Asian Inspirations

Discover the authentic in Asian cuisine food

Dessert

Mung Bean Rice Crepe (Kanom Tua Pab)

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To Prep
Wash the mung beans a few times until water is clear, soak for 3-4 hrs or overnight. Rinse and drain the mung beans.
Mix the Sweet Mixture ingredients and set aside.

To Cook
Put a cheesecloth or napkin on a steamer, and pour in the mung beans. Steam until it’s soft and cooked, about 25 mins. Remove and cool on a cookie sheet.
Steam the shredded coconut about 5 mins until soft. Mix into the mung beans, and set aside.

To Make Rice Crepes
In a mixing bowl, combine the glutinous rice flour with water and salt. Knead into a dough.
Divide and roll the dough into small crepe pieces, dusting each slice with flour to prevent from sticking. Set aside.
Boil a pot of water and cook a few slices of the crepes at a time. They are cooked when they float. Spoon out one at a time and remove as much excess water as you can. Lay them flat on the mung bean mixture, and make sure they don’t overlap each other. Let cool.
Add the mung bean mixture on each crepe. Fold the crepes in half like tacos, and arrange on a serving dish. Serve with the sweet mixture.

Sweet Sago in Coconut Milk (Sako-Piek)

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To Cook
Boil the water in a pot. Using a sieve, rinse the pandan tapioca sago through running cold water. Add sago into the pot and stir until sago turn translucent.
Add sugar into the pot and continually stir until sugar is completely dissolved.
In a small saucepan, mix coconut milk, salt, and plain flour. Mix until plain flour completely combined with other mixture and heat the mixture over low heat and stir well.
When the coconut milk mixture is well combined, turn off the heat.
Transfer the cooked sago in syrup into serving bowl. Pour the coconut milk mixture on top of sago. Serve.

Thai Mung Bean Custard

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To Prep
Rinse the hulled mung beans and soak them in hot water for 60 mins. Then, steam them for 30 mins.
Allow the steamed mung beans to cool down for a while before blending with 400ml of coconut milk.
Preheat oven to 160°C.

To Cook
Break 6 eggs into a mixing bowl. Add the palm sugar, salt, and pandan leaves. Mix to dissolve the palm sugar.
Add the blended mung beans mixture into the mixing bowl and add 400g of coconut milk. Mix well.
Heat the pan with low heat and add the cooking oil. Add the sliced shallots and pan fry them. Reserve the fried shallots and oil.
Apply some of the reserved fried shallot oil onto the baking tray to prevent the custard from sticking to the tray. Preheat the baking tray for 5 mins.
Filter the prepared mung beans mixture using sieve or strainer and transfer the filtered mixture to the baking tray. Bake for 105 mins, or until completely set.
Allow to cool completely before carefully removing from tray. Apply some more fried shallot oil on the surface, then bake for 10 more minutes.
Leave the mung bean custard to cool down and sprinkle the fried shallots on the surface. Cut the mung bean custard into small square pieces and place them on the serving plate.

Bananas in Coconut Milk (Kluay Buad Chee)

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To Cook
Steam unpeeled bananas on high heat for 3 mins.
After these bananas are steamed, cut them into 3 pieces lengthwise and carefully peel their skin.
Heat 500ml of coconut milk into a pot over medium heat and add 2 pandan leaves (optional).
Stir and wait until coconut milk starts to bubble.
Add ¼ teaspoon of salt, 25g palm sugar and 25g white sugar. Stir well to make sure that sugar is completely dissolved.
Add bananas and gently stir the dessert for about 2-3 mins.
Transfer the dessert to serving plate and sprinkle white sesame on top. Serve.
This dessert can be served hot or cold. If you prefer the cold version, put it in the fridge for 2-3 hrs before serving.

Sweet Mung Bean Soup (Tua Keow Tom Nam Tarn)

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To Prep
Rinse the mung beans and then soak them in warm water for min. 1 hr.
Rinse once again and then drain the excess water from these mung beans using a sieve.

To Cook
In a pot, boil water over medium heat and then add mung beans.
Cook until mung beans soften.
Add a cup of sugar and stir.
When the sugar is completely dissolved and the dessert boils again. Remove the pot from heat.
Transfer the dessert to serving bowl. Serve hot or cold. If you wish to serve cold, cool and add crushed ice to the bowl.

Sweet Sago with Rock Melon (Sako Cantaloupe Nom-Sod)

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To Prep
Scoop the rock melon into balls using melon baller or small spoon. Reserve them in the fridge.
Add fresh milk, evaporated milk, salt, and sugar into a saucepan. Heat the saucepan over low heat, then add pandan leaf. Heat for 5 mins and while stirring. Allow to cool before placing in the fridge to cool completely.
Boil a pot of water and add a cup of pandan tapioca sago after the water boils.
When sago has boiled and is well cooked, turn off the heat and sieve sago out from the pot using a fine strainer.
Run boiled sago through cold water. Then transfer to a bowl filled with cold water for approximately 5-8 mins.
Put sago into the serving glass or bowl. Add the crushed ice (optional) and pour the prepared milk.
Add the rock melon balls on top.
Garnish with mint leaves (optional). Serve.

Thai Toffee Cake

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To Bake the Cake
Set the rack in the middle level inside the oven and then preheat the oven to 180°C. Line a cake pan with baking paper.
Boil 2 tbsp of water and add 2 tbsp of hazelnut flavoured instant coffee over medium-low heat. Stir until concentrated coffee is formed.
Add dark chocolate, vegetable oil, and unsalted butter and stir well until the mixture is smooth and well combined. Remove the pot from the heat and reserve.
Sift cake flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder into a large mixing bowl.
Add sugar into the mixing bowl and mix well using a whisk.
In another bowl, mix eggs, plain yoghurt and vanilla extract. Mix well using the whisk.
Combine the coffee-chocolate mixture and the flour mixture together. Stir well using a spatula until the flour is just combined.
Add the egg mixture and continue mixing using the spatula and/or whisk until the batter is smooth.
Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan and bake for 18 mins.
Test with a toothpick to check if the mocha cake is cooked. If the flour is still not done, bake for a further 5 mins more. If the flour is well cooked, leave it to cool down while making the toffee and nut topping.

To Make the Toffee and Nut Topping
Sift caster sugar, salt, and flour into a mixing bowl. Set aside.
Add evaporated milk and hazelnut coffee into a saucepan and bring to a boil over low heat. Stir until they are well mixed.
Add butter. Continually stir until the butter is melted.
After the butter is completely melted, increase the heat to medium-low, add the reserved flour mixture into the pot and continually stir while adding the mixture.
Remove the pot from heat when the topping boils and then add the chopped nuts.
Pour the nuts topping over the mocha cake. Using the spatula to spread the topping all over the cake evenly.
Switch oven to grill setting at 180°C (do not place the cake too close to the element) and grill for 10 minutes until the topping caramelises.
Remove from the oven and allow the toffee cake to cool down.
Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Use a sharp knife to cut the cake. Serve.

Rice Flour Pandan Custard (Kanom Piakpoon)

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To Make Custard
Mix rice flour and arrowroot flour in a mixing bowl, gradually add limestone water, then the palm sugar, caster sugar and pandan juice. Mix until well combined.
Pour the mixture through a sieve into a pot and stir the mixture over medium heat for 6-7 mins.
Spoon the custard into serving bowls.

To Make Cream
In a small saucepan, mix the Cream ingredients until well combined. Heat the mixture over low heat and stir well.
When the coconut cream mixture is well combined, turn off the heat. Pour onto the custard and serve.

Matcha Zenzai

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To Prep
In a bowl, add the sugar and sift in the green tea powder.
Add ¼ cup of hot water and whisk until well combined. Add the remaining hot water and mix well.

To Serve
Place 1 tbsp red bean paste into each serving glass and top with 5 shiratama dango.
Pour in the green tea and garnish with ½ tbsp red bean paste at the side.

Green Tea Yatsuhashi

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To Prep
In a large bowl, mix 30g shiratamako and 75ml water. Whisk well to combine so that there are no lumps of flour. We mix these two first, before adding the remaining dry ingredients.
Add 60g caster sugar and 50g joshinko, mix well with spatula. The sugar will make the dough watery. You should be able to see the bottom of the bowl for a second when you draw a line. Add more water to reach that consistency, if necessary.

To Cook
In a pot that is large enough to fit the bowl, put a steamer rack inside. Fill the bottom of the pot with water (make sure water won’t reach to bowl when boiling) and bring to boil. Once boiling, place the bowl inside. Wrap the lid with a kitchen towel so that the condensation won’t drop into the mixture. Cover the lid and steam for 12-15 minutes, until the mixture becomes mochi like – sticky, white, and thick when you mix with a wet spatula.

To Make Yatsuhashi
Spread some soybean powder on the working surface.
Cut the dough in half. Keep the other half in the bowl and cover with plastic wrap so that it won’t dry out.
To make the cinnamon flavour, flatten the dough and sprinkle 2 tsp cinnamon powder.
Knead the dough to evenly distribute the cinnamon powder.
With a rolling pin, roll out the dough to a thin sheet. Try to stretch it out into a rectangular (or square) shape, so it’ll be easier to cut into squares.
Create an 8 x 8cm square cardboard paper. Place on the dough and cut out with a knife. Sprinkle soybean powder in between the wrappers so they don’t stick together.
With leftover pieces, knead and roll flat again to create more pieces.
For matcha flavour, use the other half of the dough, replacing step 3 with 2 tsp matcha powder and 1 tsp cinnamon powder. Repeat the process.
Once you finish cutting the dough in squares, place 1 heaping teaspoon (15 g) of red bean paste at the center of the dough.
Fold into a triangle shape. If the dough edge won’t stick, wet it with water and fold to seal. Enjoy within 24 hours. Keep it in a cool room temperature and avoid putting in the refrigerator, as it will harden.

Hong Kong Style Waffle

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To Prep
In a mixing bowl, add in the eggs and caster sugar. Whisk until well mixed.
Add the evaporated milk, melted butter and vanilla extract, then mix well.
Sift in the cake flour and baking powder. Mix until everything is well combined.
Add 1 cup of water. Mix well and set aside until the batter becomes thicker.

To Cook
Preheat a waffle maker and pour in ½ cup of the batter. Cook until browned and transfer to a serving plate.
Spread the butter, peanut butter and drizzle some condensed milk over the waffle. Sprinkle some sugar and serve.

Mini Peanut Puffs (Kok Chai)

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To Make the Filling
In a small pan, toast peanuts over medium heat for 3-4 mins until lightly brown. Remove and allow to cool. Coarsely chop or grind the peanuts.
Toast sesame seeds for 1- 2 mins until lightly brown.
Mix peanuts, sesame seeds, and sugar in a bowl until well combined and set aside.

To Make the Dough
Combine flour(s) and salt in a large bowl and make a well in the centre. Pour oil into the well and mix with a spatula. Add water gradually to form a soft, non-sticky dough. You may not use up the full amount of water.
Place the dough on a clean work surface and knead for 3-4 mins. Shape into a round ball and place in the bowl again. Cover the bowl with a towel and allow to rest for 10 mins.
Grab the dough from the bowl and roll into a cylinder for about 12 inches long. Divide into 16 portions.
Take a piece and shape it into 2½ inches circle by rotating and flattening the edges. Place 1 tsp of filling at the centre.
Fold the dough in half. Press and pleat the edges to seal. Repeat for the rests of the dough.

To Cook
Heat adequate amount of oil in work or saucepan for deep-frying.
Deep-fry the mini puffs over medium low heat for 4-5 mins or until golden brown. Remove and drain the mini puffs in a metal strainer.
Allow to cool completely before storing in air tight containers for up to 2 weeks.