KUEH KO SWEE

Makes one 20-cm (8-in) square cake

This is another dessert that is popularly known to be Peranakan, but the Eurasians have a version of it too. Peranakan kueh ko swee is prepared using tapioca flour and is flavoured using the juice of pandan leaves. The Eurasian recipe uses sago flour and the pandan leaves are boiled with the palm sugar. The Peranakans also traditionally steam the kueh in Chinese teacups while the Eurasians steam it as a whole cake in a baking tray.

Plain (all-purpose) flour 175 g (6¼ oz)
Sago flour 100 g (3½ oz)
Grated skinned coconut 600 g (1 lb 5⅓ oz)
Salt a pinch
Water 150 ml (5 fl oz)
Pandan leaves 3, cleaned and knotted
Palm sugar (gula melaka) 350 g (12½ oz)
Sugar 175 g (6¼ oz)
Alkaline water 2 Tbsp

1.   Sift together plain flour and sago flour and set aside.

2.   Steam grated coconut for 5 minutes. When cool, mix in salt. Set aside to cool.

3.   Boil 150 ml (5 fl oz) water in a small pot. Add pandan leaves, palm sugar and
sugar and continue boiling until both types of sugar are dissolved. Remove from
heat and strain.

4.   Add alkaline water and mix well. Add sifted flour mixture and stir until there are
no lumps.

5.   Strain mixture into 20 × 20 × 5-cm (8 × 8 × 2-in) baking tin. Place into a steamer
and steam for 40 minutes or until kueh is no longer opaque in colour.

6.   To serve, cut kueh into rectangles or squares. Coat with steamed grated coconut
just before serving.

NOTE

•  If sago flour is not available, substitute with tapioca flour.

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EURASIAN HERITAGE

Cooking