Notes for Making Horse Hoof Cake

The quality of the wood ear powder significantly affects the finished product's texture.(It is recommended to use Star River brand wood ear powder from Guangzhou Xingzhou Food Co., Ltd., which has a good texture and clean appearance.)

216:53 2009-10-14. After the brown sugar melts into a syrup, if you find sediment at the bottom, pour out the syrup first, remove the settled impurities, and then re-heat it in the pot. When soaking the wood ear powder, gently remove any small floating impurities from the surface. When pouring the raw slurry (step 5), pay attention to leave some sediment at the bottom of the container without pouring it into the boiling water.

3,Steamthe taro pound cake. The key step is heating the raw slurry, which is described in step 4. According to my mother's experience, around 80 degrees Celsius is ideal. However, we have not measured this precisely; it relies on a sense of touch. Therefore, this is the most challenging part. Practice multiple times and you will develop a feel for it. If the slurry immediately forms transparent lumps upon being poured in, the water temperature was too high, and it was overcooked. If it remains milky white and thick, the water temperature was too low, and it was undercooked. A semi-transparent and creamy consistency is best. This time, my taro pound cake was not as crispy because the slurry was not fully cooked.

4, When pouring the semi-cooked slurry into the steaming tray, try to spread it evenly; otherwise, the surface may look uneven after cooking.

If poured into differently shaped containers, the final product will take on those shapes.