Water Chestnut Cake The Ultimate Guide
If you had come to China before, maybe you had tasted the water chestnut cake. Do you miss the taste of this cake? Or you want to find out where to buy water chestnut cake in your country. But today we provide other method to solve it: make the cake yourself.
What Is In Water Chestnut Cake?
Chinese water chestnut cake (Chinese name is: 马蹄糕) is a traditional dessert snack in the area of Guangdong, Guangxi, Fuzhou and southern Fujian provinces.It is said that it originated in the Tang Dynasty and was made by steaming water chestnut powder with sugar water. Water chestnut is also known as horseshoe in Cantonese. Its color is yellow, translucent, folding but not cracking, pouting and continuous, soft, smooth, refreshing, tough and sweet.
Water chestnut
The horseshoe cake tastes sweet and melts in the mouth. Its taste makes the horseshoe cake very prominent in Cantonese cuisine.
The Origin Of Water Chestnut Cake
Legend has it that Emperor Gaozong of Tang succeeded the throne in 628. The province of Lingnan(Nowdays we call it Guangdong province) knew that the name of water chest, lotus root, arrowhead, wild rice shoots, water caltrop of Guangzhou Pantang and then he ordered the artist to drawe a picture called The Five Beautiful Things in Guangzhou Pantang(not the picture we provide below) to consecrate to the Emperor Gaozong .Gaozong was very pleased about that and then put the picture as one of the sacrifices to ancestors in his enthronement.
The Five Beautiful Things in Guangzhou Pantang
After many years, a progeny who called Long Kun got the picture and moved to Pantang village. When he came to this village, it was the time of harvest to the water chestnut. Long tasted the fresh one and thought it had the fragrance and sweet. Then he stored some and wanted to enjoy them for a few days.
Unfortunately, some of the fresh water chestnut started to rot. Therefore, he used the roasting method to deal with the remaining fresh ones. Cleaning the skin of water chestnut and pounding them to become sizy. Finally using the slow fire to cook and then it became powdery.
He cooked the powder with some sugar and shared it with others.Others thought that it doesn’t have any difference with the fresh water chestnut.That’s the origin of ths snack.
The Nutrition And Value Of Water Chestnut Cake
The phosphorus of water chestnut is the better in root vegetable. It can promote the growth and development of human and provide the needs of maintaining physiological function. It not only has the benefit of the growth of the teeth, but also can promote the metabolism of sugar, protein, fat in our body. The children also can eat it.
The water chestnut is full of starch, crude protein which can obviously promote the peristalsis of the large intestine. The water chestnut cake calories are relying on the sugar level you use. More sugar more calories.If you want to less choice, you should try the water chestnut soup but not cake.
Those are the elements in 1kg water chestnut as follow:
| Element | Content | Unit |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 3058.8 | kcal |
| Protein | 45.6 | gram |
| Fat | 22.38 | gram |
| Carbohydrates | 655.2 | gram |
| Dietary fiber | 8.4 | gram |
| Vitamin A | 120 | microgram |
| Carotene | 720 | microgram |
| Thiamine | 0.39 | milligrams |
| Riboflavin | 0.51 | milligrams |
| Vitamin E | 15.39 | milligrams |
| Calcium | 1041.2 | milligrams |
| Phosphorus | 747.6 | milligrams |
| Potassium | 6,456.5 | milligrams |
| Sodium | 32.44 | milligrams |
| Magnesium | 167.6 | milligrams |
| Iron | 54.16 | milligrams |
| Zinc | 7.75 | milligrams |
| Selenium | 9 | milligrams |
| Copper | 0.1 | milligram |
| Manganese | 0.14 | milligrams |
How To Make Water Chestnut Cake
Step 1: Prepare All the Materials
We need 250g water chestnut flour, 250g water chestnut flesh, 750g brown sugar, 150 ml water, some coconut milk (this field is optional).In fact, you can not add the water chestnut flesh if you donot get it in your country.But we recommend you add it because it can take the crispness for the final cake.
Prepare All the Materials
Brown sugar can be replaced by other sugar like white sugar.We like to choose choose the brown sugar which can take the strong flavor and you would like it.The use level water can be modified by your favour.If you like the lighter style you can add more water.The water chestnut cake with coconut milk can be a better choice that it has the better taste than normal. Today we diddo not use it that we like the lighter one.You can just make your decision.
STEP 2: Clear And Crush Water Chestnut
If you had to buy the water chestnut which still has the peel, you should clear the peel.And then use the water wash it for the next step.Or you can just buy those flesh which can reduce the work you do here for this recipe.
Clear The Peel Of Water Chestnut
After we have cleared all of them, we should crush them which will have the chestnut absorb the sweet from the sugar water and take a great taste for us.For convenience, we should be put into a plastic bag and then use the side of the knife to crush them.
Crush Water Chestnut
We should try our best to crush them to smaller blocks. Less big blocks will take the great taste in the future.
STEP 3: Melt The Brown Sugar
We can use the normal temperate water to melt the brown sugar.However, if you want to cook this snake fastly, you can also heat the water to make the brown sugar to melt.Please pay attention to the dosage of the water and brown sugar.We don’t need the ratio between the water and the brown sugar and it taste sweeter than your normal will be better because it should mix the water chestnut flour later.
Melt The Brown Sugar
At quickening the speed of melting, we can stir the sugar and then it will melt fastly.
STEP 4: Blend The Water Chestnut Flour With Water
Firstly, we should add 300 ml water to the container and then add the water chestnut flour into the water.There is a problem we probably meet is that puting the flour a little fastly to the water.It will be making the final thing has more block which doesn’t blend enough.We should slow topple and all the flour evenly into the water.
Blend The Water Chestnut Flour With Water
After that, we should stir those things and make sure there is no black floor anymore.We can use chopsticks or the balloon whisk our kitchen has.
Finally, you should use the filter sieve to filter the mixture and then make sure the final mixture doesn’t have the block. If the filter sieve still has some blocks, you can use crush them and add more water to dissolve them again.
STEP 5: Cook And Mix The Water Chestnut And The Sugar Water
Now we should put the water chestnut to pan which is cooking the sugar water.Yes, we can do step 3 and step 4 simultaneously. Because Step 3 will take some time to finish.
Cook And Mix The Water Chestnut And The Sugar Water
After the mixing, we should cook them to boil.
STEP 6: The Final Mixture And Prepare For The Cooking
Add the boiling mixture to the water pressure flour mixture, and then stir them to the smooth cream.Finally, get the final mixture.
The Final Mixture
Put some water in the pot which has the food steamer. We can choose the matching function tools in our kitchen.Don’t need to put more water into pot. We just make sure the pot would not burn and can make the of to cook the cake.After every time cook accomplished, we should check if the pot still has enough water to cook next time.
Prepare For The Cooking
After putting the food steamer, we should put the foil cups on it. In fact, we can choose different containers to place the cake. Nonetheless, we suggest you to choose the foil cup which can reduce our other work after we make the cake. We can buy unique styles foil cups on the Amazon.
STEP 7: Add The Final Mixture To The Foil Cup
Use the spoon adds the mixture to the cup. Please don’t put a hot mixture to the cup. The appropriate level is the 90% mixture.
Add The Final Mixture To The Foil Cup
STEP 8: Steam The Cake To Transparent
Now we can start to steam the cake. Maybe you would get the problem that is what time is the cake ready.We should check the cake if it is transparent. It will be quick and don’t worry to steam more time would destroy the taste. Just make sure you can see the process and make the right decision.
Steam The Cake To Transparent
STEP 9: Wait For The Cake Cold
It’s the time for us to taste it. After steamed water chestnut cake becomes cold, we can taste it or store it. We can store it into the refrigerator but we recommend that it should be eaten quickly. It is also the appropriate choice to share some with our friends.
Wait For The Cake Cold
That’s why many people call the cake to crystal jade water chestnut cake. We can see the true crystal jade after this cake cold.In fact, we also can cook other types of cake bases on the above process. It is very easy if we have made the water chestnut cake. Then put in the pot to fry 5 minutes. Finally, we get the other type water chestnut cake in cantonese.There are numerous ways to eat water chestnuts which we would share in the future.
That’s our best water chestnut cake recipe for you. It won’t’t take a long of time to cook this recipe.We also think it is the best snake you can get when you are not in China. By the way, many Chinese families will cook Chinese new year water chestnut cake which can on behalf of the sweetness of this new year.
If you still don’t understand the process we provide, you can leave the comment below. Or you can see the water chestnut cake youtube video we have recorded for you.
The Water Chestnut Cake
Equipment(affiliate link)
Ingredients(affiliate link)
- 100 g water chestnut flour
- 200 g water chestnut flesh
- 300 g brown sugar
Instructions
- Prepare 250g water chestnut flour, 250g water chestnut flesh, 300g brown sugar, 150 ml water
- Clear and crush water chestnut, melt the brown sugar
- Blend the water chestnut flour with water
- Cook and mix the water chestnut and the sugar water
- Add the boiling mixture to the water chesture flour mixture, and then stir them to the smooth cream and put the foil cups on food steamer
- Use the spoon add the mixture to the cup
- Cook the cake to transparent
- Wait for the cake cold
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