Chinese New Year Rice Recipes

CHINESE NEW YEAR SWEET RICE CAKE (NIAN GAO)

Steps:

• Prepare two 8-inch round baking pans by brushing the insides with vegetable oil.
• Add 2 cups of water and the ginger to a medium-sized pot, bring it a boil, then let it simmer for 10 minutes over low to medium heat with the lid covered. Turn off the heat, and stir in the brown sugar and allspice until the sugar is dissolved completely. Remove the ginger slices. Now add 1 1/2 cups of cold water to cool down the mixture so its warm, not hot.
• In a large mixing bowl, mix the two kinds of flours together and then slowly add in the sugar water mixture. Stir thoroughly until the batter is smooth (without any lumps). Now stir in the vanilla extract, molasses, orange zest, and 2 teaspoons of vegetable oil until thoroughly combined. The resulting batter should have a consistency similar to condensed milk. If the batter is too thick, add a bit more water a couple tablespoons at a time until the desired consistency is reached.
• Pour the batter evenly into two foil pans. Gently tap the pans against your countertop to get rid of air bubbles. Top each pan with three decorative dates in the center, if using. Put both pans in a double-decker bamboo steamer and steam for about 1 hour on high heat (the water should be boiling, but should NOT be bubbling high enough to touch the foil pans). You might need to add water into the steamer midway to avoid having the water dry up and burn your bamboo steamers.
• After 1 hour, poke a toothpick into the rice cake. It's done if the toothpick comes out clean--just like a regular cake! Regarding steaming techniques, for this recipe and in general, it doesn't matter what type of vessel you use. The core goal here is to use steam to cook the food, which means it's important that the steam doesn't escape.
• For example, if you use bamboo steamer, you will also need a pot that fits the bamboo steamer perfectly so there is no visible steam escaping. If you don't have a pot that fits the bamboo steamer, you will need to put the bamboo steamer inside a much larger pot with a lid and set the bamboo steamer on a rack above the water. Whatever you decide to use, with the correct set up, you should not see steam escaping!

NIAN GAO CHINESE NEW YEAR CAKE

Steps:

• In a mixing bowl, add 1.5 cups of brown sugar and 1/4 cup of wheat starch.
• Then, add 1&1/4 cups of glutinous rice flour, 1/2 cup of coconut milk and 1 cup of water.
• Mix it very well.
• Next, spray some oil and use a brush to brush the oil evenly around the cake pan.
• After that, pour the mixture over the greased cake pan (my cake pan is about 6.5 inches wide) and use a spoon or strainer to remove excess bubbles.
• Pour a cup of water into an instant pot pressure cooker and add a rack.
• Cover the flour mixture with a foil. (Before covering the foil try to mix the mixture again).
• After that, put the flour mixture into the instant pot, close the lid and vent. Push the manual button, adjust the time for 30 minutes at high pressure and naturally release the pressure.
• Put a plate on top of the cooked nian gao. Then, flip it and decorate with a dried jujube in the middle of the cake.
• You can wait until it's cool down then slice it.
• However, it is easier to slice it after refrigerating the Chinese new year sweet rice cake.
• After refrigerating the nian gao, add some oil into a non-stick pan. Then, pan fry both sides for about 1-2 minutes at medium fire. (Some people like to dip the nian gao with eggs and pan fry them.)

BAKED COCONUT STICKY RICE CAKE RECIPE

Steps:

• Method: Preheat oven to 180C/350F. Beat the eggs and mix with sugar very well. Add coconut milk and glutinous flour, and combine until very smooth. Use a 24cm x30 cm baking tray, or two smaller trays. Don't use any trays that are too deep, it's hard to cook through otherwise. Line a baking sheet at the bottom of the baking tray. Lightly brush or spray oil around the edges. Pour the mixture into the baking tray, bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour. Test it with a needle. If it comes out clean, it's done.

CHINESE NEW YEAR RICE

Steps:

• Marinate chicken in a drizzle of soy sauce and sprinkle with lemon pepper and garlic salt.
• Heat oil in a wok and cook chicken until lightly browned. Remove from wok.
• Stir fry broccoli in oil, garlic, and a drizzle of soy sauce. Remove from wok.
• Stir fry carrots in oil, garlic, and a drizzle of soy sauce.
• Return chicken and broccoli to wok and add rice.
• Add 3 tbsp of soy sauce and pepper and mix until rice is thoroughly coated and is a light brown.
• Add additional soy sauce to taste.

SWEET STICKY RICE CHINESE NEW YEAR CAKE

Steps:

• Place water and sugar in sauce pan over medium low heat to melt the sugar and have no sugar crystals remaining- stir. Do Not boil. Remove from heat and allow to cool to room temperature.
• In a large bowl, sift in glutinous rice flour and rice flour. SLOWLY add a little of the room temperature sugar water a little bit of time and mix well with a whisk. Then, add a little more sugar water and whisk well to remove lumps as you go. Maybe about 5-6 separate additions of the sugar water addition to the dry ingredients. Depending on your due diligence to weigh your ingredients properly and the climate being more humid or dry outside you will keep adding the sugar water mixture to the dry flour mixture until it is the consistency of sweetened condensed milk. Whisk well to remove all lumps.
• Prepare your steamer vessel. If you have a traditional wicker steamer make sure to wrap the lid with a clean dry tea towel. This helps prevent any water droplets from landing on top of your Chinese New Year Cake. Place a few inches of water in the bottom of the pan. (we used a big soup pot) that fits the diameter of our steamer basket. If you do not have a steamer basket, you can make your own using items in your kitchen. All you need is a big pot with a lid that fits and a smaller container that will fit inside to hold the Sweet Sticky Rice Chinese New Year Cake and allow the lid to close. We used a wok. Inside the wok (or other large pot) you can either use 2 chopsticks that crisscross on the bottom of the pan or a small dish placed upside down on the bottom of the pan to be able to support the dish with your Chinese New Year Cake out of the water at the bottom of the pan. Fill your wok or cooking vessel with a few inches of water on the bottom. Place a tea towel around the lid to prevent condensation from contacting the top of the cake. Close the lid and over medium high heat allow the steamer to come up to temperature. You do not want the water to boil but just a heavy simmer.
• In the meantime, find a dish, flat bowl, loaf pans or even those disposable aluminum pie pans work great (especially if giving away as gifts). You want to pick a bowl/dish that will fit inside your cooking vessel and allow the lid to seal completely. We had two little 6 x 6 baking dishes that fit in ours perfectly.
• Grease your baking dish with a little canola oil on bottom and all sides. Pour half of the Chinese New Year Cake batter into one dish and half of the batter into the other dish slowly. Allow the batter to sit a moment to allow the bubbles to rise to the top of the dish and then pop the bubbles with a little toothpick. Not a required step but makes your cake look pretty.
• Place your prepared Sweet Sticky Rice Chinese New Year Cake into the steamer and steam for about 1.5 hours or until the toothpick comes out clean. The amount of time for steaming depends on how efficient your steamer is. If you have an ill-fitting lid or a lot of steam is escaping then you will need more time. (Please note! Check on your steamer part way through and you may need to add a little additional water to your cooking vessel). Be careful to not get any water on your cake. If you have a super-efficient steaming vessel, your cake may be done after 1 hour.
• If you wish to add any decorations to the top of your Sweet Sticky Rice Chinese New Year Cake such as Chinese Red Dates or goji berries do this the last 10-15 minutes of steaming.
• Once your toothpick comes out clean, your Sweet Sticky Rice Chinese New Year Cake is done. Carefully, with hot pads, remove your cakes from the steamer and allow to come to room temperature. Once your cakes are room temperature, cover with cling wrap and place in the refrigerator overnight. IMPORTANT STEP: You MUST place your Sweet Sticky Rice Chinese New Year Cake in the refrigerator overnight or they will be too sticky to cut and enjoy.
• Take your Sweet Sticky Rice Chinese New Year Cake out of the refrigerator and run a butter knife several times around the edges. Each time dip your knife in a glass of cold water to prevent sticking. Next, place a little oil on a spatula and on your fingers and gently pull the Chinese New Year cake up and out of your cooking dish. (Needs a little persistence) Rub the bottom of the cake with a little bit of the oil before setting on a cutting board to slice. Slice the Chinese New Year Cake (nian gao) with a knife and each time dip your knife in cool water to prevent sticking. Cut it in about 1/8 inch slices. At this point, your Chinese New Year cakes can be eaten as is, but why when you can make it taste even better!!!!
• These Sweet Sticky Rice Chinese New Year Cake are 100 times more delicious by dipping the Cake thin slices in a little beaten egg and then pan frying then in a little canola oil for about 2 minutes on each side. Just until a little crispy on the outside and chewy and delicious on the inside.
• Enjoy! Kung Hei Fat Choi! Xin Nian Kaui Le! (Happy Chinese New Year from our family to yours!)

EASY CHINESE NEW YEAR RICE CAKE 年糕

Steps:

• Pour 1 can of coconut milk into a pot, add 350 g of cane sugar slabs, and 200 ml water. It's alright if there is slightly more or less coconut milk. Just be sure that the total of the liquid amounts to 600 ml.
• Heat the pot to medium and melt the sugar. It's done when all the sugar is dissolved and mixed together. Cool completely to room temperature before mixing it with the rice flour.
• In a large mixing bowl, add 400 g of glutinous rice flour and 2 tsp of wheat starch and mix well.
• Slowly add the cooled coconut milk mixture into the flour mixture.
• Use a whisk to mix until smooth.
• Use 1 tsp oil to grease a container for steaming I used an 8" glass pie plate
• Pour the mixture through a sieve into the greased container.
• Cover with a piece of tinfoil and steam at medium-high heat for 60 minutes.
• After 60 minutes, use a chopstick or toothpick to poke the centre of the cake to check for doneness. If there is residue sticking on the chopstick or toothpick, then it's not done. Steam for another 10 minutes and check again.
• Once the cake is done, put a red date where the chopstick or toothpick hole is.
• It can be served hot or after it cools down.
• If you would like to use the rice cake to make Fried New Year Rice Cake, then put the cake into the fridge overnight before slicing for best results. Instructions can be found here.
• If you would like to use the rice cake to make my New Year Rice Cake Bites, then do not put it in the fridge. Instructions can be found here.

50 CHINESE NEW YEAR RECIPES

Steps:

• . You can prepare some of these Chinese New Year recipes in advance. Some can stored in an airtight container for a few days in the refrigerator, and some can even be frozen, according to recipe directions.
• . Once you have decided on the dishes to serve, prepare as much as you can in advance, whether that is chopping ingredients or prepping the dish and storing in the refrigerator until ready for the oven. Any little bit that you can prepare in advance will make things much less stressful on the day.
• Take out the fancy dinnerware, flatware, glasses, placemats, and napkins and set the table the night before. It's one less thing to worry about on Chinese New Year.

CHINESE NEW YEAR CAKE

Steps:

• Grease the sides and bottom and line the bottom of an 7 inch round cake pan with parchment paper.
• Bring water to a boil and stir in sugar until it is completely dissolved. Remove from stove and let syrup cool completely. Then, slowly add in rice flour, whisking it into the syrup. Whisk until batter is smooth and no lumps remain. Pour in batter.
• Steam about 1 hour or until sides begin to pull away from cake and cake is solid and no longer a liquid batter. The cake will still be very soft. This is normal. You can eat as is, though it is more difficult to cut. To make it hard like the kind sold at the store, put cake into fridge. The cake will start to solidify after 1 day but may take several days to fully turn hard. To reheat, slice into 1/2 inch thick squares and pan fry with some oil until the cake is soft and chewy again and no longer hard. Another popular way to reheat is to coat the squares in egg and flour and deep fry.

CHINESE NEW YEAR SWEET RICE

Steps:

• Place the jasmine rice and water in a medium saucepan. Cover and let stand at least 1 hour, until the water has been absorbed. Transfer to a steamer basket and fluff with a fork. Steam 20 minutes, or until tender.
• Place the dried mushrooms in a bowl with enough hot water to cover. Soak 30 minutes or until tender. Drain, remove stems, and slice.
• In a small bowl, mix 1 tablespoon oyster sauce, soy sauce, cornstarch, salt, sugar, and red wine. Place mushrooms in the bowl, and marinate at least 15 minutes.
• In the steamer basket, steam the mushrooms and Chinese-style sausage 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from heat and chop.
• Heat the sesame oil in a large wok over high heat. Toss in the shrimp and cook 1 to 2 minutes, until nearly opaque. Stir in the mushrooms, Chinese-style sausage, pork sausage, green onion, and water chestnuts. Cook and stir about 2 minutes. Mix in the rice and remaining oyster sauce. Cook another 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from heat and toss in the peas. Serve when the peas are heated through.

NEW YEAR'S FRIED RICE

Steps:

• Cook and stir bacon in a wok or large skillet over medium heat until crisp, about 10 minutes. Remove bacon and leave drippings in wok. Cook and stir red bell pepper, peas, and green onion in the hot droppings for 1 minute.
• Pour egg into wok with vegetables and toss lightly in the bacon drippings to scramble, about 2 minutes. Mix bacon and cooked rice into vegetables and egg, stirring to break apart any clumps of rice. Drizzle rice with soy sauce and cook until heated through, stirring often, about 2 minutes. Serve immediately.

CHINESE NEW YEAR CAKE: THE DELICIOUS, EASY RECIPE FOR HOMEMADE NIAN GAO

Steps:

• Grease a cake pan with cooking spray or butter. Set aside.
• Combine rice flour, ginger, and salt in a large bowl.
• Break the sugar bricks into smaller pieces. Put them in a pot. Add in the water, then cover the pot with a lid and let the water come to a boil. Stir the mixture occasionally, and continue boiling until the sugar dissolves. Remove the pot from the heat.
• Stir the coconut milk and oil into the sugar water. Leave for 5 to 10 minutes to cool.
• Slowly whisk the sugar syrup mixture into the flour mixture.
• Stir until the batter feels loose and is mostly lump-free.
• Strain the batter into a new bowl.
• Make sure to strain it well.
• Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan. Tap the pan on your work surface to get rid of any air bubbles in the batter.
• Wrap the top of the pan with foil.
• Set a steaming rack in a large wok. Pour enough water into the wok so that there is about a 1/2-inch gap between the surface of the water and the steaming rack. Place a lid on the water and bring the water to a boil. Put the cake pan on the rack. Replace the lid and steam the cake over medium heat for 50 minutes to 1 hour. Add more water as necessary.
• Once the cake has finished cooking, remove it from the wok and allow it to cool overnight. Place a red date in the center.
• Serve and enjoy!

NIAN GAO (CHINESE NEW YEAR GLUTINOUS RICE CAKE 年糕)

Steps:

• Cook the dark brown sugar slabs and water on medium heat until the sugar has melted. Let it cool until warm.
• Combine the glutinous rice flour and wheat starch in a bowl.
• Pour the sweet syrup into the flour mixture bit by bit while stirring it through. Do this until it's all mixed into a thick but runny batter.
• Lightly oil the surface of your cake tin. We used a 20cm (8") cake tin with a removable base to make to easier to take out.Pro Tip: Keep the oil layer thin so it doesn't make the steamed surface lumpy.Note: When Aunty made it, she used four 15cm (6") round foil trays so she could give them as gifts.
• Use a sieve to hover over the cake tin and pour the batter through. This will help to remove clumps.
• Hold the cake tin and gently tap the base against the counter to force any air bubbles to rise. Use a toothpick to pop the bubbles and smooth out the surface.
• Wrap the top of the cake tin with aluminium foil. Make sure there are no gaps.
• Set your steamer up and steam the batter on high heat for 1 hour or until cooked.
• When ready, take the rice cake out and insert a red date in the middle. You can push the whole date in or halve it and place it on top.
• Slice and serve the Nian Gao immediately as is or lightly pan fry them with egg!

EIGHT TREASURE RICE PUDDING

Steps:

• Gather the ingredients.
• Place the glutinous rice in a non-reactive bowl and cover it with cold water. Let it soak for at least 1 hour.
• Drain the soaking water and place the rice in a steamer basket set over simmering water. Cover and steam for 30 to 45 minutes. While still hot, gently combine it with the sunflower oil and salt.
• Coat the inside of a heat-proof medium-sized bowl with oil. (Make sure this bowl will fit in the steamer basket.) Cut the sugar-glazed cherries in half and put some aside for later. Place the remaining sugar-glazed cherries along with the dried fruits in a decorative pattern in the bowl.
• Once the fruit is arranged, place half of the cooked rice in the bowl and press down gently.
• Spoon the red bean paste into the middle and smooth out the top.
• Use a little bit of glutinous rice to cover the red bean paste and place the sugar lotus seeds and remaining sugar-glazed cherries around the edge of the bowl.
• Evenly place the rest of the glutinous rice on top and press down.
• Place the bowl with the fruit and rice in the steamer basket set over simmering water and steam for 30 minutes, keeping an eye on the amount of water underneath the basket.
• Meanwhile, in a small bowl, mix the starch water ingredients, whisking vigorously until well combined.
• Place all the syrup ingredients in a small pot. Bring to a boil, and then add the starch water. Stir until thick.
• Remove the bowl from the steamer basket and let it rest for 10 minutes. Invert the bowl onto a plate and release the rice pudding. Brush the sugar syrup over the surface.

NIAN GAO (CHINESE NEW YEAR CAKE) 年糕

Steps:

• Oil a 6 inch cake tin to prevent the nian gao from sticking.
• Prepare a steamer large enough to hold the cake tin and start boiling water in preparation for the steaming process.
• In a saucepan, place chopped sugar pieces and water and cook on low-med until sugar has dissolved. Once dissolved, strain this sugar syrup through a sieve in case there are tiny pieces of undissolved sugar. Let the syrup cool to about 50C.
• In a large bowl, sift the glutinous rice flour and rice flour together. Add in veg oil and mix.
• Mix the ginger juice into the sugar syrup and pour it into the flour mix about half a cup at a time, stirring constantly. At first it will seem lumpy but keep stirring and let the flour fully absorb the liquid before adding the next half cup of syrup. Continue adding syrup and stirring until you get a smooth batter4.
• Strain the mixture through a sieve to get rid of any potential flour lumps.
• Pour mixture into the oiled cake tin and tap it on the counter a few times to release air bubbles. Pop any you see on the surface. Cover the tin tightly with foil.
• Place in steam with boiling water and steam for about 60 minutes5.
• Let the nian gao cool, decorate with the signature red date in the center and enjoy the nian gao as you wish!

NIAN GAO (CHINESE NEW YEAR RICE CAKE, 年糕)

Steps:

• Soak Chinese dates and walnuts in water overnight. Chop the rehydrated dates (pits removed if any) and walnuts into small pieces by hand or using a food processor (remember to keep one whole date for garnishing later).
• Transfer the chopped dates and walnuts to a large mixing bowl. Add glutinous rice flour and regular rice flour. Mix well.
• Add dark brown sugar, ginger and water to a saucepan. Bring to a boil then leave to simmer (cover with a lid) over low heat for 3 minutes. Remove the ginger from the sugary water then add the oil. Whisk to fully incorporate.
• Pour about 90% of the hot sugar liquid over the flour mixture. Mix and lightly knead. Add the remaining liquid gradually until a soft dough forms. Depending on the evaporation loss while simmering, you may not use all the liquid, or you might need to add a little extra water. Adjust accordingly.
• Brush a thin layer of oil over the inner surface of a 20 cm (8 in) cake tin. Place a piece of baking paper at the bottom. Transfer the dough into the tin. Flatten the surface. Insert the remaining date in the middle of the cake.
• Bring water to a full boil in the wok/pot which you use for steaming. Place the cake tin into the steaming basket or over a steaming rack. Cover with a lid and leave to cook over medium heat for 45 minutes (check the water level halfway through and top up if necessary).
• Let the cake cool naturally in the tin. Then gently take it out. You may slice it and eat it straight away. Or, store it in the fridge, then slice and pan fry in a little oil until both sides blister.
• Put the cake in an air-tight bag/container once completely cooled. You can leave it on the counter for 1 day (unless the room is very warm), or keep it in the fridge for up to 5 days.
• It freezes well too. Slice it into pieces before freezing. Defrost in the fridge then enjoy it at room temperature, or pan-fry it without defrosting.

CHINESE NEW YEAR RICE

Steps:

• Heat oil in a large skillet or wok over medium high heat.
• Add chicken.
• Cook and stir until lightly browned.
• Add remaining ingredients.
• Cook and stir about 10 minutes.
• Serve.