Kwecang

A couple weeks ago my friends and I tried to make Kwecang (or Kicang) together :). There are four of us and it seems all of us hadn't once try to make this dessert before. I like kwecang a lot. Hadn't eat it since I'm married :p ... 
I thought making kwecang is hard.. and what do you know? It is HARD ... hahaha. 
It was not hard on the recipe, but rather on how you wrap it. Kwecang is a traditional food, so how to wrap it is also in a traditional way :). I was wondering why my grandmother didn't teach my mother so she can teach me :p
Kwecang is made from sweet rice or glutinous sweet rice (I haven't try with this one, going to today :)). So basically we just wrap the sweet rice with Bamboo Leaves :) and steam or, with a new way for me, using a Pressure Cooker. I like this new way, way more faster and easier.


So basically this is Bamboo Leaves (or I call it Daun bambu in my language :)), it came with in a package. 

When I made the kwecang at my friend's house, she bought bamboo leaves package which the bamboo leaves are cleaner than the one I bought by my self. And that's why I need to wash them several times before I started to use them. 

The recipes that I write down here, is the one that I read on a book which I borrowed from library. I kinda forget the title, but there also recipes for Bakcang. Bakcang is the same as Kwecang. The differents are that bakcang is filled with some meat and mushrooms, kwecang is filled with nothing. Also kwecang is eaten with white/palm sugar liquid.

I'll write the recipes soon... so I'll be right back :)


Finally got a chance to write down the recipe :) But I can't show you the pictures when I made the kwecang, because accidentally I drop my camera down to my full of water basket. Geezz.. luckily my hubby don't get mad ... 


Ingridient : (as I try a couple days ago)

• 3 cups of sweet rice
• 1 tbsp potassium carbonate water ( I used Koon-Chun)
• Bamboo leaves
• strings to tie the kwecang

So this how I make it, 

1. Wash the sweet rice twice and than put them in a bowl and covered it with water overnight.
2. Wash the bamboo leaves few times and soak them in a hot water and set aside overnight.
3. After overnight, drain the sweet rice and put the potassium carbonate water into the sweet rice and mix them together. Set aside for about 15 minutes and then wash it throughly several times.
4. Wash the bamboo leaves that has been set aside overnight, and then keep them soak in water. (Some recipes said to boil the bamboo leaves, I'll have to try it)
5. Take one bamboo leaf, and make a kinda triangle shape like in the pictures
6. Fill the bamboo leaf that has been fold with the sweet rice and cover them in a tight shape like a triangle. (I can't show you right now how to do it, but will soon. )
7. Tie the bamboo leaf with string. And after you finish filling all the sweet rice into the bamboo leaves, soak them in a pressure cooker with enough water just until they are covered. 
8. Cook them on a medium heat and count your time one hour after you hear sizling from your pressure cooker.

So basically you need to put your thumbs like in the pictures on the bamboo leaf. My friends said that I need to put the softer side of the leave up close to my thumbs. The outer hand is the right hand.


And than with your index finger (right hand) pull in the leaf so the shape will look like an upside down triangle.


This is the shape of the leaf from behind 

The shape of the leaf from front side where you can fill the sweet rice into it.

If you still confused, you might want to check out on youtube some video which shows you how to fold bamboo leaves for bakcang. The different is bakcang used two leaves, kwecang only used one.
I often ate kwecangs with palm sugar or white sugar liquid, but when I learn how to make them at my friends house the other day, she told me that kwecang can also be eaten with maple syrup. I was surprised, the taste of the maple syrup (she used kirkland from costco) and the liquid sugar I used to eat was the same. Gotta have hers :)


Thanks to my friends for teaching me how to make kwecang... all credits to you girls :)