Hi everyone, today I am going to show you how to make Ciba (Chinese glutinous rice cake).
The Chinese new year is coming, and Ciba is a must for a new year feast.
It's similar to rice cake(Nian gao), but the way of making them is slightly different from each other.
I will talk about Nian gao in my next episode.
The ingredient is simple, just glutinous rice.
As for which kind of glutinous rice to choose, I have a detailed instruction in my blog, and you can check it out later.
First off, soak glutinous rice overnight in clean water.
Soak until you can easily squeeze the rice grain.
Line a piece of gauze in a steamer rack.
Spread the glutinous rice on it.
Now make some dimples among the rice.
So that they will be cooked evenly.
Now steam the rice for about 20 minutes over high heat.
Cook them thoroughly.
For the next step, I use my stand mixer to save some time and strength.
Of course you can do it manually. I will show you later.
While the glutinous rice is still warm, transfer it to the mixing bowl.
Attach the mixer with a dough hook.
Knead the rice on low speed mode.
Knead it until the grains all break apart, pour in 100ml of hot water in it for several times separately.
Keep working with the rice with this dough hook, until you can see no rice grain left.
It takes about 10 minutes for a stand mixer.
But as the rice grows sticky, it’s getting harder for a mixer to work. So the process requires a machine with a higher power.
And you should keep an eye on the machine itself to see if it's getting too hot.
Don’t wear out your machine.
Lightly oil your working surface.
Line a large piece of cling film on top.
Lightly oil the cling film as well, so that it won't move around, and your glutinous rice won't stick to it.
Transfer the sticky glutinous rice dough onto your cling film.
[If your dough is too sticky to work with, dip your serving spatula in hot water may help]
Wrap a pestle with a piece of cling film [A rolling pin works as well].
Lightly oil the pestle as well, so it won't stick to the dough.
Pound your rice dough with pestle.
Doing so will make your ciba much lighter like a paste.
So the texture depends on your preference.
The longer and harder you pound the dough, the texture will be softer and more condensed.
[Make sure you work with the dough while it's still warm, not cold]I said earlier that you can knead the rice dough without a stand mixer.
[Cold glutinous rice is too stiff to pound into a paste]Beat the glutinous rice with pestle after it's steamed and cooked without any grain left.
It's just that pounding with your hands is quite time consuming, and it needs a lot of efforts.
While a stand mixer saves you from those work load. But both work the same.
It's done when you reach a desired consistency.
You can serve it right away. Ciba with brown sugar syrup is made in this way.
I will get back to that later.
Now I will show you how to store ciba.
Wash your hands and lightly oil both of them.
Shape the glutinous rice dough into a brick like form.
Leave it in a shady and ventilated place to dry.
It takes about one day to dry. Flip once or twice.
It will become dry and hard to touch once done.
Next, cut them into thick slices.
Since the cake is very dense right now, I suggest use a pair of bread knife here.
After slicing them into thick pieces, store them in the fridge to freeze.
Before you serve, transfer ciba in the fridge to unfreeze.
You can cook them any way you like later.
For ciba in this form, you can store them in the fridge for a very long time.
There is a variety of cooking methods for ciba. You may sear them, and then dip with sugar and other sauces.
Or cook them in a soup.
Now, let's me show you how to make ciba with brown sugar syrup.
Put the soy bean powder in a dry and clean pan.
Cook over low heat until cooked through. Stir constantly.
It's done when slightly browned after a few minutes.
In a sauce pan, add in brown sugar and some water.
The sugar to water ratio is 2:1.
Bring it to a boil over low heat, and then simmer until it thickens up into a syrup, turn off the heat and set aside.
Sprinkle the cooked soy bean powder over your working surface.
Get your glutinous rice dough, flour the surface first .
Knead it into a long strip dough.
Pull off one small portion, and then shape it into a ball.
Put it back to the cooked soy bean powder to coat one more time.
Serve the brown sugar syrup along with ciba. You can dip ciba in the syrup, or pour syrup over them instead.
Now it's done.
A tip, for this ciba with brown sugar, you must serve it right after it's pounded into shape.
The ciba will be too hard for this recipe if you leave them for a day or two beforehand.
I made this for you because the spring festival is coming. I hope you enjoy this recipe, and thanks for watching.