Seeing that Chinese New Year will be just three weeks away, I would like to share with you my favourite Chinese New Year snack or treat of all time. It is what we call kuih kapit, which is similar to love letters but thinner and folded into quarters instead of a cigar shape. Once you have had your first crunch, it takes a strong will to stop finishing the whole tub. I was lucky to be able to watch my aunt make a big batch of these addictive festive treat. The downside is that I had to wake up really early as she had to start making them before it becomes warmer or shall I say hotter in the afternoon (Malaysian weather).
I shall briefly explain how they are made to give you an overall understanding of what she has to endure throughout this process. Kuih kapit has to be cooked on an open charcoal stove, standing and flipping the mould for about six hours or more, depending on portion of the batter.
Start burning the charcoal before mixing the batter
Make sure the moulds are clean
Heat up both sides of the moulds, oil and heat again. Make sure the moulds are hot.
Then pour the mixture onto one side of the mould, clamp and put it back on the stove.
Flip the moulds frequently, open and check. When it turns brown, peel it out of the mould with your fingers. This is when it burns your fingers if your fingers aren't used to heat. Lucky my aunt has fingers made of steel! ;)
This is a two man process as the second person has to quickly fold the sheets into a quarter before it cools and hardens. Tips: This is when nails come in handy so you don't burn your fingers.
KUIH KAPIT! The end product of this tedious process.
A good kuih kapit is very thin and lightly folded. It should be paper thin and not folded flat, like making origami. It should have a slight curve on the folds to give it some space so when you eat it, you can feel the ever so thinly folded layers crunch in your mouth. It really isn't a great idea standing in front of the hot burning charcoal for half a day in such a hot weather. But look on the bright side. The end result is phenomenal !!
I shall briefly explain how they are made to give you an overall understanding of what she has to endure throughout this process. Kuih kapit has to be cooked on an open charcoal stove, standing and flipping the mould for about six hours or more, depending on portion of the batter.
Start burning the charcoal before mixing the batter
Make sure the moulds are clean
Sieve the batter (coconut milk, rice flour, sugar and eggs)
Heat up both sides of the moulds, oil and heat again. Make sure the moulds are hot.Then pour the mixture onto one side of the mould, clamp and put it back on the stove.
Flip the moulds frequently, open and check. When it turns brown, peel it out of the mould with your fingers. This is when it burns your fingers if your fingers aren't used to heat. Lucky my aunt has fingers made of steel! ;)
This is a two man process as the second person has to quickly fold the sheets into a quarter before it cools and hardens. Tips: This is when nails come in handy so you don't burn your fingers.A good kuih kapit is very thin and lightly folded. It should be paper thin and not folded flat, like making origami. It should have a slight curve on the folds to give it some space so when you eat it, you can feel the ever so thinly folded layers crunch in your mouth. It really isn't a great idea standing in front of the hot burning charcoal for half a day in such a hot weather. But look on the bright side. The end result is phenomenal !!
Hi Ai Pheng Yeap,
ReplyDeleteI really love your article. Can i publish this article to our website ,VirtualMalaysia.com. We will pay Rm200 per article. We wanted to publish something about CNY for incoming CNY, and your article is perfect.
If you interested, just let me know throught this email : hidayah@virtualmalaysia.com.
Thanks so much and I hope i can hear from you soon :)