I was in a Kutsinta kick lately. I spent my last week trying to perfect a Kutsinta recipe. I made Kutsinta around 5 or 6 times just before dinner, after I arrived home from work. I tried different flours and tried straining and not straining the mixture and even cooking the mixture before steaming. It was a tiring, yet fun week. Imagine me eating Kutsinta during breakfast and snack for one week (and oh, the weekend, too).
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Kutsinta is a Filipino rice cake that’s very popular in the Philippines. It is made with different kinds of flour (such as glutinous rice flour, rice flour, tapioca flour and all-purpose), brown sugar, lye water, annatto powder (or annatto seeds), and water. It is cooked by steaming the mixture using small molders. It is chewy, not overly sweet and delicious. The rice cakes are traditionally topped or served with freshly grated coconut. These days, it can be enjoyed with dulce de leche, too, which I haven’t tried yet.
All the recipes I’ve tried worked perfectly when it comes to the taste. I’ve played with different ingredients to get the texture I wanted.
#1: All-purpose flour + tapioca flour = the texture was firm, but it doesn’t have the chewiness I wanted.
#2: Glutinous flour + tapioca flour = the texture was chewy, jiggly and sticky, but not firm. Also, the top was watery even after chilling them.
#3: Glutinous rice flour + all-purpose flour + = the texture was also chewy, but it is still lacking something.
#4: Tapioca flour + All-purpose flour + glutinous rice flour = this is the perfect mixture of flours for me – chewy and firm, just how I remembered them from the palengke.
TIPS:
- It is advisable to strain the dry ingredients before mixing with wet ingredients and again strain the mixture before steaming.
- LIGHTLY grease the molders with cooking oil. Don’t overdo it or else your Kutsinta will be in a mess. Take it from the one who used a cooking spray.
- During steaming, you can put the heat on high setting and when the water starts to boil, lower down the heat to a low setting and let it remain that way until the end of the steaming process.
I hope you can try this recipe. I am sharing these with my friends at Fiesta Friday #282, hoping everybody would love them. 🙂 Thanks to our hosts, Antonia and Angie.
Kutsinta
A steamed rice cake with jelly-like texture – chewy, sweet and delicious, can be served warm or cold with freshly grated coconut or dulce de leche.
Ingredients
- 152 g (1 cup) brown sugar
- 500 ml (2 cups) water
- 10 ml (2 tsp) lye water
- 65 g (½ cup) all-purpose flour
- 55 g (½ cup) glutinous rice flour
- 58 g (½ cup) tapioca flour
- 1 tsp annatto powder
Instructions
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Prepare your steamer: add enough water to your steamer (about 2 inches deep). Add the second and/or third layer of the steamer, and put the lid on (the lid must be wrapped with a cloth to prevent the water from dripping over your Kutsinta). Put on the stove over medium-high heat. When the water starts boiling, decrease the fire to low.
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In a bowl, add brown sugar and water. Mix well until sugar is dissolved. Add lye water. Mix again.
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Sift the three flours along with the annatto powder and add this to the mixture above. Mix well.
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Get another bowl with a fine mesh strainer on top. Pour the mixture over the strainer. We are doing this to get smooth Kutsinta. Mix again.
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Divide the mixture into molders that are LIGHTLY greased with cooking oil and steam for 40 minutes.
NOTE: If you are making in batches, make sure to stir the mixture before dividing it into molders for the second batch of steaming.
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Let the Kutsinta cool down for 15 minutes before removing them from the molders.
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Serve with freshly grated coconut.
Recipe Notes
- Kutsinta can be served warm or cold. I always prefer cold Kutsinta.
- I am using the UK measuring cups.
Thanks a bunch for spending your precious time with me!
I am also sharing these at
Snickerdoodle Create Bake Make Party 290 | What’s for Dinner? Sunday Link up #207 | Happiness is Homemade | Melt in your Mouth Monday | COOKBLOGSHARE 2019 WK 27 | Full Plate Thursday 439 | Party in Your PJs #265 | Lou Lou Girls Fabulous Party #275 |
Featured: Fiesta Friday #283 | What’s for Dinner? Sunday link up #208 |
