. Reheat in a saucepan over low heat. Do not let come to a boil.

Quince, Orange, and Cardamom Jam Pudding

I have also made quince, orange, and cardamom jam variations of the master recipe. To reinforce the sweet scent of cardamom in the pudding, add 1 teaspoon of ground cardamom to the flour before folding it into the pudding mixture.

It's lovely with an orange-scented custard. Just add some orange zest to the milk when preparing the custard. Strain the milk into the egg yolk and sugar mixture and cook as usual.

Serve with poached quinces together with some of the poaching syrup and custard.

Questions & Answers

Question: Could I make the pudding today, but steam it tomorrow?

Answer: No. Steam pudding right after you make it. The reason is that the leavening agents (baking soda, baking powder) in the self-raising flour will have run out of fizz (literally!) if you leave it to stand for too long. It's the same reason that you don't leave cake batter to stand overnight before you bake it.

It's better to make it ahead of time and reheat it when required. Note that this pudding freezes really well too.

Comments

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on December 22, 2018:

Vanessa, Yes you can.

Vanessa on December 22, 2018:

Could I reheat a frozen steam pudding in a microwave after thawing

Maria Everest on August 03, 2017:

Do you freeze before or after cooking?

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on March 26, 2017:

Susan, yes. Freeze them in the bowls with wrapping on.

Susan on March 26, 2017:

Looks delicious - can these be frozen?

Kristen Howe from Northeast Ohio on September 04, 2015:

You're welcome!

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on September 04, 2015:

Thanks, Kristen Howe

Kristen Howe from Northeast Ohio on September 03, 2015:

Great recipe. It looks yummy to eat.

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on July 06, 2013:

You're welcome, vespawoolf. Try it out when autumn comes along in the US and enjoy!

Vespa Woolf from Peru, South America on July 06, 2013:

Although I'm from the U.S., I enjoy a good sponge pudding with custard sauce. I've never made one, though, so I'm glad to have your helpful instructions and beautiful photos to walk me through the process. The sour cherry chocolate pudding sounds especially comforting. I love the idea of your dark chocolate sauce, too. I hope to try this sometime! Thank you for sharing!

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on June 24, 2013:

Hi Ceres. They are really easy to make. So, make some and I'd love to hear your flavour combinations.

Ceres Schwarz on June 24, 2013:

These jam sponge puddings look really good. The images really look amazing and make the puddings look delicious and yummy. Now I want to have some.

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on June 23, 2013:

Thanks, lemonkerdz. Yes, steamed jam puddings always give me a 'warm and fuzzy' feeling! So...tell me what pudding you're making?

lemonkerdz from LIMA, PERU on June 23, 2013:

Love the look of these puddings, i am a sucker for any pudding with jam and custard. I think i am craving one now as i write.

Thanks for the great hub and i think i might just get a pudding going for later. :-))

Foodstuff is a freelance food writer and published author who has been exploring various recipes.

Time Is the Secret Ingredient

Time is the key ingredient that separates the artisan's loaf from the cotton wool-like apology found in the franchise bread shop and supermarket.

In the baking trade, real bread is made with 'time' doughs whereas industrial bread is made from 'no time' doughs where time is substituted by a hotch-potch of additives such as improvers (often chemical rather than natural), stabilisers, emulsifiers, humectants, lubricants, protein conditioners, preservatives etc., etc.

The Other Four Basic Ingredients

The starting point for all bread is to make a dough by mixing together four basic ingredients: flour, water, yeast and salt.

Water is the catalyst that activates starch enzymes in the flour that break down the starch to a variety of sugars including glucose and maltose which become the 'food' for the yeast.

Salt, apart from enhancing flavour, strengthens gluten, but because it inhibits yeast activity, the artisan baker only adds it in the last five minutes of the mixing process, thus allowing the yeast a head start.

My Sourdough Starter

Wild Yeasts vs Commercial (Baker's) Yeast

It is important to understand the basic differences between the wild yeasts of sourdough and commercial yeast (also known as baker's yeast).

Perhaps the first is the fact that sourdough yeasts grow best in a slightly acid dough, while commercial yeast performs best in a neutral or slightly alkaline one.

Commercial yeast is represented by a single species, Saccharomyces cerevisiae , while sourdoughs are usually leavened by multiple strains of wild yeast (of the genus Candida ) in the same dough, none of which are baker's yeast.

This mixture of yeast types contributes to the distinctive sourdough texture. The wild yeasts in sourdough are anything but uniform, and they can vary from country to country, indeed even from region to region.

Iain Bamfield, from Fruition in the Yarra Valley, Victoria, notes that both wild yeast and bacterial strains have regional variations and believes that no one can really call a sourdough made in Australia a 'San Francisco sourdough' [one of the world's most renown sourdoughs]. Rather, it should be a Sydney or Melbourne sourdough and accordingly, he labels his sourdough bread 'Yarra Valley sourdough'. Similarly, Richard Tollenaar, from Pandora Panetteria in Auckland, labels his sourdough bread 'Auckland sourdough'.

My Sourdough Leaven

What Is Sourdough?

Sourdough is the product of not just one microorganism, but two. The wild yeast makes the dough rise and bacteria are responsible for flavour development. These bacteria are primarily lactobacilli, so named because they produce lactic acid, which contributes a mild sour flavour. They also produce a more vinegary acetic acid. The ratio of lactic acid to acetic acid production is influenced by a wide range of factors such as temperature, what the starter is fed with, the feeding cycle and so on.

Unlike most bacteria, lactobacilli thrive in an acid environment and produce a variety of mild organic acids, alcohols and countless additional compounds that are vital to flavour development. The organic acids produced by the bacteria play an important role in preventing spoilage. Lactobacilli 'feed' on maltose and it just so happens that unlike commercial yeast, wild yeasts do not 'consume' the maltose, therefore providing the bacteria with a perfect environment to flourish in.

John Downes, Australia's foremost authority on sourdough, makes the observation in his article in Pastrycooks & Bakers News (May 1996) that "these bacteria are also thought to 'pre-digest' the wheat matrix of the flour, thus making the bread more digestible as well as rendering the calcium content of wheat thoroughly assimilative which is not the case with commercial wheat bread".

My Dough During Bulk Fermentation

Time = Texture + Flavour

Once all the ingredients have been incorporated, the dough is kneaded to develop the gluten (which comprises two different proteins glutenin and gliadin) which, apart from providing the wonderful chewy texture, serves to trap the carbon dioxide released when the yeast metabolises the sugars (fermentation).

After kneading, the dough is rested to allow fermentation. Fermentation is the process whereby starch is converted into sugars which react with the yeast and release carbon dioxide.

If the gluten has been developed sufficiently the carbon dioxide gas is trapped, thus aerating the dough and causing it to rise. The dough is ready to be used when it has doubled in size, at which time it is knocked back (or degassed). It may then be shaped into the requisite loaves or rolls, or left for further fermentation.

In 'engineered' breads, improvers are added to reduce the fermentation time. Essentially these improvers are to provide 'instant food' to activate the yeast, rather than having to wait for the conversion of starch into sugar. Whilst there are natural improvers such as Vitamin C or ascorbic acid, rye flour, fava bean flour and levity (a type of yeast food composed of flour, salt, dry yeast, ascorbic acid and the starch enzyme amylase), industrial bread production tends to employ chemical improvers and such bread can be described as 'chemically fermented'.

Kneading also causes the dough to become very short (loss of elasticity). It becomes difficult, if not impossible, to shape the dough without tearing the protein structure apart. Kneading also affects the dough's extensibility (the quality important for expanding and trapping gases when baking). The artisan baker leaves the dough to sit for a long time to allow the gluten to 'relax', whereupon it regains elasticity and extensibility. In the industrial process fats or oils are used to lubricate the gluten strands so that it can be used immediately.

Flavour development is another factor that occurs during the resting time and the elimination of this important step greatly reduces flavour. To compensate for the loss of flavour industrial bakers add flavouring agents back into the dough.

The resultant increase in cost with the addition of all these extra ingredients also affects the mighty God of profit who rules industrial and mass commercial baking. To compensate, water is added to extend the yield and bring the unit cost down, but this practice only serves to further dilute what little existing flavour there is.

A Look Inside an Artisanal Bakery

Inside an Artisanal Bakery

All artisanal bread takes time.

According to Andrew O'Hara, the head baker and co-owner of Phillippa's Bakery in Melbourne, their ciabatta is made from a sponge starter left to sit overnight. The following day, the sponge is mixed with an equal amount (by weight) of flour, water, milk and oil (of varying proportions) and then allowed to sit for an hour and a half before it is finally cut up and baked. Without the benefit of time, this deceptively simple Italian-style bread would not have the correct flavour, texture and chewiness.

So too for real sourdough bread, time is again the indispensable ingredient. It takes time and care for the bacterial fermentation to develop the intense complex flavours so characteristic of sourdough. The starter has to have three to four periodical feedings (to add more flour and water) over 24 hours before it can be used. Then, more time is needed in the actual making of the bread.

The making of Phillippa's pane francese is an example of the lengthy painstaking process involved. O'Hara will start the sourdough at around 9.30pm one evening, give it a feed at 11.30pm, and then another feed at 2.30am with a final feeding at around 4.30am. The starter is then left to sit until the following day when an equal amount (by weight) of flour is added. After mixing and kneading, the dough is left to rest for another 4-5 hours, cut up, shaped and left to rest again for another 1-2 hours before it finally goes into the oven.

But not all the dough ends up in the oven. A proportion of the evening's mix is held back to form the basis of another starter the next evening. It is this holding back of a proportion of the sourdough day after day, week after week, that builds up complexity and depth of flavour no commercial bakery could ever rival.

Another form of starter called a lievato naturale (often referred to as levant ), is a soupier, more liquid sourdough. But instead of incorporating all of the starter into the mix, only a proportion is taken to form the basis of a separate dough. Whatever is removed from the levant is replaced with equal proportions of flour and water.

In essence starters are living entities and unless they are well cared for will cease fermenting and effectively die.

Next Step in My Baking Journey

The Difference Between Levain and Sourdough Breads

It is this long fermentation period that provides that very special flavour, texture and wonderful crust of the true sourdough. But the time, loving care and skill involved all clearly have their cost.

Downes deplores the practices of unscrupulous bakers jumping on the sourdough bandwagon with cheap sourdough surrogates. In his aforementioned article, he notes that "throwing in a piece of yesterday's dough does not a sourdough make". Worse still are those that pass off 1-4 hour yeasted bread with souring agents added as sourdough bread.

It's not mandatory for a bread based on a sourdough to be 100% natural levain (sourdough starter). Depending on the type of starter and style of bread, the addition of commercial yeast is possible.

But as O'Hara states, the yeasted artisan loaf employs the minimum amount of yeast, time doing most of the work. The yeast content of Phillippa's breads would probably be about one-sixth of that used by hot bread shops. As long as the dough is allowed to develop at its own speed and the baker adheres to the time-honoured principles aforementioned, the end product will be flavourful and wholesome. And this principle applies to all breads, be they sourdough or yeasted.

Commercial bakeries add copious quantities of yeast in order to speed the whole breadmaking process up. They can get bread into the oven within as little as one to one and a half hours of mixing the dough. This is less time than even a very simple bread such as the baguette which would take four hours, at the very least.

In France baguettes are made simply with the four basic ingredients and would be eaten within three hours of baking. Being a relatively 'quick' bread, it does not keep well and thus in France, it is common practice for baguettes to be made several times a day. However, in Australia, to extend the keeping life of baguettes so that they still taste fresh at 6pm when they are served up at the restaurant tables after being baked at 3am, O'Hara uses a 'sponge' which sits for three to four hours before being used in the dough.

It is important, therefore, to recognise the difference between a natural levain bread and a sourdough. Much confusion has resulted in consumers believing one and the other to be the same. Both are made using a sourdough starter, but the latter, unless stated as natural levain, more than likely contains a small amount of baker's yeast.

It is also important for consumers to realise that there is no such thing as an unyeasted sourdough. All sourdoughs have yeast in them of one kind or another (otherwise we could use them for bricks).

So now you know the real story. For bread that satisfies the tastebuds and the soul, why would you eat anything else but artisanal bread? Real bread.

Acknowledgements: This article would not have been possible without the help of Andrew O'Hara of Phillippa's and Ian Bamfield of Fruition to explain the craft of bread to me.

Useful Resources

• There's an international sourdough community for bakers of all levels at http://sourdough.com
• The book Tartine Bread by Chad Robertson is an excellent reference, with great instructional photos. This has been my guide in my sourdough bread making journey, and is where I learnt how to use Dutch oven to simulate professional baker's oven at home.
• Another classic is The Italian Baker by Carol Field.
• The Handmade Loaf: Contemporary European Recipes for the Home Baker by Dan Lepard is inspirational.

Making Sourdough Bread at Home

Making sourdough bread is a real art. I've still got a long way to go mastering the art of the artisanal loaf but dealing with the alchemy of flour, water and time is totally fascinating. I'd even say addictive.

The challenge is in learning how to understand what's happening with the dough. And there are many variables that will affect how the dough behaves: the flour(s) used, the leaven, temperature etc. Time is the most important ingredient for sourdough: the dough will do what it wants to do in its own time. But you can make that time work for you.

I had Chad Robertson's Tartine Bread beside me all the time in the kitchen when I started. He sets out detailed instructions (text and photos) as well as in-depth explanations of the processes. That didn't prevent the early disasters but it helped me figure out what was going wrong. And I also had the benefit of advice from friends who are chefs and bakers.

My sourdough bread-making technique is still evolving. It's a really rewarding craft to master. The results, even the disasters, are delicious.

Here are some notes from my experience to date and I'll keep updating it as I try out different flours, techniques and so on.

Establishing and Maintaining a Starter

The starter is essentially a culture of wild yeasts and bacteria. When flour and water are combined and allowed to ferment, it provides food for naturally occurring wild yeasts and bacteria.

Having lively bubbly starter is vital. It can take anywhere between 6 - 14 days, depending on the flour(s) used and the room temperature. It took me nearly 14 days to establish my first starter using only bakers' flour.

With the benefit of hindsight, I should have included some rye in the flour mix when I was trying to establish the starter. It would taken less time.

I now maintain several starters—each has a different flour mix and they are fed with their respective flour mixtures. I have observed that the 50/50 baker's flour/rye flour starter almost triples in volume and is much frothier than the others.

How to Establish the Starter

1. Mix 50g of flour(s) with 50g (50ml) lukewarm (around 25C) water. You should have a very thick, almost paste-like batter.
2. Put into a clean glass jar and leave aside for 2 - 3 days. Check to see if any bubbles have formed on the top or along the sides. If nothing has happened, leave it for a few more days. A dark crust may form on the surface by this stage. That's ok. Just remove it. The mixture underneath should be bubbly by now. It will also have a very sharp sour smell.
3. Discard around 80% of this mixture. Mix 50g of flour and 50g lukewarm water to a smooth thick batter and add this to the remaining starter. Stir to combine well. Clean down the edges of your jar.
4. Repeat the process each day: discard 80% of the mixture and add a fresh amount of flour/water mix. This process is called "feeding" the starter.
5. Repeat this every day until the starter rises and falls consistently. (I was impatient when I first started and didn't wait for this consistent behaviour before I used it for my first loaf. I ended up with bread that could have been used as a spare tire for the Flintstones' car!)

I use a rubber band around the side of the jar to mark the starter level immediately after feeding. As it's been cold, I put my starter(s) into a small wooden box with a small hot water bottle and cover with a thick towel. In this micro-climate in the box, it takes about 4 hours for my starters to rise and they hold the rise for a good few hours. In summer, I may be able to just leave it at room temperature.

When the starter is at its peak, it will have very sweet ripe smell—almost like overripe bananas. This is what Chad Robertson describes as a "young" starter and it's best to use it at this stage. As the starter subsides, it becomes increasingly acidic. Temperature also plays a role: warm temperatures favour sweet lactic-acid producing bacteria whilst cooler temperatures are preferred by sour acetic-acid producing bacteria.

How to Maintain the Starter

I leave the starter in the fridge and give it a weekly feed. My feeding routine is as follows:

1. Discard approximately 80% of the starter.
2. Mix up 30g flour: 30 ml warm water into a thick paste and add it to the jar.
3. Mix it well with the starter that's still in the jar. Then clean down the sides of the jar.
4. I put it into the wooden box with the hot water bottle and leave it to rise overnight.
5. Next day, I put it back into the fridge.

If I am planning to bake, I feed the starter the day before I need it (or in the case of the white leaven, I start the feeding at least 2 days before).

How to Make the Bread

The process is basically as follows:

1. Prepare a leaven from the starter mix and allow it to ripen. To test if the leaven is ready to be used, drop a teaspoon of it into a bowl of lukewarm water. If it floats, it's ready. If it sinks, it's past peak ripeness or it hasn't sufficiently ripened.
2. Make up the dough with flour(s), water, ripe leaven and a small amount of salt.
   
   When I started, I followed the "2 step" method in Tartine Bread which involves stirring the leaven into lukewarm water to disperse. Then flour is added and the dough is left to stand for around 20 - 30 minutes for the autolyse reaction to take place. Then salt and a bit more water is worked into the dough and that marks the start of bulk fermentation stage.
   
   I now do the 3-step process: I mix flour with water and leave it to stand for around 20 - 30 minutes before adding the leaven. Leave it to stand for another 20 - 30 minutes. Then add the salt and a bit more water.
3. Bulk fermentation. This is when the dough is left to develop with intermittent kneading.
   
   Instead of kneading the dough on a bench, I follow the method in Tartine Bread, where the dough is "turned" in the bowl at regular intervals. The "turning" process involves using a wet hand to grab the dough from the bottom of the bowl and pulling it upwards. This approach is perfect for a small kitchen like mine as there's no mess on the bench.
   
   The feel of the dough will change progressively from heavy and sticky to light and silky, with lots of bubbles in the dough and on the surface as well. That's when it's ready to be divided. Learning how to judge whether the dough is ready or not takes practice.
4. Initial shaping. When the dough is ready to be divided, I tip it out onto the bench. Lightly dust the top of the dough with flour. (It's vital to minimise the addition of flour to the dough at this stage.) Divide it into two with a dough blade.
   
   Then using a dough blade, I flip one portion of the dough over and fold the dough into itself so that the floured side becomes the outside.
   
   Using the dough blade, I shape it into a ball. Using my hands, I cup it around the dough and pull it towards me. Then I give it a couple of twists so that it's quite a tight ball. The "drag" of the dough against the bench gives tension to the dough.
   
   The dough ball is lightly dusted with flour and covered with a tea towel to prevent drying out. Repeat the process with the other half.
5. Bench rest. The dough is left to rest for about 30 minutes (but lately I've been stretching this out to an hour.) By the end of the resting time, the dough ball will have flattened out into a thick disc.
6. Structural shaping. This is the process of stretching and folding the dough in layers to create tension points in the dough to achieve a strong "oven spring" when the bread first goes into the oven.
   
   Structural shaping needs a LOT of practice to get it right! I have tried out various approaches.
   
   The one that seems to work best for me at the moment is the method that Sardinian chef Pietro Porcu of Da Noi restaurant in Melbourne showed me. (The house-baked sourdough at Da Noi is fantastic.) With his method, the dough is stretched length-wise and rolled up like a Swiss roll. Then turned 90 and stretched and rolled again. Then I shape it into a ball. (The loaves are Da Noi are shaped like oval footballs.)
7. Final proofing. Turn the ball over so that the seam underside is upwards and place into baskets lined with tea towels that have been dusted with rice flour. I put the baskets into large plastic bags and tie them up with wire twist ties.
   
   Sourdough is proofed to 75% risen rather than fully risen before baking. The way to check whether the dough is ready to bake is with the indentation test. Push the dough with one finger. If it bounces straight back, it's not ready. If it comes back up about half the depth of the indentation, it's ready. If it doesn't come back up, it's fully proofed (possibly even over-proofed). Again, it takes practice to learn how to judge when the dough is ready. It can take anywhere between 2 to 4 hours or longer, depending the ambient temperature.
   
   This final proofing can be retarded for up to 18 hours in the fridge. But it's best to allow it proof for at least an hour before putting it into the fridge.
8. Baking. The dough is slashed with a very sharp blade just before it goes into the oven. The slashes dictate how the dough expands in the oven. The way the slashes are made also dictates the final appearance. To get very pronounced "ears", the slash is made almost horizontal to the dough.
   
   Believe it or not, slashing is an art in itself. I'm still practising.
   
   To get a good crust, the dough needs a lot of steam in the early stages of baking. The method in Tartine Bread where the dough is baked in a cast-iron pot with a tightly fitted lid allows the steaming effect in a domestic situation. It works a treat!

Basic Recipe for Sourdough

All you need is flour, water, leaven and salt . . . and time!

Bakers work in terms of ratios, with flour as the reference point. There is a lot of flexibility in terms of the proportions of water and leaven to flour. I've noticed a pretty wide range of water and leaven proportions. It's up to you to decide the style of bread that you like.

Sourdough Ratio

• Flour 1,000g (100%)
• Water: from 55% (550g or 550ml) up to 80% (800g or 800ml)
• Leaven: from 15% (150g) to 50% (500g)
• Salt: 2% (20g)

I make up the exact amount of leaven required for that specific baking session by mixing flour equal to 50% of that required weight of leaven and mix it with equal weight of water. Then I add an amount of starter equal to 20% of the weight of flour used for the leaven.

So for 200g of leaven, I mix 100g flour with 100g (100ml) water and add 20g starter. I put this leaven mixture into a glass jar and place it in my make-shift proofing box for about 4 to 6 hours by which time it will have at least doubled in volume and developed a very sweet overripe banana fragrance.

Recipe for My "Daily Bread"

This is the recipe for the "standard" loaf I keep on hand . . . at the moment, anyway. I like my breads at 75% hydration (ie 750ml water for 1,000g flour). I use semola in my flour mix. Semola is coarse grain flour made from the very hard durum wheat and used in Italian pasta. The addition of honey was inspired by chef Cheong Liew: honey and rye are a match made in heaven. I prefer dark honeys and at the moment, I am using this amazing Buckwheat honey that I bought at the Farmers' Market at Old Ferry Terminal in San Francisco.

Ingredients

• 700g bakers flour
• 150g semola
• 150g light rye
• 200g leaven
• 650g + 50g + 50g lukewarm water
• 1 tablespoon dark honey
• 20g sea salt

Method

I am still playing around with time. but here are diary notes from one of my recent baking sessions to illustrate how you can make the timing work around you.

• 9.50am: Start leaven using 50/50 bakers flour:light rye flour)
• 1.30pm: Check progress of leaven. It has doubled in volume.
• 3.10pm: Mix flours with 650g water.
• 3.25pm: Completion of mixing of flours and water. Set aside to rest. [Temperature in kitchen: 22°C. ] Check leaven: it is now very bubbly and smells very ripe.
• 3.50pm: Mix 50g water with leaven. (Leaven by this stage is still very fruity but slight hints of acidity are coming through.) Work the leaven into the dough.
• 4.10pm: Completion of working of leaven into the dough. Set aside to rest.
• 4.40pm: Add honey, salt and 50g water to the dough. Work these into the dough thoroughly.
• 4.55: Mixing completed. Leave dough to rest.
• 5.30pm: Turn the dough vigorously.
• 5.45pm : Leave the dough to rest. [Temperature in kitchen: 20C ]
• 6.50pm: Bubbles now forming in dough. Do vigorous turns of dough.
• 7.10pm: Leave dough to rest.
• 8.15pm: Dough shows bubbles on surface and visible on sides of bowl. Dough is now lighter, starting to become silky and pulling away easily from side of bowl. Do series of gentle turns.
• 8.20pm: Leave dough to rest.
• 9.30pm: Do another series of gentle turns. Dough is silky with bubbles on surface.
• 9.35pm: Leave dough to rest.
• 10.30pm: Transfer dough to bench. Divide and do initial shaping.
• 10.45pm: Shaping completed. Start bench rest period.
• 11.30pm : Do structural shaping (using Pietro Porcu's method). Place into bannetons. Put bannetons into large plastic bag, tie up and leave to proof. [Temperature in kitchen: 18°C ]
• 3.00am: Put the bags into the fridge. [I was working late that night.]
• 7.00am: Take 1 of loaves out of fridge to bring to room temperature.
• 9.15am: Uh-oh....think I left it too long. Dough looks over-proofed! But bake it anyway. 25 mins with lid on the pot at 220°C. Another 20 minutes with lid off at 220°C.
• 10.05am: Take second loaf out of fridge.
• 10.30am: Second loaf into the oven.

Fruit Loaf With Raisin and Candied Peel

This is a really lovely raisin loaf (even if I do say so myself). The candied peel, particularly the candied lemon peel and candied citron, added a beautiful distinctive spiciness to the bread. I've made this twice so far—once with black raisins and another time with green raisins. For these loaves, I used the coarser-grained Moretti semola and you can see flecks of it in the bread. I also used the 2-step process for the dough.

Ingredients

For the leaven:

• 100g bakers flour
• 25g semola
• 25g rye
• 30g starter

For the dough:

• 1 kg flour (85% bakers flour, 15% semola)
• 650g + 50g water (ie 70% hydration)
• 280g leaven
• 20g salt
• 1 tbsp rosemary honey
• 450g raisins (soaked in hot water for 30 minutes and drained)
• approx 150g mixed candied peel (orange, lemon and citron), coarsely diced

Method

1. Stir leaven into 650g lukewarm water to disperse. Add flour and mix.
2. After 30 minutes, add salt, honey and water. Knead into dough.
3. Bulk fermentation for around 5 hours, giving the dough "turns" every half hour for the first 2 hours and then hourly.
4. Raisins and candied peel were added at the second "turn".
5. Divide and shape after 5 hours of bulk fermentation.
6. Bench rested for about 1 hour.
7. Final proof for 2 hours on the bench and then placed in fridge overnight.
8. Each loaf taken out of fridge about 30 minutes before baking.

Fruit Loaf With 45% Semola

Barley Flour Bread

My most recent experiment is a barley-based sourdough. I cultivated a starter based on a 50:50 mix of barley and rye flours, built a leaven using a 75:25 ratio of barley and rye flours; used a flour mix that included 15% barley flour and added a home-made barley malt.

Homemade Barley Malt

I followed the instructions by Dan Lepard in his book The Handmade Loaf. But the first time I did it, I used pearled barley. Bad move! There was only sporadic sprouting and I ended up with mould on the grains. Then I tried it with organic whole barley and it worked beautifully!

Essentially, the process involves soaking the barley in cool water for about 6 hours. The barley is then allowed to drain in a sieve for about 4 hours, stirring occasionally to ensure that it drains and semi-dries out evenly. The grains were then soaked in cool water again for about 8 hours and then drained.

I left the grains in the sieve covered with a damp Chux cloth for about 5 days. The room temperature at that time stayed around the recommended 15°C - 19°. They were thoroughly flushed with cool tap water every 24 hours (sometimes more frequently) to keep them clean and damp but not soaking in water. The grains produce a rather "whiffy" scent as they are sprouting.

When they had fully sprouted, I spread them on a dry cloth laid on a wire rack to dry for around 12 hours. Then the grains were dried in a low oven (50°C) for several hours, leaving the door slightly ajar to allow moisture to escape. I raised the temperature to 70°C to achieve a golden coloured grains. Interestingly, the green bits retained their colour in the drying process.

After cooling the grains, they were ground to a fine powder with an electric grinder. The resultant malt powder smells like very intense Ovaltine.

My Barley Flour Bread

Barley flour doesn't have any gluten, so a loaf made with 100% barley flour would have the dense texture of, say, a dark rye bread such as pumpernickel. What I did was to utilise barley in various forms into the bread.

I cultivated a barley starter based on a 50:50 barley and rye flour mix for about 2 days, using my 50:50 rye and baker's flour starter as the base.

Then I built a leaven using a 75:25 barley to rye flour mix with 20% of the barley starter.

Ingredients

• 650g baker's flour
• 150g barley flour
• 150g semola
• 650g + 50g + 50g lukewarm water (ie 75% hydration)
• 200g leaven (ie 20% leaven; leaven based on 75g barley flour, 25g rye flour, 100g water)
• 20g salt (2%)
• 6g malt (0.6%)
• 2 tbsp buckwheat honey

Method

1. Flours mixed with 650g water and set aside to rest for 1 hour. This is the autolyse process.
2. Leaven + 50g water worked into the flour. Set aside to rest for 30 minutes.
3. Salt, malt and buckwheat honey together with 50g water worked into dough. This marks the start of bulk fermentation.
4. Bulk fermentation of dough for 11 hours. Dough is "turned" every hour.
5. Dough divided and initial shaping done. Then left for "bench rest" for 1 hour.
6. Structural shaping and placed into baskets for final proofing. Proofed at room temperature (21°C) for 1 hour. Then placed in fridge for 16 hours.
7. Baked straight from fridge in closed cast iron casserole at initial oven temperature of 280°C for 10 minutes. Oven temperature dropped to 250°C for 15 minutes.
8. Lid removed after 25 minutes and baked at 220°C for 20 minutes.

Results

This bread displayed pleasantly strong flavours which became more balanced after 24 hours. The crumb was close but even. I discussed the texture with Phillippa Grogan (co-owner of Phillippa's and an experienced baker along with her husband and co-owner, Andrew O'Hara), saying I would have preferred a more open texture. She felt that the texture was fine but if I wanted to achieve a more open texture, I should increase the leaven from 20% to 30%. So, I will make that adjustment the next time I make this bread.

The discovery journey continues!

Sesame Bread

The toasty nuttiness of roasted sesame seeds gives a lovely fragrance and flavour to this white sourdough.

Made with a "white leaven" which is built from a "white starter". This starter is regularly fed with equal parts of baker's flour, semola and organic wholewheat flour.

Ingredients

• 650g baker's flour
• 200g semola
• 100g organic wholewheat flour
• 650g + 50g + 50g lukewarm water (ie 75% hydration)
• 300g white leaven (ie 30% leaven based on 50g each of baker's flour, semola, and wholewheat flour with 150g water and 30g white starter)
• 20g salt
• 125g roasted sesame seeds

Method

1. Same method as in Barley Flour bread but in this case, I only ran bulk fermentation for 8 hours. The sesame seeds were added during the 2nd turn of the dough.
2. The 2 proofed loaves were brought out of the fridge 40 mins before baking. I tried a different slashing pattern for these loaves. They were baked at 225°C (fan-forced oven) in the closed cast iron casserole for 25 minutes. Lid was then removed and baked for further 20 minutes at temperature of 215°C (fan-forced).

Buckwheat Flour Bread

This buckwheat flour—or more accurately, buckwheat flour flavored— bread was an accident. I had meant to make a barley flour bread but didn't look closely enough at the flour packet label. [My various flours, except the 5 kg sack of Baker's Flour, are kept in 1 box in the fridge.]

I had trialled buckwheat flour bread before but the results were not great. The flavor was bitter (although the bitterness disappeared as soon as the bread was buttered . . . how weird is that?). The loaf pretty flat and texture was far too dense.

But this time I roasted the buckwheat flour the night before. And this made all the difference to the flavour. Even the dough had a beautiful nutty fragrance. The final loaf was still very flat—buckwheat isn't really a grain and therefore has no gluten. The high percentage of baker's flour didn't seem to be able to compensate for this lack of gluten. Perhaps if I had used a white leaven, it might have had a better rise? I will try that the next time.

But regardless of the "flatness", the bread had a wonderful soft yet chewy texture with a strong crust, and very full flavored.

Ingredients

• 700g baker's flour
• 100g roasted buckwheat flour
• 600g water (ie 75% hydration)
• 240g leaven made with 90g buckwheat flour, 30g dark rye, 120g water (ie 30% leaven)
• 8 g barley malt (should have been buckwheat malt)
• 16g salt

Method

Bulk fermentation for 6 hours with ambient temperature going from 23°C to 26°C during that time. Think I should have shortened the time.

Hot Cross Buns

This is my first attempt at making Hot Cross Buns, using a sourdough leaven and a poolish. It's a bit of a mish-mash of recipes from Jeffrey Hammelman's Bread: A Baker's Book of Techniques and Recipes, my fruit bread recipe and the brioche recipe in Chad Robertson's Tartine Bread.

It's not a very sweet bun, which is my preference. I used a Hot Cross Bun Spice mix from my local spice shop. With this mix, I think I should double the amount of spice.

It took a few attempts before I started to get consistent in shaping the buns. It's best to place the buns pretty close together in the baking pan so as to force the rise upwards instead of sideways.

The cross paste mixture was too runny and spread too wide across the buns. The ¼ inch diameter nozzle was too big as well. Next time round I will make a thicker cross paste and a 1/8 inch nozzle.

Here's the recipe with the percentages in brackets. (The flour for the dough is 100%.)

Ingredients

• 500 g flour (85% baker's flour, 10% semola, 5% rye)
• 5 g dried yeast (1%)
• 5 g salt (1%)
• 5 g spices (1%)
• 90 g light brown sugar (18%)
• 160 g full cream milk at lukewarm temperature (32%)
• 95 g lukewarm water (19%)
• 80 g beaten egg (16%)
• 200 g poolish (40%)
• 150 g sourdough leaven (30%)
• 75 g unsalted butter, softened (15%)
• 200 g raisins (40%)
• 100 g chopped candied orange, lemon and citron peels (20%)

Method

1. Preparing the leavening agents:

The poolish: Made by mixing 100g flour, 100 g water and scant 2 g dried yeast. Leave to stand at room temperature about 4 hours. [Room temperature was about 22°C on the day I made this.]

Sourdough leaven: I used the my "standard" leaven for fruit loaf. It takes about 7 to 8 hours to develop. So I start this leaven first, and start the poolish about 4 hours later.

2. Mixing the dough

Put the flour, dried yeast, salt, spices and sugar into a mixing bowl of electric mixer with dough hook attached. [I use a Kitchen-Aid so the speeds will reference this on this machine.]

Add the milk, water, egg, poolish and leaven.

Beat at low speed (number 1 setting) for about 5 minutes, stopping the machine half-way to scrape down the sides of the bowl. Cover loosely with bowl (still attached to the mixer) with clingfilm and leave to rest for 20 minutes.

Beat the dough at medium speed (number 4 setting) until the dough leaves the side of the bowl clean. (It took me about 3 to 4 minutes.)

Add a small amount (about a fifth) of the butter to the dough and beat at low speed until the butter is fully incorporated before adding the next lot of butter.

When all the butter has been beaten in, turn the dough out into a large mixing bowl. Add the raisins and the candied peel and "fold" it into the dough with damp hand.

Cover the bowl with clingfilm and leave to rest in a cool place for about 2 hours. [It was about 21°C in the room when I did this.] Give the dough one "turn" after 30 minutes and a second "turn" after another 30 minutes.

Turn the dough out onto an unfloured work surface. Lightly dust with baker's flour and divide the dough into about 24 portions (about 75g per portion). Shaping each dough portion into a bun in the same way as a loaf is shaped. This is the part that had me stumped for the first few portions as it is more difficult to do this with a small amount of dough. But I got the hang of it after messing up the first few. :)

Place the buns closely together onto a parchment-lined baking sheet. This forces them to rise upwards instead of sideways.

Put the baking sheet into a large bag (I used an oven bag - the type that is used for roasting turkeys) and leave to rest in a warm place for about 1 to 1.5 hours.

Pipe cross paste on the buns just before baking. The buns are baked at 225°

Making the Cross Paste:

These are the proportions I used but the paste was too runny. So next time around, I'll probably reduce the amount of milk, maybe even leave out the egg, and increase the amount of flour slightly.

• 55 g butter
• 55 g sugar
• 85 g milk
• a few drops of vanilla extract
• a drop of lemon oil
• 30 g beaten egg
• 110 g baker's flour

Heat the butter and sugar in a saucepan until the sugar melts. (It won't dissolve completely - it'll still be a little grainy.) Take it off the heat and allow to cool for a few minutes. Then whisk in the milk, vanilla and lemon oil; followed by the beaten egg. Then stir in the flour and blend to a smooth paste.

Pipe the paste over the buns just before baking. Bake at 225°C for 8 minutes or until the buns start to color; then reduce heat to 200°C and continue to bake for another 8 - 10 minutes or until the buns are medium brown.

Brush the buns while they are still hot with a syrup made with 30g sugar and 30 g water.

Hot Cross Buns Trial No. 2

The second trial of hot cross buns. This time, I made up the ground spice mix from the recipe in Elizabeth David's classic book English Bread and Yeast Cookery. It's a more complex mix than the bought spice mix—wonderfully fragrant when ground fresh.

I also used sultanas instead of raisins and increased the quantity up to 40%.

I think I could increase spicing to 2%. But I'll wait for feedback from my Hot Cross Bun "guinea pigs" to tell me what they think of the two different buns.

Buckwheat Flour Sourdough Using White Leaven

I've been tweaking my methodology since reading Flour Water Salt Yeast by Ken Forkish. Brilliant book for amateur bakers like me.

I've modified how I make the buckwheat flour sourdough - or more accurately, roasted buckwheat flavoured sourdough as the roasted buckwheat flour is only 20% of the total flour.

This time, I've used a white leaven (i.e. made from baker's flour only). The last time I used a buckwheat flour leaven, I ended up with a very flat bread (as you can see in the pictures earlier in this blog).

I now only do 4 turns of the dough and these are done in the first 2 hours of bulk fermentation. The dough is then left to sit, untouched, until it's time to divide and shape.

Autumn is now well and truly here. With this loaf, the dough was left in bulk fermentation for just over 13 hours at average ambient temperature of around 16°C.

After final shaping, it was left in final proof overnight on the kitchen bench. Ambient temperature in the kitchen would probably have been around 14 - 15°C. I wasn't ready to bake in the morning so I put the loaves into the fridge at around 7am. They were baked just after 1pm.

Looking at the final structure, I think I could have pushed the final proofing out at room temperature (15°C) for another hour or so.

I love this bread for egg and watercress sandwiches.

3 Different Loaves from One Dough Mix

Variations in Sourdough Bread

I recently made up dough for 3 loaves of my "standard" loaf. That's one based on 15% rye and 85% bakers' flour at 75% hydration.

The results were interesting. My dough division wasn't perfect and I ended up with what I'll call Papa Bear, Mama Bear and Baby Bear loaves. As I only have 2 bannetons, I proofed the largest loaf in a colander. The other 2 were proofed in the bannetons.

Bulk fermentation was for 9 hours. The loaves were left to prove at around 14 - 15°C for 3 1/2 hours; then placed into the fridge. The smallest loaf was baked at 9,40am, the mid-sized loaf at 11am and the largest loaf was baked at 12.10pm. Baking temperature was 200°C (intensive fan-forced oven) for the first 2, and the large loaf at 215°C.

Despite the 3 loaves being made from the one dough, the appearance of the 3 loaves turned out quite different! (I gave 2 of the loaves to my friend, Francoise Garnier, who kindly took the pictures of those loaves.) I find this quite intriguing and am now trying to figure out why!

Sumac Levain Crackers With Black Lava Sea Salt And Rosemary

Levain Crackers

I've always cringed at having to throw away sourdough starter at each feeding. Then I found this fabulous way of using leftover starter in Jeffrey Hamelman's book "Bread. A Baker's Book of Techniques And Recipes." Make crackers with it!

So instead of throwing out the 80% of sourdough starter to be discarded at each feeding, I accumulate the discarded amounts in a jar which I keep in the fridge. When I have a reasonable amount (about 400g), I turn them into these gorgeous savory crackers. These crackers are great for snacks with drinks or for dips like hummus, baba ganouj etc.

The proportions for making the dough is follows:

• 230% starter
• 100% flour (use 50/50 plain flour/whole-wheat flour)
• 3.8% salt (you can round up to 4%)

Method

1. Simply combine the ingredients until you get a firm dough.
2. Cover with the bowl with clingfilm and run bulk fermentation for about 30 minutes to 1 hour.
3. Divide the dough into small portions. Roll out each portion of dough into a thin rectangle, about 1 - 1.5mm thick. If the dough is starting to shrink back significantly during the rolling, leave it aside to allow it to relax before rolling again.
4. Chill the dough sheets, covered in clingfilm, for at least 30 minutes. [I have left it overnight without any issues.]
5. When ready to bake, carefully transfer the dough to baking sheets. Spritz the dough with cold water. Sprinkle coarse salt and seeds (eg sesame seed, poppy seed, fennel etc) or herbs (rosemary or thyme are two possibilities). You can score the dough with a pizza wheel if you wish.
6. Bake in a pre-heated 220°C oven until the crackers are medium brown. The baking time will depend on how thinly you've rolled the dough. Baking times in my trials have been between 20 - 25 minutes.
7. Leave to cool completely on wire racks before storing in an air-tight container. If they soften, you can reheat them for a few minutes in pre-heated 180°C oven.

(Hamelman's recipe also suggests 1% cumin. So that's the amount of spice that you may want to add. I have been using sumac in my trials. But I've found that even after ramping the amount of sumac up to 15%, it doesn't really come through. There is a mild acidity in the crackers but I'm not sure if that is due to the acidity of the starter or the sumac.)

Levain Crackers Made With Pasta Maker

I came up with a different method of rolling out the levain cracker dough which makes it easier to achieve very thin dough sheets. Use a pasta maker!

Pass small portions of the levain dough through the pasta maker, exactly as you would with making pasta. Start at notch #1. Pass the dough through. Turn the notch up to setting #2. Pass the dough sheet through again. Repeat until you get to notch setting #4 or #5. Beyond #5, the dough becomes far too difficult to work with.

Lay the dough sheets carefully on a baking sheet lined with cling film. Each layer of dough sheets must be separated by a sheet of cling film. Refrigerate for at least an hour. In this case, I left the dough sheets overnight.

To bake, follow the instructions above for levain crackers. These pasta maker extruded dough sheets were much thinner than the hand rolled ones. They only took about 15 minutes to bake.

I made 3 different flavors of crackers in this batch. One was scattered with the Middle Eastern spice mix called Za'atar and this will be lovely with Middle Eastern dips like hummus and baba ganouj.

One had sesame seeds scattered over. I tried rolling the sesame seeds into the dough but it created holes in the dough.

Lastly, I grated Grana Padano over the dough. This smells absolutely gorgeous when it's baking and will be terrific to have as a nibble with drinks.

Wholemeal and White Flour Loaf

This is my first loaf with wholemeal flour. I had read that wholemeal flour absorbs a great deal more water so I increased hydration to 80%. I also reduced the amount of levain to 15% on the basis that wholemeal flour ferments faster.

Ingredients

• 640 g bio-dynamic wholemeal flour
• 640 g baker's flour
• 160 g dark rye flour
• 1.2 litres water (80%)
• 240 g levain (15%)
• 32 g salt (2%)

Method

Flour and water were mixed and allowed to sit for an hour before adding the levain. The dough was left in bulk fermentation for 23 hours at temperatures between 12 - 13ºC. Final proof went for 8 hours for the first two loaves. By the time the second batch went into the oven, they had been in final proof for an additional 1½ hours and they had showed much better rise than the first.

51-Hour Loaf

I read in Michael Pollan's book Cooked: A Natural History of Transformation that Chad Robertson actually used higher levels of hydration than those set out in Tartine Bread. The amount of water in the recipes had been reduced by 10% or so as Robertson was concerned that "home bakers confronting a dough too wet to knead would 'freak out'. "

I had also learnt that wholemeal soaks up a lot more water and that bran "cuts" the gluten which then makes for a denser loaf. However, the bran could be blunted by longer soak and a wetter dough.

So with this batch, I ran autolyse for over 20 hours before adding the levain. Bulk fermentation time went on for nearly 24 hours at average temperature of 12° - 13°C and final proof took around 4 hours.

The result? This has to be the best batch of loaves I have baked since I started bread making just over 12 months ago!

Ingredients

• 160 g organic whole grain dark rye flour
• 320 g baker's flour
• 1080 g bio-dynamic wholemeal flour
• 1440 g water (90% hydration)
• 240 g levain (15%)
• 32 g salt (2%)

95% Hydration Loaf

I pushed the boundaries with hydration with the latest loaves - by accident. I had planned to try a 20% light rye:80% baker's flour dough at 90% hydration. However, my brain wasn't properly engaged when I added the water to the dough. I added the entire 90% water when mixing up the dough instead of holding a small amount back, as I usually do, for mixing the levain and the salt.

I also mixed the water with the flour at the same time that I set up the levain. So the autolyse process went for about 12 hours.

An additional 2.5% water was added when incorporating the levain into the dough. A further 2.5% water was added at the time of mixing in the salt. That's how I ended up at 95% hydration.

Bulk fermentation ran for just over 12 hours with ambient temperature hovering around 15° - 16°C. The dough was very silky and soft. It was very challenging to shape and equally challenging to slash!

Final proof was for 18 hours, with the first hour at room temperature and the rest of the time in the refrigerator.

The final result was good but I don't think I'll repeat this level of hydration unless I am using wholemeal flour!

100% Semola Bread

Semola is made from durum wheat. It is much more granular than semolina (or as the Italians call it, semolino) and is used for making pasta. Whilst it is very high in protein, its gluten structure is very different from that of bread flour. It has high extensible qualities but doesn't have the strength to support the capture of air bubbles like wheat flour.

I've have difficulties previously in getting a good rise in the bread when I've increased the amount of semola in a dough mix to 50%. But I recently learnt about the Pane di Altamura, a bread that is specific to the town of Altamura in Puglia, Italy. This famous bread even has DOP (Denominazione Origine Protetta) status.

The true Pane di Altamura has to be made from 3 specific varieties of durum wheat from specific areas.

It's a wonderful yellow bread with strong crust and chewy interior.

I've tried to create the equivalent with the Moretti brand semola, this being the only semola I can get hold of. The Moretti semola is from the Lombardy region. I have no idea what durum wheat varieties is used in this semola.

However, I followed the guidelines for Pane di Altamura as closely as possible and was very happy with the results.

Here's what I did for this experimental loaf:

• 9.30am: Mixed 500g semola with 300g water (water temperature was 35º C). The mixture looks like a shaggy porridge. Set aside to rest.
• 10.15am: Added 100g semola levain (using a pure semola starter I had been building for over 4 days). Worked it in by pinching the dough and then doing a number of stretches and folds. After that, I worked in 10g sea salt. Again, pinched the dough and did some stretches and folds. The dough is still sticky and loose at this stage - somewhat akin to thick porridge.
• 10.30am: Set the dough aside, covered with cling film, to rest.
• 11.00am: Did the first "turn" of the dough. By this stage, the dough felt softer and more elastic but still very sticky. Room temperature was 24ºC at 47% humidity.
• 11.30am: Did the second "turn" of the dough. The dough was more cohesive but still very sticky.
• 1.15pm: Did a third "turn" of the dough. By this stage, the dough was holding shape and no longer sticky.
• 1.35pm: Put the dough in the refrigerator as I had to attend a funeral.
• 4.30pm: Took the dough out of the fridge and left it to come to room temperature on the bench. Room temperature was 26ºC at 45% humidity.
• 6.40pm: Turned the dough out of the bowl. The dough came away quite easily. Shaped the dough and put it into a banneton for final proof. The dough was still quite cool.
• 8.20pm: Baked the loaf in Dutch oven at 225ºC (fan-forced) for 20 minutes. The cover on the Dutch was removed and the loaf was baked for a further 25 minutes at 225ºC.

I will definitely try doing this bread in a bigger batch again. It has a lovely flavour. Brushed with olive oil and toasted, it is a fabulous accompaniment to a chunky seafood soup or as bruschetta.

Salt Fermented Sourdough

I had heard a lot about the salt fermented sourdough by Teresa Greenway of Northwest Sourdough.

I found the instructions online. It takes about a week to do as you have to build a salt fermented mother dough - the pate fermentée. But there's very little actual hands-on work involved. Just time - the most important ingredient in great bread.

It makes a stunning looking loaf. The flavour is outstanding. I'll definitely be making this again!

Sourdough Waffles

It is terribly wasteful to have to throw out spent starter at each feed and making levain crackers (as shown earlier in this article) was one way. But there's only so many crackers one can eat—and give away.

Another great way to use spent starter is in waffles. In fact, after making the first batch of waffles following a recipe I found online at the Breadtopia site, I analysed what was happening with that recipe.

The starter can essentially be thought of as a simple "batter" of flour and water with a population of wild yeasts. It's too heavy to use on its own, especially if you feed your starter with strong flours. However, this spent starter works brilliantly for making batter products like waffles if lightened with some all-purpose flour or cake flour, and even some rice flour.

Any of your favourite waffle recipes can be converted to incorporate the spent starter by adjusting the flour and liquid components in the batter. It's up to you as to how much of the starter you want to use in the final mixture. Here's how to work it out based on substituting 50% of the flour in the waffle recipe.

• Halve the amount of flour called for in the waffle recipe. The rest of the flour will come from the starter. So let's say you are using a recipe that requires 250g all-purpose flour. You would use only 125g all-purpose flour to make up the batter. The other 125g is in the starter.
  
  
• If you maintain a starter at 100% hydration, that means your starter is equal parts flour and water. So in our 250g flour example, you would need 250g of starter to get the balance of 125g flour required in the recipe.
  
  If you maintain a starter at 80% hydration, then you would need 225g starter. At 80% hydration, that amount of starter would comprise of 125g flour and 100g water.
  
  
• Next, adjust the amount of liquid in the recipe for the water content in the starter. If your waffle recipe calls for 375ml milk, then you would reduce the amount of milk by the amount of water in your starter.
  
  So if you are using 250g 100% hydration starter, you would reduce the amount by milk by 125ml to 250ml. If you are using 225g 80% hydration starter, you would reduce the amount of milk by 100ml to 175ml for your final batter.
  
  
• The rest of the waffle recipe remains unchanged.

To create a lighter batter, you can substitute some of the all-purpose flour with rice flour. You can also separate your eggs, adding only the yolks to the initial batter. Then whisk your egg whites to soft peaks and incorporate into the batter just before you are ready to cook.

Sourdough Ebelskivers

Ebelskivers are Danish spherical puffy pancakes. I bought an ebelskiver pan several years ago. It seemed like a good idea at the time. But it ended up sitting unused at the back of the cupboard.

After experimenting with the waffles, I thought ebelskivers would be another great way to use spent starter. As with the waffles, I simply converted the flour:liquid ratios in the original ebelskiver recipe to allow for the flour and water content in the starter.

I am part of an artisan bread bakers' group in Facebook and when I posted my sourdough ebelskiver results in the group, I discovered that there were many others who also had an unused ebelskiver pans lurking at the back of their cupboards! So if you're one of those, it's time to bring that pan out!

Turning the ebelskivers neatly does need practice! But it's been fun making these and that pan of mine will now be in constant use.

Savoury ebelskivers like the spinach and feta, and the corn, coriander and chilli ones, are excellent for a light lunch or as nibbles with drinks. And they are really quick to make once you get the hang of it.

Einkorn Bread

Einkorn (Triricum monococcum) is one of the ancient grains that have been enjoying a revival in recent times. This ancestor of the modern common wheat adds a really lovely nutty texture to the bread.

For this batch of loaves, I used Einkorn flour from English Doves Farm which I found in, of all places, a supermarket in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on a recent trip there. Fortunately, I have since found a producer of Einkorn flour in Australia.

The gluten structure of einkorn is more fragile than that of modern wheat and the dough needs to be handled quite lightly. This batch was made following the recipe in Tartine Book No. 3. The flour mix consists of 40% baker's flour, 30% Einkorn flour and 30% high extraction flour. The last flour isn't available for home bakers like myself but you can simulate it by sifting whole wheat flour. (The bran that is left over can be used for other purposes.) With my sieve, I got about 400g high extraction flour from sifting 500g whole wheat flour.

The dough is 85% hydration and is quite weird as it stays wobbly (like pannacotta) even at the end of bulk fermentation. I found it quite tricky to handle but practice will make perfect. This Einkorn loaf will be part of my regular bakes from now on as I love the flavour and texture.

Salt Fermented Sourdough: Baker's Flour Vs Semola

Einkorn Bread Using Australian Einkorn Flour

Salt Fermented 100% Semola - 70% Hydration

Crumpets Using Starter Discard

Crumpets are another way to use starter that is discarded as part of the feeding cycle. I adapted the recipe from Phillippa's Home Baking by Phillippa Grogan and Richard Cornish.

Ingredients

• 176 g spent starter (100% hydration)
• 175 g milk
• 87 g boiling water
• ½ teaspoon instant yeast
• 137 g plain flour
• ¾ teaspoon sea salt
• ½ teaspoon baking powder
• butter, for cooking

Method

1. Place the spent starter in a large bowl.
2. Mix the milk and boiling water. Add the instant yeast and whisk well.
3. Add the milk mixture to the starter in the bowl and whisk to combine well.
4. Sift the flour over the mixture and whisk in to make a smooth batter. It should be the consistency of thick cream.
5. Cover the bowl and leave to stand in a warm place until the batter is very bubbly on the surface.
6. Whisk in the salt and baking powder.
7. Grease egg rings with butter. Grease a large heavy-based frying pan.
8. Place the pan over medium-low heat and place egg rings in the pan to heat up as well.
9. Spoon enough batter to fill about half the depth of the egg rings.
10. Little holes should form in about a minute. Cook for about 5 minutes or until the surface of the crumpet is almost set.
11. Flip the crumpet in the egg ring to cook for another 2 - 3 minutes on the other side.
12. Serve hot.
13. The crumpets can be stored for about a week in an airtight container in the refrigerator. They also freeze well. Toast them to reheat before serving.

Crumpets

Oat Porridge Bread

Oat has no gluten in it, so it is difficult to achieve an open structured crumb with oat flour. So, the best way to incorporate oats into bread and still have an open textured loaf is to use it as a flavouring ingredient.

It can be included as oat flakes or as oat porridge. In this bread, I've toasted unstabilised oat flakes and then turned it into a porridge.

Honey and butter go so well with oats. This bread has 3% melted butter and 3% honey as well. The dough is made with 50/50 mix of an Italian "Manitoba" flour (high protein, strong gluten) and my usual brand of bread flour.

I also had some buttermilk on hand as a by-product of making butter earlier in the week. So that was added to the dough mix as well.

Ciabatta

The ciabatta is one of the most challenging breads I've made. It has taken 7 or 8 attempts to finally get a loaf that actually showed some of the characteristics of this fabulous style of bread: thin, crisp, shiny, well-blistered crust; together with an open airy crumb with well gelatinised starches.

This batch uses 100% 16-hour poolish (made with Caputo Manitoba flour); 15% lievito madre (also with Caputo Manitoba flour), and 0.2% yeast. The dough is 25% Caputo Manitoba flour and 75% Laucke "Wallaby" baker's flour. Overall hydration is 92%.

The dough is very delicate. It literally wobbles like pannacotta and has to be handled very carefully.

Pain Cordon De Bourgogne

In one of the bread baking groups that I belong to on Facebook, we have a Bread of the Month. The Pain Cordon De Bourgogne was the nominated bread for September 2014, following a recipe on Freerk's blog on The Fresh Loaf.

This distinctive appearance of this bread has an interesting history that dates back to the Crusades. Monks of a religious order of the Minor Brothers of St Francis Of Assisi wore a simple cord around their robes as a symbol of poverty. As such they were known as Cordeliers.

The story goes that they used the cord to mark the breads they made - and tied the cord around the bread during proofing. The cord left the distinctive mark which eventually was replaced by a dough "cord" around the dough.

Apart from the attractive appearance, it's a lovely bread flavour-wise as well. The liquid content includes buttermilk and the bread has a rich sweet fragrance.

Pain de Romarin (Rosemary Bread)

I am a member of online bread group which has provided great learning and sharing of experiences. The group has a Bread of the Month recipe where members all bake the same bread. For November 2014, the bread was a sourdough bread infused with chopped fresh rosemary. It's an amazing bread and the whole house is filled with the scent of rosemary and freshly baked bread.

I made up some rosemary buns as well for use with sumac lamb burgers.

Rosemary Bread and Buns

Pane Sardegna

Semola features in many of the regional breads in the south of Italy. On the face of it, the differences appear to be in the percentage of semola used. With the IGP (geographically protected labelling) Pane Altamura of Puglia, there are specific varieties of durum wheat required for its production, the water quality etc.

Melbourne-based Sardinian chef Pietro Porcu had told me about the semola bread in Sardegna. I came across a recipe for Pane Sardegna which comprised 80% semola. So this is my rendition of Pane Sardegna using a lievito madre (essentially a very stiff wild yeast starter made with the strong Manitoba flour).

The dough itself is made with 100% semola. The remaining 20% white flour is represented in the Manitoba flour in the lievito madre.

Pistolets

Pistolets are Belgian buns. I used a recipe from a baker friend. It involves cold (in refrigerator) overnight fermentation. Once the buns are shaped, they are pressed down the centre with a dowel and flipped over for a short final proof. Just before baking, they are flipped over again and baked with a lot of steam in the oven.

Spinach, Ricotta, Feta Bread "Wreath"

I made this for our annual neighbourhood party. A simple white bread dough at 68% hydration is rolled and stretched out into rectangle. The filling of spinach, ricotta, feta, caramelised onions and garlic, freshly grated nutmeg, salt and black pepper and a whole beaten egg is placed in a column at the long edge of the rectangle. This is rolled over to just cover the filling—about half the rectangle is left. This section of the rectangle is cut into strips. These strips are plaited and rolled over the dough to create a decorative effect.

This savoury bread wreath has been a consistent hit with friends.

Lard, Garlic, and Rosemary Bread

I love lard. It adds a fragrance and flavour that is quite unmatchable.

Years ago, I had a lard bread complete with lardy bits through it at my favourite Sardinian restaurant. Owner/Chef Pietro Porcu said it was called "Ciccioli" bread. The word "ciccioli" means the lard 'cracklings' in Sardinian dialect (or maybe it is the same term throughout Italy?).

I happened to get hold of some beautiful back fat from Berkshire pork. I used the lard extracted from this back fat and added some of the crackling bits as well into this bread. I also added slow roasted garlic and rosemary. It's beautiful bread for sandwiches.

Ingredients in Baker's Percentages

• 30% semola
• 70% unbleached bread flour
• 20% lievito madre (stiff starter at 42% hydration)
• 75% water
• 7.5% lard
• 2% salt
• 2 bulbs of slow roasted garlic
• generous amount of chopped fresh rosemary

Comments

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on April 04, 2018:

Hi Bethany, Sorry but the structure of the webpage doesn't allow for a table of contents.

Bethany Halbert from West Virginia, USA on March 29, 2018:

This looks AMAZING! The photos are beautiful. But it has so much content it's almost overwhelming... do you have a table of content anywhere so I could find specific tips or recipes without looking at the entire hub? I liked your tip for measuring the sourdough starter with a rubber band. I'm always losing track of how much mine has risen.

Liza from USA on November 10, 2017:

This is incredible! I always wanted to make my own bread.

MarloByDesign from United States on May 20, 2017:

I love your bakery pictures and now I am craving some homemade bread! Awesome Hub.

Lena Durante from San Francisco Bay Area on May 02, 2017:

What a thorough article! I killed my last sourdough starter with neglect when I went on vacation a year ago. I guess it's about time to start a new one!

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on January 05, 2016:

Thanks, raguett

Meagan Elaine on January 05, 2016:

love making bread thanks for great hub......

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on December 31, 2015:

peachpurple, I am not clear as to what you are referring to. But you don't leave dough to rise for a week - it would be over-fermented. Also, sourdough is "wild yeast" which is different from commercial yeast. With the sourdough starter, you would want to "refresh" it (ie feed it with flour and water) a few hours before using it.

peachy from Home Sweet Home on December 31, 2015:

does it means that the yeast had to be left to rise for a week?

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on August 16, 2015:

Thanks, mattdigiulio

mattdigiulio from Los Angeles on August 16, 2015:

Those rosemary buns with lamb burgers -- oh momma.

This is an incredible hub! Full of great information. I'm bookmarking it to use in the future when I start collecting my ingredients!! Voting up, interesting, awesome, beautiful.

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on April 13, 2013:

Even structural shaping is not as easy as it looks. In Bouchon Bakery book they recommend making up a piece of dough just to practice shaping. I can't be bothered to do that....just use each baking session as practice. :)

Leah Wells-Marshburn from West Virginia on April 13, 2013:

I was afraid you were going to say that!

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on April 13, 2013:

Glad you are finding it useful. The lame will help but slashing is definitely an art! Practice, practice, practice! I still haven't got it right. Wouldn't have thought that cutting a few lines would be so hard. :)

Leah Wells-Marshburn from West Virginia on April 13, 2013:

Wow, what a hub! There is a ton of information in here! The pictures of the bakery are just absolutely beautiful. I can empathize with you on the bread slashing thing; I am terrible at it. I am ordering a lame from King Arthur Flour. It looks like the one pictured. I hope it helps with my slashing art. My knives are sharp, but I think they're too thick to do what I need them to do. When I go to slice my risen dough, the knives kind of tug rather than slice. Have you experienced anything like that? Do you think it is the thickness of the knives?

Thank you for such a thorough article. Tons of useful information!

Foodstuff is a freelance food writer who has been exploring the art of fermentation. Traditional Chinese preserves is her latest project.

Time has erased the class distinctions between the two categories of Italian soups: zuppa and minestra. However, their respective names and characteristics reflect their markedly contrasting pedigrees.

What is Minestra?

Minestra predates Zuppa by a good few centuries. Derived from the Latin ministrare, meaning "to administer", the word reflects the fact that minestra was served out from a central bowl or pot by the figure of authority in the household. Minestra was traditionally the principal—and for the poor—the only course of the meal.

Today, it is a blanket term referring to a first course of vegetables, legumes, pasta or rice cooked in a stock. Risotti and pasta dishes such as spaghetti alla vongole are sometimes referred to as minestre asciutte or "dry" minestre.

Minestrone is only one of many minestra soups. Regional variations abound but a minestrone must always include a "thickening vegetable" such as fresh or dried beans or other legumes, potatotes, pumpkin or squash. It must also include pasta or rice.

As a soup, it is exceptional in that it is delightful at various temperatures from hot to tepid to cold (though not straight out of the fridge), making it a soup for all seasons.

What Is Zuppa?

Zuppa refers to a broth which, with a few exceptions, has slices of bread in it but never rice or pasta. The Italian word - along with the French soupe, Portuguese and Spanish sopa and German suppe - derives from the Gothic suppa, meaning "soaked bread".

That slice of bread encapsulates the less salubrious origins of this soup. In medieval times, the plates on the tables of the nobility took the form of trenchers of sliced bread. These "plates", which ended up saturated with the juices of meats and other foods placed on them, were subsequently cooked by the servants, in water or stock, for their own meal.

Given its beginnings essentially as cooked dishwater, zuppa was obviously never seen on the tables of the rich. Not even the now prized sumptuous seafood extravaganza of zuppa di pesce (literally "fish soup", although shellfish is often included) made an appearance. This zuppa was originally fishermen's fare, made from the part of the catch not considered commercially valuable and thus not destined for the markets. Tomatoes, now a common ingredient, entered the equation only in the 18th century.

With the revival of interest in traditional peasant foods, the humble zuppa has achieved respectability. There are myriad regional zuppe and some have not only acquired special names but have been elevated to the status of venerated classics in Italian cuisine worthy of restaurant tables. Examples include:

• the Tuscan ribollita (literally "re-boiled"), an almost solid soup of beans, black cabbage (cavolo nero ) along with the intensely green cabbage called cavolo verza . This is always made a day or two before being eaten to allow the flavours to meld. It stands up extremely well to reheating and a great one to make in bulk for freezing.
• the Livornese cacciucco , a seafood soup spiked with generous amounts of garlic and tiny, dried red chillies.

A Classic Italian Zuppa

True Sicilian asparagus zuppa uses wild asparagus, which is more intensely flavoured than the cultivated variety and slightly bitter. This feral form is available in markets in Europe but near impossible to find in shops in Australia. I have occasionally seen small quantities of it at my greengrocer - imported from France and with an eye-watering price tag! I am told that feral asparagus can be found along country railway tracks, these being the naturalised offspring of seeds scattered by post-war 2 Italian immigrants but the exact locations are well-kept secrets!

Although the following recipe is a tame and non-traditional rendition of this classic Sicilian zuppa in that it uses cultivated asparagus, it's still delicious. You must use gutsy, rustic, Italian-style bread, not the supermarket cotton-wool apologies for bread. The former will hold its structure and chewy texture despite the soaking. The latter turns into soggy cotton wool—hardly an appetising proposition!

Recipe: Zuppa Di Asparagi

(Serves 6 - 8)

Ingredients

• 1.5 kg asparagus
• Olive oil for frying & brushing bread
• 1 clove garlic, peeled and minced finely
• 1.5 litres veal or chicken stock
• 6 - 8 slices day-old bread
• 4 x 60 g eggs
• 50 g freshly grated pecorino cheese*
• Salt and ground black pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Trim asparagus spears to lengths of about 10 cm from the tip and cut these truncated spears into 1.5 cm long pieces. (The leftover, de-headed stems can be used in stir-fries or simmered for about half an hour with the stock for the soup to intensify the asparagus flavour. Strain the stems from the stock before using for the soup.)
2. Heat a few tablespoons of olive oil in a deep, heavy casserole over moderate heat.
3. Add garlic and asparagus pieces and fry until they just start to colour.
4. Add stock and bring the soup to the boil.
5. Meanwhile, heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a frying pan.
6. Brush the bread slices with olive oil.
7. Fry them until golden brown on both sides.
8. Drain fried bread on kitchen paper set on a rack.
9. When the soup comes to the boil, beat the eggs together with the pecorino. Add egg mixture to the soup.
10. Stir gently and allow the soup to simmer for a few minutes or until the egg mixture coagulates.
11. Remove from heat immediately. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.
12. Place a slice or two of fried bread in each bowl and ladle the soup over. Serve immediately whilst it is still piping hot.

*Note: Pecorino, an ewe's milk cheese, has as many variations as there are regions in Italy. Ideally, this should be made with Pecorino Siciliano. I use Pecorino Sardo (from Sardinia) in the absence of the Sicilian one.

Comments

Lena Durante from San Francisco Bay Area on May 15, 2017:

Fascinating. I didn't realize a traditional zuppa never contains rice or pasta!

I'm a real sucker for asparagus. Your recipe looks delicious. I'm eager to try the technique of pouring soup over fried bread!

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on January 23, 2013:

Thanks for the feedback, Glass-Jewelry.

Marco Piazzalunga from Presezzo, Italy on January 23, 2013:

Hello Foodstuff,

I am Italian and your distinction is very sophisticated but it tastes very academic, in fact in the use of current Italian this distinction is not so relevant.

By the way I appreciate very much your sharing of some Italian features!

Foodstuff is a freelance food writer and published author from Australia who enjoys exploring various recipes and techniques.

When the Chinese stir-fry became a naturalised Australian culinary citizen, so did the wok. However, the wok's other great use in Chinese cookery—as a steamer—remains relatively unexplored.

The only accouterments required to go from wok to steamer are a high-domed lid, available at Asian stores, and a raised support on which to place the dish of ingredients. The support can be as simple as a pair of wooden chopsticks laid parallel to each other and set as far apart as possible inside the wok\ or an upturned rice bowl. Add water and the wok becomes a steamer.

Steaming methods

Steaming is employed extensively in Chinese cuisine for both simple and luxurious dishes. There are two forms of steaming: dun (indirect steaming) and zheng (direct steaming).

Dun (Indirect Steaming)

For indirect steaming, ingredients are put in a tightly covered vessel, placed on the support in the wok or large pot, with water about halfway up the sides of the vessel. The exception is where the Yunnan pot is used. The latter, a squat ceramic pot with a narrow central vent that allows steam to gently bathes the ingredients within, is set above the water level.

The dun method is used primarily for making tonic soups of medicinal herbs or luxurious soups of expensive ingredients such as a bird's nest. Dun soups are exquisite clear concentrates of flavour. Cooking time is usually several hours, with water in the wok or pot is replenished along the way. This is also the method used for making kaya, the popular Malaysian coconut and egg jam.

Zheng (Direct Steaming)

With the zheng method, ingredients are not covered and thus exposed directly to steam. Cooking times are shorter, about 10 minutes to an hour depending on ingredients. The dish of ingredients must be set well clear of the water (usually about 2.5 cm above) to avoid flooding it. There should also be not less than 2.5cm clearance between the rim of the dish and the sides of the wok (or steamer) to ensure good steam circulation.

Using the Direct Steam method

There are two types of direct steaming: qin zheng (or clear steaming) and fen zheng where the primary ingredient lightly coated with tapioca or rice flour before steaming. The latter method is used with pork and chicken: the flour coating "protects" the meat during cooking so that it remains velvety.

Qin zheng or "clear steamed" fish is one of the jewels of classical Cantonese cuisine. This dish is all about showcasing the natural sweetness and smoothness of flesh of the fish. The fish has to be absolutely spanking fresh. Cooked only with a smatter of shredded ginger and finished with a light soy sauce and oil dressing, there is nowhere for any imperfections to hide. The slightest hint of 'fishiness' or deterioration in flesh quality will come screaming through in the final dish. This uncompromising requirement for freshness is the reason for Chinese restaurants having tanks of live fish.

Qin zheng isn't the only way that steamed fish is enjoyed. The fish may be topped with other ingredients such as shredded Yunnan ham and finely sliced shitake mushrooms. In the Chiu Chow (another southern Chinese dialect group) style steamed fish, the fish is also topped with preserved sour plums or shredded salted mustard greens ("ham choi " in Cantonese).

Chinese Home-style Steamed Dishes

Zheng dishes of egg, fish, chicken, as well as sliced or minced pork, feature strongly in Cantonese home fare. (Note: vegetables are blanched - not steamed - in Chinese cookery.) With the exception of steamed fish, these homely dishes are never served in restaurants. You may find them in cheap and cheerful Chinese cafes that cater primarily to a Chinese family audience.

In traditional Chinese home meals, steamed rice is the main feature with meat and vegetable dishes as support acts, serving as flavourings to rice. Home-style steamed dishes are designed to be eaten in this way and as such usually incorporate strongly flavoured ingredients such as preserved vegetables, dried salted fish or Chinese sausage. These ingredients ramp up the flavour stakes and make a little protein go a long way. They are perfect for a recession household budget!

Here are a few examples of Cantonese home-style steamed dishes. (Note: in all instances, the ingredients should be spread out on a shallow-sided heat-proof dish and should not be more than 2 cm thick. The aim is fast even cooking.)

Steamed Pork Slices With Sichuan Preserved Vegetable (Zhacai)

Zhacai is made from the knobbly stem of mustard greens (Brassica juncea ) mustard greens. The stems are dried, then pickled in brine. They are then pressed to get rid of the excess liquid and generously coated with chilli powder and spices. They are usually sold in tins. Rinse before use to get rid of excess salt, chilli and spices and slice them finely. You don't need more than 1 knob for an average-sized dish (400 - 500g pork). The rest can be stored indefinitely in an air-tight container in the refrigerator.

Slice the zhacai thinly and spread in a single layer over the pork slices which have been marinated with a touch of light soy sauce and lightly coated with tapioca or cornflour. Go easy on the soy sauce as the zhacai is salty.

Steamed Minced Pork With Tianjin Preserved Cabbage (Dongcai)

As the name suggests, this preserved vegetable is a specialty of Tianjin in the northern Chinese province of Hebei. The chopped cabbage is preserved with salt and garlic and packed in distinctive dark brown earthenware jars. Rinse before use to get rid of excess salt. Again, a little goes a long way and it keeps almost indefinitely in the refrigerator.

For the steamed minced pork dish, mix a few heaped tablespoons with the minced pork along with a teaspoon or so of tapioca or cornflour. Spread on a shallow dish and steam.

Dongcai is also excellent as a 'seasoning' lift for pork balls in soup or added directly into noodle soups.

• Steamed minced pork with chopped dried salted fish: Mix in coarsely chopped dried salted fish with minced pork. This is one of my favourites!
• Steamed chicken pieces with Chinese sausage: The chicken pieces can be on or off the bone but it must be in small pieces. Marinate the chicken with a bit of light soy sauce, a touch of sesame oil, and a teaspoon of tapioca or cornflour. Spread on a shallow dish and top with finely sliced Chinese sausage. You can also add thinly sliced shitake mushroom if you wish.

Temperature Control in Steam Cookery

Steaming isn't simply cooking over boiling water. There are different temperatures of steaming, from a gentle simmer to rapid boil. Textural excellence, an important part of Chinese cuisine, requires the use of a temperature appropriate to the main ingredient.

• Fish, breads and most cakes must be steamed over water at a rapid boil.
• Meats, often tossed with a protective coating of tapioca flour, require water to be at a medium boil.
• The delicate egg is cosseted by wafts of steam from gently simmering water.

Zheng Soey Tarn (Steamed Egg "Custard") Recipe

Literally translated as "steamed water-egg", the prized delicate, smooth silky texture of this savoury custard is achieved through eliminating air bubbles. Boiled water is the secret ingredient: boiling "deflates" the water.

[Serves 2]

Ingredients

• 3 x 60 g eggs
• 300 ml cooled, boiled water
• Pinch salt
• 2 tbsp peanut oil
• 1 tbsp light soy sauce

Instructions

1. Beat eggs well with a fork.
2. Add water and salt and beat to blend thoroughly.
3. Strain the mixture carefully through a fine sieve into a shallow dish, about 20 cm in diameter and 2.5 cm deep. The custard should be about 2 cm deep.
4. Steam over gently simmering water for about 20 minutes or until the custard is set. It should be perfectly smooth and shiny.
5. Mix the oil and soy sauce in a little bowl and gently pour over 'custard'. Serve hot with steamed rice and stir-fried vegetables.

Variation: Cut up a block of silky tofu into large cubes and add them to the egg mixture. The result is like silk on silk.

Chee Yoke Zheng Tarn (Steamed Minced Pork & Egg "Custard") Recipe

[Serves 4]

Ingredients

• 400 g minced pork
• 2 tsp light soy sauce
• Pinch salt and shake of ground white pepper
• 3 x 60 g eggs
• 150 ml water
• 2 salted duck-egg yolks, halved (optional, see note below)

Instructions

1. Season pork with soy sauce, salt and white pepper.
2. Beat eggs well. Beat in water and pork, breaking up any lumps.
3. Pour mixture into a round, shallow sided dish about 23 cm in diameter and 2.5 cm deep.
4. Place salted duck egg yolks (if using) at different points in the mixture. Press them down lightly with a fork if necessary so that they are covered by the mixture.
5. Steam over moderately boiling water for about 30 minutes or until pork is cooked.
6. Remove dish from the steamer. If desired, decorate with a little drizzle of light soy sauce and a sprinkle of ground white pepper.
7. Serve hot with steamed rice and stir-fried vegetables.

Note on Salted Duck Egg Yolks

Salted duck eggs are popular accompaniments to congee (watery rice porridge). The salted yolks are a real treat and used in moon cakes (the more yolks, the higher the price!) as well as in glutinous rice dumplings called 'chung '.

Salted duck yolks are a wonderful optional extra in this steamed minced pork and egg custard. Buy uncooked salted duck eggs from an Asian food store. Use only the yolk which will be a firm golden-red ball as a result of the salting process. Sometimes, you can find packs of frozen salted duck egg yolks in Asian supermarkets. These are excellent and very convenient to have on hand in the freezer.

Pre-cooked salted duck eggs—from China and Taiwan—are now common in Asian stores. However, I've found the quality totally unsatisfactory. I bought a half-dozen pack recently and threw every single one out when I cut them in half to examine the yolk quality. I won't be buying them again, that's for sure!

Comments

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on March 12, 2012:

Thank you, edelhaus! Hope you are trying them out.

edelhaus from Munich, Germany on March 12, 2012:

The food all Sound delicious! Really well presented and written. Thank you.

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on July 06, 2011:

Hi Mattandangela, You are welcome! Great to hear you can put your steamer to good use! Enjoy!

mattandangela on July 03, 2011:

wow thanks! I have a steamer I now know how I can use it!

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on July 01, 2011:

Hi Jeanette, Good to hear! I like steamed eggs without meat even though I can chew! Something very appealing about the texture.

Jeanette on June 30, 2011:

Steamed eggs (without meat) were a saving grace for my 93-year-old father-in-law who had difficulty chewing and swallowing, although I enjoy this just as much.

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on June 30, 2011:

Hi tonymead, Thank you. And thanks to Gordon for passing this on. Enjoy the recipes. Any questions, please don't hesitate to ask!

Tony Mead from Yorkshire on June 30, 2011:

hi interesting hub, Gordon bleeped me on this one and I'm pleased he did. There are some really interesting ideas here.I also love duck eggs despite the extra cost.

thanks

cheers

tony

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on June 29, 2011:

Thank you, Gordon. Get a domed aluminium lid - costs next to nix and works a treat! [PS. I think something went weird with the system as I thought I had lost the hub half way through doing links....was horrified at the thought of re-doing it from scratch!!! But all's well!]

Gordon Hamilton from Wishaw, Lanarkshire, United Kingdom on June 28, 2011:

Previously tried to comment on this and something went wrong - apologies if both appear.

I love this Hub. It is so informative and well presented. I know that I am going to have to read it a few times to take everything in. I used to use a wok for steaming but the one I have at the moment doesn't have a lid. You have inpired me to put that right!

Foodstuff is a freelance food writer who has been exploring the art of fermentation. Traditional Chinese preserves is her latest project.

"Oooh! I can taste prawns! " is the pleasantly surprised reaction from anyone who tastes homemade prawn crackers for the first time. Unlike commercial prawn crackers—where the cost of prawns combined with profit imperative results in there being little, if any, of the crustacean present in the product—homemade versions will have upwards of 50% real prawns in them. Added bonuses are that there are no preservatives, colouring agents or other artificial additives.

Making prawn crackers is really easy. The only special equipment you will need if is a dehydrator. The crackers can be sun-dried but you'll need to watch out for 'local wildlife' such as cats etc from sampling your wares.

Homemade prawn crackers reflect the individual flavour characteristics of the type of prawns used. I've run a horizontal taste test of prawn crackers made with different types of prawns. Result? The most magnificent (and expensive!) crackers are from wild-caught King prawns. Farmed prawns tend to produce a much milder prawn flavour. However, all are far superior to any commercial product.

You can also experiment with other types of seafood such as scallops, fish or for the ultimate indulgence, lobster or crayfish!

Ingredients

The recipe should be looked at as a guideline for ingredient ratios. The aim is to try to keep the ratio of prawn meat to tapioca starch at 1:1 or less (i.e. more prawn than tapioca starch).

• 1 kilogram whole prawns to yield 500 grams of prawn meat after deheading and shelling
• 500 grams tapioca starch (100 grams for making paste and an additional 400 grams for making dough)
• 200 millilitres prawn stock (made from heads and shells)
• 3 to 4 teaspoons salt, or to taste
• Ground white pepper
• 2 teaspoons baking powder

Step 1: Prepare Prawn Stock

Remove heads and shells from prawns. Using a small sharp knife, de-vein the prawns by making a slit along the back of each prawn and removing the intestinal tract. Dry the prawn meat with kitchen paper and set aside.

Place the heads and shells into a large pot with enough water to barely cover.

Bring to the boil and cook, uncovered, until the liquid is reduced to approximately 300 millilitres. The reduced volume of liquid doesn't have to be precise at this stage; the aim is to get as much flavour out of the heads and shells as possible and achieve a concentrated prawn stock.

Step 2: Make Prawn Starch Paste

This is akin to the sourdough starter in bread making.

Strain the heads and shells from the prawn stock and measure the amount of stock. Weigh the prawn meat. For every 500 grams of prawn meat, you require 200 millilitres of liquid. If the stock is greater than 200 mL, boil it down to 200 mL. If you have only 425 g prawn meat, boil the stock down to 170 mL. The arithmetic for the ratio calculation is as follows:

425 ÷ 500 = 0.85 or 85% of the base reference weight of 500 g

Therefore, you only need 85% of the 200 mL liquid that applies for 500 g prawn meat. 85% of 200 mL is 170 mL.

Weigh out 100 grams of tapioca starch for 500 grams prawn meat. Again, if you have less prawn meat, use proportionately less. Sift the starch into a small bowl.

Gradually add boiling hot prawn stock to the starch to make a sticky paste. If your stock is very dense, it will be more like a dough ball as illustrated in this picture.

Step 3: Prepare the Prawn Meat Paste

In a food processor fitted with a steel blade, blend the prawn meat together with salt and pepper to a fine paste.

Add the tapioca starch paste that you have made in the previous step and blend until the mixture is well combined and homogenous.

Step 4: Make the Dough

Sift 400 grams tapioca starch with 2 teaspoons baking powder in a large bowl. Transfer the prawn paste to a separate large bowl.

Gradually work the sifted starch into the prawn paste until you get a malleable dough. You don't want the dough to be too dry; add only enough starch to take the dough to a state where it can be easily handled and formed into rolls.

Depending on how damp the prawn paste is (which depends on how well you dried off the prawns and the stickiness of your tapioca starch paste), you may not need all 400 grams of tapioca starch. And that's a good thing, as it means you will have a very high prawn content in your crackers!

Step 5: Form Dough Into Rolls, Then Steam

Form the dough into cylindrical rolls of between 3 to 5 centimetres in diameter. You can do this "free hand". What I do to get evenly shaped cylinders is to roll the dough using a sushi mat lined with cling film.

Lightly grease the base of steamer trays or line them with damp muslin. You can use large bamboo steamers similar to the ones you see at dim sum places but they retain the smell of prawns afterward. However, as they are relatively cheap, you can just throw them out after each use. Don't put the rolls on plates to steam as water will collect on the plate and turn your dough into a soggy mess.

Make sure the rolls are spaced well apart as they will double in size during steaming.

Steam the rolls over rapidly boiling water for about 45 minutes to 1 hour, depending on the diameter of your rolls. If your steaming vessel doesn't have a vented lid, either leave the lid slightly ajar to allow steam to escape or drape damp muslin or tea-towel over the rolls to stop condensation whilst they are cooking.

Step 6: Slice the Rolls to Form Crackers

Place the cooked rolls on a wire rack to cool completely. Wrap each roll with cling film and refrigerate overnight. This allows the rolls to firm up for easy slicing.

Using a sharp serrated knife, slice the rolls into slices of around 1 mm thickness.

Step 7: Dry The Prawn Cracker Slices

It is important the crackers are thoroughly dried and very hard. They will not puff up properly on frying if there is moisture present.

Prawn crackers are traditionally sun-dried, a process that takes several days and good weather on your side. Drying overnight in a dehydrator is the most efficient way but in the absence of a dehydrator, leave them on wire racks in a dry airy place (a sunny spot is ideal but not essential) for at least 24 hours until quite well-dried out and then complete the drying in a very low oven for several hours.

To dry the crackers in a dehydrator, spread the slices in single layers on the food dehydrator trays. Set the dehydrator at the lowest setting (35ºC) and dry the slices for at least 18 hours.

When they are completely dry and hard, store them in an air-tight container in a cool dry place until required. I keep mine in the refrigerator.

Step 8: Fry Prawn Crackers

Deep fry the crackers in very hot oil. As they will puff up within seconds of being placed in the oil, fry only 4–5 crackers at a time so that you can remove them very quickly. Drain the cooked crackers on kitchen paper.

They can be served immediately or stored in a large air-tight jar (you'll find the jar empties very quickly!). Enjoy!

Questions & Answers

Question: Can you add shrimp paste to prawn shell reduction for better colour?

Answer: By shrimp paste, I assume you mean belachan which is dark brown in colour. If you do that, you will alter the the flavour of the prawn crackers. In addition, it will make the crackers brown instead of that lovely rich shade of pink that prawn shells provide. If you feel that brown is a "better colour" and you are happy to have the very distinct aroma and flavour of prawn paste (i.e. belachan), go ahead. But frankly, I would not do that.

Question: Can the prawn crackers be white ?

Answer: They shouldn't be if you are using prawns and prawn stock. However, they would be white if you made fish crackers or squid crackers.

Question: I just had some flavorless 'prawn crackers' from a packet, which is why I looked for an authentic recipe. I have a dehydrator. Once I've dried my prawn crackers, how long can I store them in a jar?

Answer: You can store them pretty much indefinitely as long as your jar is airtight and left in a cool place. I keep mine in the refrigerator.

© 2011 Foodstuff

Comments

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on March 05, 2020:

Travel Chef, Yes. You can use an oven. Set it at 35C and keep the oven door slightly open to allow the moisture to escape.

Travel Chef from Manila on March 05, 2020:

I love eating crackers like this as an snack. Good thing I saw this one here. I would love to try your recipe. But I don't have dehydrator, can I use oven?

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on February 03, 2020:

Michele Cobb, The whole prawns in the recipe are raw.

Michele Cobb on February 03, 2020:

Are the whole prawns in the recipe raw or precooked?

Chioulee on November 01, 2018:

Definitely going to try out your recipe.

Thanks for sharing

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on October 19, 2017:

Miss Amor, The prawn stock has all the shells etc that give it the red colour. The addition of stock has no influence on the crispness of the crackers. Crispness will depend on how well you dried the crackers.

Miss Amor on October 18, 2017:

Hello there. I have some question to ask. May i know why when we put the prawn stock to our crackers, the color of crackers become more bright and the texture is more crisp?

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on October 10, 2016:

Fifi, Your crackers may not have been dry enough. They must be properly dried out for frying. Or as Ninja suggested, your oil may not have been hot enough.

I hope your crackers still tasted good!

Ninja on October 10, 2016:

Not dry enough, or oil wasn't hot enough. Oil should be at 400F for puffing crackers, pig skin, etc.

Fifi on July 03, 2016:

What a magical moment when my prawn crackers puffed up before my eyes. Could hardly believe I could make something that could behave like this! :)

Only thing is some of my crackers were chewy, what did I maybe miss?

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on June 25, 2016:

Hi Fifi, it is best to use tapioca flour as this has the appropriate binding texture and gives the best final results for the crackers.

Fifi on June 25, 2016:

Hi, great recipe. I also have questions about substituting tapioca powder with potatoe powder or at least adding it for flavour. Would this work? Thanks!

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on November 23, 2015:

Great to hear, Jasmine. Glad you enjoyed them.

Jasmine on November 23, 2015:

I just made those. You were right, never again i will eat store bought shrimp chips. I am truly in awe.

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on October 31, 2015:

You could try rice flour, but rice flour behaves differently from tapioca flour.

kiliman on October 30, 2015:

Where I live, I have limited access to exotic ingredients (except Amazon). How about rice flour?

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on October 30, 2015:

Hi kiliman, Glad to hear you've been making them. No, I don't think you'll get the same results with say, cornflour or potato flour. Are you having problems getting tapioca flour?

kiliman on October 30, 2015:

I have been making these since I found your recipe but since then, I've been using lobster based broth (easier than prawn skin) and crab meat. It is good ! I also added a 1/4 tsp of cayenne pepper. My question is, is there a substitute for tapioca flour?

Kristen Howe from Northeast Ohio on August 03, 2015:

You're welcome. Maybe this fall!

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on August 03, 2015:

Thanks, Kristen Howe. Hope you will try out the recipe.

Kristen Howe from Northeast Ohio on July 31, 2015:

I never had prawns before. But this recipe looks interesting. Voted up for useful!

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on July 06, 2015:

Hazel Abee Do try it. You will never eat commercial prawn crackers again.

Hazel Abee from Malaysia on July 06, 2015:

This is a must try ... when I saw the boiling prawns .. my thoughts were 'Prawn TomYum'

GadEl from Africa on June 21, 2015:

This is some yummy stuff there. Many people enjoy prawn these days I guess.

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on June 14, 2015:

jcsteele, Do try it. You will never eat commercial prawn crackers again!

Jelena from Florida on June 14, 2015:

Really interesting recipe i never thought to make a prawn cracker.

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on February 09, 2015:

Easy-tasty-recipe, You could try sun-drying them (just make sure no animals or pests get to them) or put them in a very very low oven.

Easy-tasty-recipe on February 09, 2015:

Oh yummm...I would love to try these but I dont have the dehydrator. :( Any tips?

Thank you for sharing.

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on July 20, 2014:

Hi Hezekiah, Commercial prawn crackers have hardly any prawns, if any, in them. If you look at the ingredients on the commercial packs, some of them say "prawn flavouring"! I hope you will try making these!

Hezekiah from Japan on July 20, 2014:

Looks delicious. It's interesting how some prawn crackers don't even taste like prawns.

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on January 31, 2014:

Hi Harry, After you eat home made prawn crackers, you'll never eat commercial ones again. :) Tapioca starch - all Asian grocery stores will have them.

harry on January 31, 2014:

Hi foodstuff. That's really great. According to your description I think I will eat my commercial prawn crackers first and then I'll try tour's or else I think they'll never be eaten!!! By the way where can I get the tapioca starch?

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on January 17, 2014:

Thanks, peachpurple! It's really not a lot of work...do try it!

peachy from Home Sweet Home on January 17, 2014:

wow, i didn't know making prawn crackers need so much work. Thanks for sharing the beautiful photos. Voted up

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on December 11, 2013:

Glad that you now have a great snack with your beer, iguidenetwork!

iguidenetwork from Austin, TX on December 10, 2013:

Now I know about homemade prawn crackers... They are more natural and delicious indeed... Goes great with beer hehehe. Thanks for posting :)

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on October 31, 2013:

Glad you like it, CrackersAbout Prawns!

CrackersAboutPrawns on October 31, 2013:

Thanks for the recipe!i love prawn crackers so much!

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on October 11, 2013:

You're welcome, vibesites. Enjoy! It's even better when home made.

vibesites from United States on October 11, 2013:

I've had prawn crackers when now and then, but I never thought that it can be made at home, and it's relatively easy indeed! Thanks for sharing your wonderful snack recipe. :)

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on September 29, 2013:

Hi Prawny, I presume you enjoyed the crackers? Great stuff!!!

Prawny on September 28, 2013:

Thank you so much!!!!!!!!

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on June 22, 2013:

Hi Food, Enjoy!!!

Food on June 22, 2013:

Wow!!!thank you for the recipe I love prawn crackers!!

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on April 15, 2013:

Hi Daniel,

Do try making it. And let me know how you go with the recipe.

Daniel Kwan on April 15, 2013:

I will try.

We used to do it at home in Sandakan, Sabah.

Have been wanting to find a receipt that matches it.

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on February 21, 2013:

Thanks, deejah. As for vegan crackers, I think they can be made using the same principles. I haven't tried doing it with vegies but I think it would work if you puree the veggies first and then blend it with the tapioca flour paste. The thing to watch for though is the water content in the veggies. If the veggies have very high water content, might be an idea to squeeze some of the excess water out of the veggies before you blend with the tapioca flour paste, so that you don't have to add so much tapioca flour when making the dough. The aim is to keep the veggie content as high as possible. Let me know if that works.

deejah on February 21, 2013:

This are like the best prawn crackers ever, tried it and your recipe is too good, the best......my friend was wondering if there are vegan crackers

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on December 27, 2012:

You're welcome, Mmm,food is good. Glad you enjoy it!

Mmm,food is good.. on December 27, 2012:

woah,i love this recipe,thank you so much

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on November 20, 2012:

Thank you, lemonkerdz. I didn't realise you couldn't get tapioca flour in Peru. What a shame!

lemonkerdz from LIMA, PERU on November 19, 2012:

thanks for sharin this info. i love prawn crackers shame in peru prawns are too expensive and i can't get tapioca flour. even so love the hub and really good fotos.

voted up.

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on November 03, 2012:

I am delighted that you've had so much pleasure from that recipe.

PC PC PC PC, ALERT! on November 03, 2012:

Hello, i have had so many prawn crackers since we last met(: you recipe is so good

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on October 05, 2012:

Hi Maui,

That should work. Just keep your oven at a very low temperature and leave the door slightly opened so that moisture can escape. Let me know how you go with them!

Maui on October 05, 2012:

Hi I was wondering if i can dry 'em in oven? Thanks.. Can't try to make 'em.

PC PC PC PC, ALERT! on August 07, 2012:

Hehe, hope you enjoyed it!:')

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on July 31, 2012:

LOL!

PC PC PC PC, ALERT! on July 31, 2012:

Why thank you!:)

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on July 30, 2012:

Love your enthusiasm and enjoyment!

PC PC PC PC, ALERT! on July 30, 2012:

Mmmm.....soo crunchy!:)

PC PC PC PC, ALERT! on July 30, 2012:

Same with me! I love them!

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on July 29, 2012:

I always have a supply of them in my fridge, ready to fry when required. :)

PC PC PC PC, ALERT! on July 29, 2012:

Hmm.... are they your favourite things to eat? They are mine, for ever!

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on July 28, 2012:

Excellent!

PC PC PC PC, ALERT! on July 28, 2012:

Yes, they were very nice:)

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on July 23, 2012:

LOL! Hope you enjoyed them PC PC PC PC, ALERT!

PC PC PC PC, ALERT! on July 23, 2012:

Oooh! I can taste prawns!

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on May 15, 2012:

Hi from Japan, You are welcome! Hope you will try making them!

from Japan on May 15, 2012:

Thanks for sharing it.I couldn't find how to make it in Japanese.

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on April 05, 2011:

Thanks, jojokaya. Glad you enjoyed it. Have you tried making it?

jojokaya from USA on April 04, 2011:

Wow...this is good. My favorite. thanks for sharing it

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on March 08, 2011:

Thanks, Elizabeth. Try making them - you'll never eat commercial crackers again! One batch goes a long way.

elizabeth on March 08, 2011:

Oh my god, what have I been eating all this time!!! these look amazing Foodstuff. And I love that you include all those tips within the recipe

Foodstuff is a freelance food writer and published author from Australia who enjoys exploring various recipes and techniques.

Have Your Cake and Eat It, Too!

The sponge cake and the genoise are the little black dresses of the patisserie world. Accessorised to the nines with flavourings, fillings and toppings—from creams and mousses to fruits, nuts, chocolate and fondant coatings—these simple cakes are transformed into glamorous gateaux like Black Forest cakes, bejewelled mousse cakes and so on.

However, these cakes are natural beauties on their own, particularly when made with fabulous free-range eggs. Their delicate flavour and ethereal texture shine through best in the simplest of presentations. Is there anything quite like the old-fashioned jam and cream sponge sandwich, where two meltingly light, eggy cake layers meld with luscious berry jam and fresh, thick cream in every mouthful?

This uncomplicated jam-and-cream assembly is just as good with a chocolate sponge. A glaze of passionfruit icing and the addition of grated lemon zest to the batter are two embellishments that enhance without smothering. A good cup of tea and a slice or two of Swiss roll with jam and cream or lemon curd filling would satisfy the most jaded palate.

The Difference Between Sponge, Genoise and Chiffon Cakes

While the sponge and genoise are often regarded as being one and the same, they are, strictly speaking, two quite different creatures.

• Sponge: A true sponge contains no fat other than that occurring naturally in egg yolks, and the yolks and whites are usually beaten separately.
• Genoise: With a genoise, clarified butter is used to enrich the batter, which is made by beating whole eggs, sometimes with additional yolks, together with sugar, over warm water.
• Chiffon: The chiffon cake is a hybrid of the sponge and the genoise. The addition of oil gives this cake its characteristic moist and tender texture. The yolks and oil are beaten into the sugar, flour and other dry ingredients including a leavening agent (not normally used in the other two cakes). The whites are whipped separately and then folded into the mixture.

Popular in America, the chiffon cake is also much loved in Southeast Asia, where flavourings include coconut milk and pandan leaf extract. The green-coloured pandan chiffon cake can be found in most Asian food stores and bakeries in Australia.

Sponge vs. Genoise vs. Chiffon Cakes

Tips for Making Light and Airy Cakes

Aerate the Batter:

• Getting air into the batter and keeping it in are the keys to lightness for sponge, genoise and chiffon cakes. Eggs aerate more rapidly when slightly warm.
• When the yolks are to be beaten with sugar, separately from the whites, use eggs at room temperature.
• When beating whole eggs with sugar, either beat over a saucepan of barely simmering water, or soak the eggs in hot tap water for a few minutes and beat them in a warm bowl.

Choose the Right Sugar:

• When making any of the cakes, caster sugar should always be used as it dissolves easily.

Bake and Cool Like a Pro:

• Sponge cakes and their kin should be cooked in tins with unlined, un-greased sides.
• To cool, turn the tin upside down and balance it on four drinking glasses. If using a ring tin (as is usually the case with chiffon cakes), invert it and "hang" it over the neck of a bottle. This lets the cake cook and set at its maximum volume instead of settling.

Sponge Biscuits (aka Ladyfingers)

Instead of just plain flour, a mixture of flour and starch such as cornflour or potato starch is often used, particularly when making Swiss rolls and the crisp slender sponge biscuits variously known as savoy or boudoir biscuits, ladyfingers, or savoiardi.

These biscuits, often used in desserts such a tiramisu, were eaten by French ladies when entertaining their close friends in their private rooms or boudoirs. In contrast, the English used to eat them at funerals. However, sometime in the early 20th century, they adopted the French name and in so doing, relocated this biscuit's place in life.

Powder Puffs: An Australian Classic

The funeral connection reminds me of a friend's first encounter with "powder puffs", also known as "sponge kisses". She first came across this now rarely seen Australian country classic at a wake. So taken was she by the bite-sized soft puffy pillows of jam-and-cream filled sponge ensembles that she approached a member of the bereaved family saying: "I know this is really bad form, but what are these and can I have the recipe please?"

I cannot say that I behaved much better when I first discovered them at a baby shower. One taste of these delicate frivolities and good manners went out the window. Whilst everyone was busy 'ooh-ing' and 'aah-ing' over the gifts, I proceeded to discreetly devour the entire lot on one of the tiered cake stands at one end of the buffet before moving on the second lot at the other end.

The following recipe was developed after rummaging through many old country women's cookbooks and cuttings.

Powder Puff Recipe (aka Sponge Kisses)

Yield: approximately 25 puffs

Ingredients

• 2 eggs (60 grams), separated
• 70 grams caster sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Pinch salt
• 1 level teaspoon cream of tartar
• 35 grams cornflour
• 2 tablespoons plain flour
• 1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
• Berry jam of your choice
• Thick cream (45% or more fat content)
• Icing sugar

Instructions

1. Beat the egg yolks with 40 grams of the sugar until the mixture is thick and pale, and forms a ribbon. Beat in the vanilla extract.
2. In a clean large bowl, using a balloon whisk, whisk the egg whites with the salt until they hold soft peaks. Then gradually whisk in the remaining sugar and half teaspoon of cream of tartar until the mixture holds stiff peaks.
3. Sift together the cornflour, plain flour, half teaspoon of cream of tartar and baking soda.
4. Whisk the yolk mixture into the stiff whites. Then carefully fold in the flour mixture.
5. Line several flat baking trays with baking paper. Drop teaspoonfuls of the batter, spaced about 2.5 cm apart, onto the trays. Bake in a preheated 200ºC oven for about 10 minutes. They should be pale golden brown. Do not overcook ro they will dry out too much. Allow to cool for a few minutes on the baking tray before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely. Store the cold puffs in an airtight container until required.
6. Assemble the puffs at least 1 hour before serving. Spread the underside of one puff with jam and the underside of another puff with cream. Sandwich them together. Repeat with the remaining puffs. Cover and refrigerate the assembled puffs for about 1 to 2 hours. They will become soft and puffy.
7. Just before serving, sift icing sugar over.

Happy Baking!

I hope you've learned some useful information about the differences between sponge, genoise, and chiffon cakes. Whichever one you decide to make, you're guaranteed delicious results!

Questions & Answers

Question: Can I add milk to the genoise batter? What amount can I add? What is the effect of milk on a genoise cake?

Answer: First of all, why do you want to add milk to the batter? You will immediately affect the ratio of dry to wet ingredients for the batter and unbalance it.

Question: For the reader looking for "thick cream" in the US, you can get jars of clotted cream in grocery stores that carry UK imports. Or you can make it at home from heavy cream: there are tutorials online. It's probably not exactly the same, but you can spread it the same way. Would "thick cream" be an acceptable substitute for clotted cream? It's delicious on scones.

Answer: Fat content is what you should be looking at when substituting cream. The fat content of clotted cream is between 55% to 60%. Double cream has around 48% fat. Heavy cream or whipping cream has between 36% to 38% fat.

Question: What is thick cream? Is it the same as American heavy whipping cream? And do you beat it the same?

Answer: Thick cream that I am referring to here is pure cream that has at least 45% fat content. This is within the Australian context. The cream is extremely thick i.e. it doesn't flow. It is almost solid.

As I understand it, "heavy whipping cream" in the US is cream with fat content of between 36% to 38% fat content.

Question: I want to make these. I’m from Washington state in the USA. Can you convert the recipe into U.S. Customary Units?

Answer: What you can do is use an online conversion tool to convert grams (g) to lbs and ounces or to cups (if you are using volume measurements). I just do a search with "convert ... grams of (ingredient eg flour, sugar etc) to... (your choice of measurement)"

Hope this helps for this recipe and for future reference for other recipes.

Question: I have leftover sabayon after making tiramisu. I’d like to fold in some lemon curd and use it as filling for a cake roll. Which type of cake would be best for a sabayon cake roll: sponge, Genoese or chiffon?

Answer: I'd do a sponge cake.

© 2011 Foodstuff

Comments

Janisa from Earth on June 13, 2020:

Great recipe! I want to try the powdered puffs!

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on June 11, 2020:

Naz, Correct. The chiffon cake needs additional leavening power.

Naz on June 11, 2020:

So for chiffon cake we use baking powder N for sponge we didn't?

anguslaw on April 06, 2020:

hi, would you provide a sponge cake recipe? I cannot search a sponge cake without adding additional fat. thanks

Bee Gianni on February 17, 2018:

Holy okey, these cakes are gorgeous and can’t wait to try them.

Kristen Howe from Northeast Ohio on October 09, 2015:

Great recipe. This looks delicious.

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on March 01, 2011:

Thanks, AnnCee. Enjoy!

Literary Geisha from Philippines on February 28, 2011:

i'm saving up for it foodstuff! i used to own one but i had to sell it because i didn't have time to bake. ;)

AnnCee from United States on February 28, 2011:

Oh man! Love this stuff. Now I must go make jam cake. Delicious photographs.

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on February 28, 2011:

Thank you, Literary Geisha. What's up with your oven?

Literary Geisha from Philippines on February 27, 2011:

i must say this is one delicious hub! i'm saving this for when i get that much-awaited oven. thanks for sharing!

Foodstuff is a freelance food writer and published author who has been exploring various recipes.

The Pleasures of Homemade Candied Peel

Candied orange, grapefruit, and lemon peels are wonderful treats. The candying process transforms their flavour and scent. The lemon peels develop intriguing spice notes.

These peels can be used for a whole range of sweet treats. They are delicious eaten as they are. You can cut them into thin slices and roll them in sugar or dip in chocolate for an after-dinner treat. They're also a wonderful addition to cakes and cookies.

Italy is famous for its candied citron, also known as cedro, which is used in cakes and cookies. The citron (Citrus medica) is grown specifically for its thick rind. However, it is difficult to find the tree in garden centres or nurseries. I happened to be lucky enough that I managed to locate two trees over a decade ago. The candied cedro pictured here are made from fruits from these two trees. (Recent attempts to buy additional trees—just in case my current ones die—have been unsuccessful.)

The key issue I have with commercial candied peels is the smell and taste of the preservative E220, or sulphur dioxide (SO₂). For whatever reason, this preservative has a very discernible effect on the scent and flavour of the peel. Given that sugar is itself a natural preservative, the addition of sulphur strikes me as unnecessary. Read the small print to check if S0₂ or preservative E220 has been added if you are buying a commercial version of these treats.

There are two methods for making candied peel. The quick method does not keep well but is very useful way to make this treat with short notice. The slow method simulates the commercial process but without need for specialized equipment (other than a sugar thermometer). The eating and keeping qualities using this slow method make it well worth the extra effort. As the saying goes, good things take time!

How to Prepare Your Peels (For Either Method)

After this set of text instructions, you'll find a set of step-by-step pictures.

1. Juice the citrus, as it is easier with work with citrus "shells." If you're using lemons, be sure to save the juice. There are plenty of other uses for it, and we'll discuss those later.
2. Cut the shells in half.
3. Place each quarter on a chopping board, and using a filleting knife, remove all the membranes so that you have a peel and some white pith. If you wish, you can cut the quarters into thinner slices. (Note: You can work with shells, but it can be hard to remove the membrane from the shells and is easier to do with quarters.)
4. Put the peel in a large stockpot with cold water. Use at least 1 litre of water for every 250 grams of peel.
5. Bring to the boil.
6. Simmer for about 20 minutes.
7. Drain, rinse, and repeat the process. The peel should be tender. If it is not, repeat the process and cook for longer period until it is tender.

Tips for Removing Citrus Membranes

1. Run the tip of a small sharp knife (a fillet knife works best) around one-third or half of the shell. The slit should be about 1 cm deep.
2. Using your fingers, ease the fleshy part and the pith apart. The fleshy interior will come away easily from the outer portion.
3. Work your way around the lemon half, pulling the inner fleshy portion away from the outer part. Discard the extracted flesh. You will have a neat lemon.

Method 1: The Quick Method

Ingredients

• 250 grams fresh peel
• 250 grams sugar
• 600 ml of water
• 3 tbsp liquid glucose

Instructions

1. Prepare the peel as described.
2. In a large, heavy saucepan over moderate heat, dissolve the sugar and liquid glucose in the water. When the syrup is simmering, add the drained peels.
3. Simmer the peel in the syrup until there is only a small amount (around 125 ml) of syrup remaining, and the peels are shiny and translucent. Care needs to be taken towards the end of the process to prevent burning: stir frequently and lower the heat.
4. Drain the peels in a colander. Spread in single layers on wire racks. Leave them to dry in a cool, airy place until they are firm and only slightly sticky. If you have a food dehydrator, spread them in single layers on the racks and dry at the lowest temperature setting overnight until they are firm and only slightly sticky.
5. Store your finished treats in an airtight container if not using immediately.

Method 2: The Slow, Multi-Day ("Proper") Method

Ingredients

• 1 kilogram fresh peel, prepared for candying
• 900 grams granulated sugar
• 180 grams liquid glucose (1st addition)
• 370 grams liquid glucose (2nd addition)
• 1 litre water

Day 1

1. Prepare the peels.
2. Put a dry chopstick into the pot of water before you add the sugar and liquid glucose. Mark the chopstick at the point which equates to 1 litre of water in the pot. Use this 'water mark' to check whether your syrup has reduced to 1 litre on Day 2.
3. In a large stockpot over moderate heat, make a syrup with water, sugar, and 180 grams liquid glucose. Bring to a boil and add the prepared peel.
4. Bring the syrup back to the boil.
5. Lower the heat, cover the pan, and gently simmer covered cook for 10 minutes.
6. Leave to stand one day, covered.

Day 2

1. Remove the peel from the syrup using a slotted spoon or meshed skimmer, and place them in a colander that is set over a bowl. You want to save the syrup.
2. Bring the syrup to a boil, and concentrate it by rapid boiling it until it reduces to 1 litre. Use the marked chopstick from Day 1 to help here.
3. Whilst the syrup is reducing, add any drained syrup collected in the bowl back to the pot. When the syrup has reduced to 1 litre, return the drained peels back to the syrup. Bring the syrup back to the boil, and leave to boil, uncovered, for 3 minutes.
4. Remove from heat, let it cool a little, cover, and let it stand overnight.

Day 3

1. Remove the peel from the syrup as per the instructions in Day 2. Stir in the 370 grams of liquid glucose and bring the syrup back to the boil. As in Day 2, add any drained syrup collected in the bowl back to the pot whilst it comes back to a boil.
2. Boil the syrup until it reaches 103ºC.
3. Return the peel to the syrup and boil, uncovered, for about 3 minutes.
4. The syrup should be 103ºC during this cooking time. Set aside, covered, for a day.

Day 4

1. Repeat the process of removing the peel from the syrup and bringing the syrup to a boil again.
2. Once the syrup reaches 105ºC, add the peel and boil, uncovered, for about 3 minutes.
3. The syrup should be at 105ºC during this cooking time. Set aside, covered, for 2 days.

Day 6

1. Repeat the process of removing the peel from the syrup and bringing the syrup to the boil again.
2. Add the peel and cook, uncovered, until the syrup reaches 107ºC.
3. Set aside, covered, for 1 day.

Day 7

1. Bring the syrup and peel to boiling point over moderate heat.
2. Remove peels from the boiling syrup to a large colander.
3. Leave peels to stand in the colander until it is thoroughly drained of syrup.
4. After they are thoroughly drained, spread it out to dry until they are no longer sticky and can be handled easily. The candied peels can be dried in a dehydrator at the lowest temperature setting. If you don't have a dehydrator, spread the peels onto wire racks or on greaseproof paper, and leave to dry in a cool, airy place. You will need to turn them every so often to ensure that they dry evenly. Drying time depends on the room temperature, humidity, etc. Judge by look and feel.
5. Store them in single layers, separated with greaseproof paper, in air-tight containers.

How to Use Your Leftover Lemon Juice

If you are making a large amount of candied lemon peels, you'll probably have a lot of lemon juice. What should you do with it? You could just pour it into ice cube trays and freeze it. But an even better alternative is to turn the juice into a concentrate for use in cakes, cookies, tart fillings, ice creams, etc. By using the concentrate, you can pack a really powerful lemon flavour into whatever you're making without upsetting the liquid quantities in the recipe. I use this concentrate in the custard filling for Torta Della Nonna.

Here's what I did when I was preparing a large batch of candied lemon peel recently.

Method

1. Squeeze the juice out of your lemons; I used 16 lemons (about 3.4 kg). I attached a strainer to my juicer to minimise the amount of pulp in the juice. I ended up with 1.2 litres of juice and 1.39 kg of peel.
2. Put the lemon juice into shallow dishes (I used pie dishes) to allow the maximum amount of surface area to be exposed. Having a greater surface area will help accelerate dehydration.
3. Place the dishes into the dehydrator. I had to add 2 separator rings to the dehydrator. These are the rings that allow you to space the drying racks further apart when drying large items.
4. Set the dehydrator to 60°C. After about 6 hours, the juice had reduced by about a third.
5. Dried juice will stick on the sides of the containers as the juice reduces. Brush down the sides of the containers with cold water. Lower temperature to 45°C, and leave the juice in a dehydrator for another 12 hours.
6. The juice is very concentrated (you should have about 200ml remaining when it's all done) and intensely sour by this stage. Pack into small plastic thimbles or an ice cube tray, and put into the freezer for later use.

© 2010 Foodstuff

Comments

Lena Durante from San Francisco Bay Area on May 19, 2017:

I've always candied my peel in strips, but I'm loving the presentation of the whole halves. I will definitely be doing some this way in my next batch... Gorgeous!

Foodstuff (author) from Australia on May 10, 2011:

HI Andrew, I can't believe you still have them! I need to get some new stock to you!!!

Andrew Dwyer on May 09, 2011:

I remember you gave me a bag of orange peel you had made. They were so delicious, I would dip into them for a special treat. I treasure them, and still, believe it or not, have a few in the cupboard, and they are still as good as the day I first tasted them. I commend this recipe to everyone!