Chinese New Year Cake

During the Chinese New Year 15 day festive season it is a tradition to serve a cake called Nian gao (literally “year cake” or as a homonym, “higher year”) made with Chinese brown sugar and glutinous rice flour.

Legend has it that nian gao was offered to the Kitchen God either as a bribe or so that his lips would be busy chewing on the sticky cake that he wouldn’t report unfavourably on your family to the Jade Emperor in heaven.  An unfavourable report meant bad luck for the household for an entire year and you didn’t want that!

We tried the cake last night - having purchased one from the supermarket. The cake can be either steamed till it softens or sliced and coated in a batter and deep fried.

I steamed the cake and then served it with the traditional grated coconut as suggested by the checkout lady in the supermarket as she scanned my purchases.

The cake had a mellow caramel flavor and the texture was like eating a jelly with to much gelatine in it .

Nian gao (Chinese New Year Cake )