These Chinese rice puddings are slightly chewy, mildly sweet, and a delightful traditional snack. They require only 3 ingredients, are gluten-free, and they show that sometimes the most humble foods can be some of the best foods!
Course Dessert, Snack
Cuisine Asian, Chinese
Keyword Chinese street food, dairy-free snacks, gluten-free snacks, traditional Chinese foods
Prepare steamer. You want the water at a gentle boil (I have the stove set to just below medium).
In a measuring cup or bowl with a spout, combine the rice flour, tapioca starch, and room temperature water. Use chopsticks or a small whisk to mix it into a thick slurry.
In a separate measuring cup, combine the just-boiled water and sugar. Stir until sugar is complete dissolved.
Add the sugar water to the rice flour mixture, mixing with chopsticks or a small whisk while pouring it in. The look and consistency will resemble milk.
Pour the liquid into your bowls/dishes, making sure to mix the rice flour solution right before pouring in case the flour has settled.
Steam the puddings over low-medium heat for 15 minutes.
Transfer the bowls to a cooling rack and let the puddings cool completely. Repeat steaming any remaining rice flour mixture, being sure to stir the mixture with chopsticks or a whisk before pouring it into the dishes.
To remove the rice puddings after they have completed cooled, run a toothpick along the edge of the pudding and the dish to loosen and lift it out.
Store in a container at room temperature or in the refrigerator for 2-3 days.
Notes
The dishes you use can be fluted, not fluted, non-stick, foil, stoneware, glass.
The recipe is based on using 3-inch dishes.
Whatever material dishes you use just need to be safe for heating/cooking.
Set the bowls/dishes in your steamer before pouring in the rice solution OR fill the bowls on a plate and carefully transfer the plate to your steamer using hot dish tongs.
The top of the puddings might steam up looking smooth or slightly bumpy, but both are completely okay.
For the brown version of these puddings, use brown rock sugar, making sure to dissolve it in the hot water before adding it to the rice flour mixture.
Add a teaspoon of almond extract to the rice flour solution for a bit of added sweetness and flavor.
This recipe uses white rice flour; brown rice flour may affect the texture and will affect the color.
Be sure to use regular rice flour and not sweet or glutinous rice flour.
Adjust the amount of sugar to your desired level of sweetness.
Can be kept in a container at room temperature or in the refrigerator.