Kueh Tutu

Little steamed cakes filled with sweetened coconut, these remind me of bygone days spent trawling the hot and crowded pasar malams. It’s hard to stop at one! I heart these little steamed cakes- Kueh Tutu so much!


This steamed flour cake was a favourite childhood treat, and I will always associate it with Sunday afternoons out with my parents at a neighbourhood mall. Kueh tutu looks deceptively simple to make, but I've tasted so many mediocre versions that I have learnt to be less enthusiastic upon sighting a kueh tu tu stall. However, to find a nice well-made Kueh tutu is not easy and so far I love Tan's Tu Tu Coconut Cake stall in Havelock Road is such a big winner that the owner has opened four more outlets to sell it. His kueh Tutu is really good. The flour was fine, the little cakes had just the right amount of filling and were well-steamed, and the coconut filling had just the right amount of sweetness. It may be slightly more expensive ($2 for 4 pieces) than in other places, but this was good value.

Today, I chanced upon a Food & Travel magazine at Cold Storage while I was doing my usual routine of groceries shopping. The Kueh-Tu-tu picture was at the front cover of the magazine that attracted me. I remember vividly that my buddy used to ask me whether I know how to make Kueh Tutu after she saw my recent Homemade Muah Chee. Since I always enjoy adding new cookbook in my bookshelf and it also give me an opportunity to try out making for my family as our snack and they love these little steamed cakes too. Without hesitation, I bought this magazine and the ingredients immediately.

The very next day, I went to Sun Lik Trading @ Seah Street to get the Kueh Tutu mould at the hefty price of $18 per mould. Then I headed home straight to start my adventure...


Ingredients:
2 cups of rice flour
¾ tsp salt
1 tsp fine sugar
150ml hot water
Pandan leaves, cut into squares

Sweet coconut filling:
½ cup grated, skinless coconut
½ cup brown sugar, grated

Method:

1. Prepare the coconut filling. Heat a pan over medium heat and melt the brown sugar. Then stir in the grated coconut and cook until the mixture is fairly dry. Set aside.
2. Next, dry roast rice flour with some pandan leaves for 1 minute. Remove from heat and leave to cool.
3. Mix salt and sugar in the hot water and sprinkle over the roasted rice flour.
4. Using a fork (as the mixture will be too hot to handle at this point), combine the liquid and flour until the mixture is cool enough to touch. Sieve the grainy mixture to get fine, sandy texture.
5. Lightly grease a Kueh Tu-tu mould. Fill half the mould with flour. Top with 1 tsp sweet coconut filling and cover with more flour. Place a small piece of pandan leaf over it and press with a square of muslin cloth. Knock to release the kueh from the mould onto the cloth. Repeat this step until the remaining flour and coconut filling have been used up.
6. Wipe the steamer surface dry and steam with the cloth at the base of the kueh, about 10 mintues. Remove from the steamer and serve.