Blue glutinous rice cakes (Pulut tai tai)

This popular Malaysian sweet treat is made with fluffy glutinous rice steamed in fragrant coconut milk and served with kaya (coconut jam).

Pulut tai tai (Blue glutinous rice cakes) Credit: Georgia Gold

• serves

  4

• prep

  45 minutes

• cook

  50 minutes

• difficulty

  Ace

'Tai tai' in Chinese means rich man's wife, and in the olden days it was an elitist dish only served to the wives of rich men. As blue is considered an auspicious colour in Peranakan culture and elegant enough for the tai tai, butterfly pea flower is used to naturally colour the dish.

Ingredients

Hainanese kaya (Caramel coconut jam)

Makes about 500 ml (2 cups)

• 3 eggs
• 200 g caster sugar, plus 60 g (2 oz) extra
• 250 ml (1 cup) coconut milk
• 3 pandan leaves, knotted

Blue glutinous rice cakes

• 1 tbsp dried butterfly pea flowers or 1½ teaspoons butterfly pea powder
• 250 ml (1 cup) boiling water
• 500 g (2½ cups) glutinous rice
• 1 tsp tamarind paste
• 1 pandan leaf, knotted and torn
• banana leaves, for lining
• 310 ml (1¼ cups) coconut milk
• ¾ tsp salt
• vegetable oil, for brushing
• Hainanese kaya, to serve 

Soaking time: 6–8 hours

Resting time: 2–3 hours

Instructions

1. To make the Hainanese kaya, crack the eggs into a mixing bowl and whisk in the sugar until combined. Add the coconut milk and stir well, then strain the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into a stainless steel bowl and add the pandan leaves.
2. Set the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water over medium heat for 7–10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the mixture starts to warm and thicken.
3. Reduce the heat to the lowest setting and stir often to prevent any lumps forming. After about 10 minutes the jam should be thick enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon. Remove the bowl from the pan and stir constantly for another minute. Set aside.
4. Tip the extra sugar into a clean heavy-based saucepan over medium heat and add 1 teaspoon water. Without stirring, let the sugar dissolve and turn into an amber caramel, then quickly drizzle it into the jam mixture and mix well to combine.
5. Set aside to cool completely, then place the jam in an airtight jar. Store in the fridge for up to a month.
6. To make the Blue glutinous rice cakes, place the butterfly pea flowers or powder in a heatproof bowl, add the boiling water and leave to brew for 5 minutes. Strain, reserving the liquid.
7. Wash the rice until the water runs clear, then let it drain. Divide the rice and tamarind paste evenly between two bowls. Pour the butterfly pea flower liquid into one bowl, along with enough water to cover the rice, and stir to combine. For the second bowl, just add enough water to cover the rice. Leave them to soak for 6–8 hours.
8. Set up your steamer over medium–high heat. Add the pandan leaf to the steaming water and bring to the boil. Line your steamer basket with banana leaves (or baking paper) and poke holes in them.
9. Meanwhile, drain both bowls of soaked rice and mix them together. Place the rice in the steamer basket and set the timer for 10 minutes.
10. While the rice is cooking, mix together the coconut milk and salt in a small bowl. When the timer goes off, tip the rice into a bowl and pour over half of the coconut milk. Stir well, then return the rice to the basket and steam for another 10 minutes. Repeat the process with the remaining coconut milk mix and steam for another 10 minutes. By now, the rice should be soft but chewy in texture with an attractive blue and white marbling effect.
11. Line a 20.5 cm square cake tin with foil, leaving an overhang at the sides. Lightly brush the lined tin with oil. Add the steamed rice and spread it out evenly. Top with a slightly smaller cake tin (about 17.5 cm), then place a heavy object (such as a mortar) in the tin. Leave it to press down on the rice for 2–3 hours.
12. Remove the pulut tai tai from the tin, cut into cubes and serve with kaya.

 

Penang Local by Aim Aris and Ahmad Salim, published by Smith Street Books (RRP $39.99). Photography by Georgia Gold. 

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.

'Tai tai' in Chinese means rich man's wife, and in the olden days it was an elitist dish only served to the wives of rich men. As blue is considered an auspicious colour in Peranakan culture and elegant enough for the tai tai, butterfly pea flower is used to naturally colour the dish.