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Chinese New Year Cake "Nian Gao" Recipe
Chinese New Year Cake "Nian Gao" is a very traditional steamed rice cake dessert with special meaning in the Chinese culture. This dessert also happens to be free of the top 9 food allergens and very allergy friendly.
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 40 minutes
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
- 1 1/2 cup water divided
- 1 box 1 pound Koda Farms sweet rice flour
- 2 tablespoons canola oil or other mild flavored vegetable oil plus 1/2 teaspoon to oil a pie plate
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
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Oil a pie plate or round cake pan with 1/2 teaspoon of oil.
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Be sure to check that your dish will fit inside the pot with the lid on. Add 1 1/2 inch of water to a large pot with a tight fitting lid and a steamer rack and bring water to boil.
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Measure 3/4 cup water in a glass measuring cup, add brown sugar, and microwave for 1 minute until the sugar is dissolved.
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Pour sweet rice flour into a large bowl, add the brown sugar water, 3/4 cup of water, oil and vanilla extract.
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Stir to combine until the rice mixture is smooth and free of lumps.
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Transfer the rice mixture into the prepared pie plate and smooth out the top.
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Set the cake inside the pot and steam for 1 1/2 hours.
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Check the water level of the pot periodically (avoid letting the condensation from the lid drip on the cake when lifting the lid) and replenish with hot water as necessary.
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Allow the cake to cool completely, cover with plastic wrap, and the cake will be ready to serve the next day.
Recipe Notes
For this recipe, it's important to be sure that your pot will be wide enough and tall enough to fit your cake pan or pie dish and have enough water in it to steam for 1 1/2 hours. Refer to my post about steaming tips.