Traditional ang ku kueh made with mashed purple sweet potatoes to give you that beautiful natural purple color and filled with homemade sweet mung bean paste.
I enjoy making ang ku kueh. They are cute with vibrant colors and my kids love to eat them too. I’ve made Easy Ang Ku Kueh with Mung Bean Paste (Tortoise Kueh) – Natural Colors, Pandan Ang Ku Kueh with Sweet Peanut Filling, Pumpkin ang ku kue (Pumpkin tortoise cake). The process of making this purple sweet potato ang ku kueh is similar to all the others with just a slightly different formula because of the addition of mashed purple sweet potatoes.
Tips for success
1. Mash the sweet potato while they are still warm. You can use an immersion blender or blender to blend until it is smooth
2. Make sure the water is hot boiling. This is what makes the dough soft, pliable, and easy to shape without breaking
3. It’s important not to steam the ang ku kueh over high heat as this will “blur” the imprint on the kueh. I recommend leaving the lid slightly cracked open for some steam to escape. The imprint won’t blur and the kueh won’t expand to the side
How to shape ang ku kueh
1. You can look at the step-by-step detail in this post. So I won’t repeat the same process again in this post. If you follow the recipe closely, you should have a soft pliable dough that is easier to work with
2. The amount of dough and filling depends on the size of your mould. I have 30, 50, and 60 grams mould. For example if I use 50-gram mould, I can portion 30 grams of dough and 20 grams of filling or 25 grams of dough and 25 grams of filling. I believe you get the idea! Portion out the filling and roll them into balls for easier wrapping
3. Portion out the dough about into the size you want. Flatten them with the palm of your hand. Place the filling on the middle
4. Bring all edge together and roll them into a smooth ball again
5. Dust the mold with some sticky rice flour to prevent sticking and gently knock off excess flour. I roll the dough ball into the flour thinly too. Place the dough ball into the mold
6. Slightly pressed it down as you stretch them out to fit the mold
7. Knock the mold once on a countertop (lined with some cloth to minimize banging sound) and the dough will flop out of the mold
8. Place individual ang ku kueh on a greased banana leaves and steam over medium heat with the lid slightly cracked open (see recipe for more details)
Did you make this purple sweet potato ang ku kueh recipe?
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Purple Sweet Potato Ang Ku Kueh
Ingredients
FOR THE SKIN:
- 300 gr glutinous rice flour and more for dusting
- Pinch of salt
- 2 Tbsp sugar
- 200 gr mashed purple sweet potatoes
- 150 ml hot boiling water
- 1 Tbsp cooking oil
FOR THE FILLINGS:
- 1 recipe mung bean paste you can use sweet or savory version (you may have some leftover)
OTHERS:
- Banana leaves cut into 30 pieces of 4x4 inch square
- Neutral-tasting cooking oil for brushing
Instructions
STEAM THE PURPLE SWEET POTATO:
- Get about 300 grams of purple sweet potato. Peel and cut into small chunks and steam over high heat for 10 minutes or until you can easily mash with a fork. Mash while they are still warm
PREPARE THE DOUGH:
- Mix the glutinous rice flour with salt, and sugar. Stir to combine. Make a well in a center and add the mashed purple sweet potato. Add oil to the hot boiling water. Start with 100 ml of water and use a rubber spatula to start stirring until it forms a crumbly dough. When cool enough to handle, use your hand to knead the dough into a soft, pliable and shiny dough. Add a bit more water if needed. Cover and let them rest for 10 minutes
WRAPPING:
- The amount of the dough and filling depends on the size of your mould. I have 30, 50, and 60 grams mould. For example if I use 50-gram mould, I can portion 30 grams of dough and 20 grams of filling or 25 grams of dough and 25 grams of filling. I believe you get the idea! Portion out the filling and roll them into balls for easier wrapping
- Portion out the dough about into the size you want. Flatten them with the palm of your hand. Place the filling on the middle and bring all edge together and roll them into a smooth ball again
- Dust the mold with some sticky rice flour to prevent sticking and gently knock off excess flour. I roll the dough ball into the flour thinly too. Place the dough ball into the mold. Slightly pressed it down as you stretch them out to fit the mold. Knock the mold once on a countertop (lined with some cloth to minimize banging sound) and the dough will flop out of the mold. Place individual ang ku kueh on a greased banana leave
STEAMING:
- When the water in the steamer is boiling vigorously, place the ang ku kueh inside the steamer about 1/2-inch apart. Lower the heat t medium and when you cover the lid, let it crack opens about 1/2-inch and steam for 10-15 minutes, depending on how big your ang ku kue. This is very important as it helps to maintain the imprints on the cake and to make sure you ang ku kueh is not flattened. If you steam them on high heat with all the steam trapped inside ,all the imprints will mostly be blurred and cake will expand to the side and flattened.
- To test for doneness, get one ang ku kueh out and cut it open to check the inside. It should be cooked through and not "doughy" and mushy. If it is, steam a bit longer
- Remove from the heat onto a plate and then brush with some cooking oil. Let them cool down completely
STORING:
- They can be kept at room temperature (where humidity is low) for about 3 days. If you keep them in the fridge, you just need to reheat them in the steamer for 5 minutes, as the skin will toughen. But once reheated, they will be soft again
- They can also be freeze in the freezer for up to 1 month and they go from freezer to steamer and steam for 10-12 minutes
