Friday, December 22, 2006

Steam Hakka "Xi Ban"



Ingredients for sponge dough: (A)

1 tsp. yeast
150 gm. plain flour
125 ml. water

Ingredients: (B)

150 gm. Plain flour
150 gm. glutinous rice flour
125 gm. sugar
150 gm. water
a few drops of pink colouring

Banana leaves - grease with oil

Method:

(1) Mix all the ingredients for sponge dough, cover and keep overnight.
(2) Mix all the ingredients (A) and (B) together into a soft dough and proof for another 4 hours.
(3) Divide soft dough into 50 gm. each (rub palm with cornoil) and place on top of a greased banana leaf. Leave to proof for another 15 mins.
(4) Steam over moderate heat for 15 mins.
(5) Remove from steamer and leave to cool.

25 comments:

Anonymous said...

Thank you, Aunty! I can't wait to try it.

Yin

Anonymous said...

Aunty,
I'm shan.
I've tried your recipe today.
I think it's not sweet enough, feel like eating Man Tou.
Another thing, how do you make your Xi Ban so smooth & nice?
Mine look very ugly lah...
Do you knead them?
I don't know how to do that as the dough is very sticky, then after adding oil, they become very soft.
I've tried your swiss roll too.
Thanks! Your recipe is much simpler than those which make the sponge by the chiffon method.

Anonymous said...

Hi Aunty,
Just discover ur site & I like it very much. I have tried ur traditional yeast dough cake. It's very easy to make & nice to eat. That's the recipe I wanted.Thanks

I saw this steam "xi ban" recipe.The method it seems like my grandmum use to make her "solo pao" with sweet potato. Could u pls help me to modify the recipe if I want to add in sweet potato.
Many thanks

Aunty Yochana said...

Hi Yim,

glad you did well in your traditional yeast dough cake.

Solo pao?? Never heard of it. Is it a hakka dessert?? I'm interested too..

rgds

Anonymous said...

Hi Aunty,
My grandmum is a Teochew so I suppose "solo pao" is a Teochew kueh. The kueh's shape just like what she did but of course in orange colour as she use sweet potato.

Aunty Yochana said...

HI Yim.

I will do some research on it. Incase I get it, I'll try it and if it's successful, I will post it.

rgds

Anonymous said...

Hi Aunty,

Thanks for your supper fast kind reply.Hope to see your post as I really miss that kueh and my mum never learned from my grandmum. She just knew that the dough need to prove for long long time like overnight.
Thanks & regards.

Anonymous said...

Dear Aunty,
I tried your recipe and the result is fantastic eventhough I am a beginner.Thank you.

Jeng

Aunty Yochana said...

Hi jeng,

THUMBS UP!!!


RGDS

Anonymous said...

Dear Aunty,

I have tried many of your recipes and they are always fantastic. I tried to make the Xi Ban today. It's different from my mum's recipe. Nevertheless it turns out great too.
Btw, a couple of things relating to the Xi An to consult you.
(1) Is it possible to "over" proof the dough? Mine turn out a little chewy. Can you advise please?
(2) Also. how to shape the dough? I never get a smooth top like yours. Does it has to do with longer proof time after placing on the banana leaf?
Looking forward to hear from you.

Thanks,
Soo Hui

Aunty Yochana said...

Hi Soo Hui,

Xi ban originally is a bit on the chewy side. If you find it hard to shape it round, oil your palms with a little shortening or cornoil then shape the dough as lightly as possible. It's sticky but do not add in additional glutinous rice flour, it will become very very chewy.

rgds

Anonymous said...

Thanks Aunty! My children love the Xi Ban totally!

Soo Hui

Aunty Yochana said...

Thumbs up Soo Hui.

rgds

Anonymous said...

hi aunty, i am a hakka!! my grandma used to make this before her stroke! oh how i love this!!

Anonymous said...

Hi Aunty,

i would like to try this Xi Ban recipe; if i use instand yeast, is there any change to dough preparation and proofing time?

Melissa

Aunty Yochana said...

Hi Melissa,

I'm also using instant yeast, so no need to change anything.

rgds

Anonymous said...

Hi Aunty,

I tried the recipe today, it was superb! It turned out exactly like those in your photo and taste like what I get in the market.

Thanks a lot for sharing.

Regards,
Melissa

Aunty Yochana said...

Thumbs up Melissa.

rgds

Unknown said...

Hi Aunty,
I'm very happy to find this recipe at your blog. I never have that Xi Ban ever since I was in States. I'm going to try this recipe this weekend. Before that I have question to asked :-
1. Should I used a lukewarm water for the yeast to prove and if yes, what temperature of water should I used???
Hope to hear from you soon!!!

Aunty Yochana said...

Hi sally

Yes use warm water. Use your index finger to test. dip it into the water and it should be warm and not hot.

rgds

- m i c h e l l e - said...

Hi Auntie,

I'm currently in Melbourne and have got no idea where to find banana leaves. :( Is it possible to not use it at all? Or can I substitute it with anything else?

Anonymous said...

Hi Aunty,
Thank you for posting this recipe. No one seems to know how to make this nowadays so im glad u post this up. I have just finished part A so I am leaving it to proof now.
I want to ask one thing, I am using dried active yeast which needs to be activated by water first before I can use it. When I activated it as instructed, I added it to the plain flour and it started to become a dough when I have not added the 125ml water yet. Then I added a little water in only so that it doesnt become too watery. Will this affect it in any way?

San

Quinn said...

Aunty Yo,
I'm on 2 months holiday!!!!!
Result was alright and pretty stunning!!!!
Just did Dough A and would like to know whether it should be kept in air-tight container or not?
Also, need to keep in fridge or not?
Thanks!

Aunty Yochana said...

Hi Quinn

Congrats..

No need to put in the fridge...just leave it at room temp will do.

rgds

FeR said...

Hello!
Love this kuih! I only have an electric steamer which does not have a temperature setting - would that be a problem in steaming this kuih? Would it come out different?