Nian Gao 传统年糕 (Chinese steamed New Year sticky cake)

Since my mom and brother love to eat Nian Gao, thus I have a big curiosity to learn from correct recipe and this traditional Chinese cooking especially Hokkian dishes during Chinese New Year. I would like to keep this recipe in my blog here, so you can try out if you have interested on it(so far, I have not seen any blogger that I knew doing this cake, tedious to make right?)

Ingredient:

-makes 4 cakes

Glutinous Rice flour 500g
Water 500ml
Brown Sugar 600g
Cooking oil 2tbsp
Banana leaves - soften it by blanched in hot water

steaming bowls- I can't find the right bowl, thus I use plastic container instead.

Method:

1. Line banana leaves on the steaming bowl.
2. Place the glutinous rice flour in a large bowl, mix in sugar (500g), oil and water. Stir the mixture till sugar dissolved.
3. In another pot, cook the balance sugar (100g) till became golden syrup.
4. Pour golden syrup into flour mixture, and the syrup will form into curd, don’t worry, continue stir until syrup dissolved in the mixture (Be careful when you pour the syrup, it will spill !)
5. Strain the mixture and pour the mixture in steaming bowl.
6. Steam cake over high flame for 1 hour, and turn to low flame for 2-3 hours. Make sure the water does not dry up, refill hot water from time to time. You also can use the electric steamer around 3 hours until the mixture turn brown and you can open the lid and see the Nian Gao so that is not steam till bubble appear.

The best part is this Nian Gao can be kept in the fridge up to 6 months even no preservative is added..

Why Chinese eat Nian Gao during CNY?
My mum told me that Nian Gao is traditionally fed to the Chinese Kitchen God, so that he will give a favorable report on the family's behavior throughout the previous year when he returns to heaven.