China · Cantonese

Fried Milk

Name: Fried Milk
Prep time: 134 min
Cook time: 11 min
Total time: 145 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Cantonese
Ingredients: milk 250 ml; cornstarch 30 g; caster sugar 25 g; plain flour 40 g; egg 50 g; breadcrumbs 80 g; cooking oil 700 ml

A dessert with a crisp crumb outside and a soft, custardy milk centre. The milk set must be chilled solid before cutting, otherwise the pieces break apart in the oil.

145 minutes · 4 servings · Moderate

The dish is a street snack in parts of southern China, where a thick milk custard is set in a tray, cut into batons and fried for a moment before eating. Getting the custard to the right consistency is the whole technique: it must hold its shape when you press it yet still taste liquid inside. Test the oil with a crumb of breadcrumb, and fry in batches so the temperature does not drop.

Ingredients

milk250 ml
cornstarch30 g
caster sugar25 g
plain flour40 g
egg50 g
breadcrumbs80 g
cooking oil700 ml

Directions

1
Take 80ml of the milk and mix it with the cornstarch, stirring until no lumps are visible.
2
Pour the remaining 170ml of milk and the sugar into a pan and heat gently, stirring, until the sugar has fully dissolved.
3
Stir the cornstarch mixture again to recombine it, then pour it slowly into the pan while stirring continuously.
4
Keep the heat low and stir constantly for three to five minutes, until the custard is thick enough that a line scraped across the base stays for three seconds.
5
Brush about 2ml of oil evenly around a heatproof container, pour in the custard and level the surface so it is about 2cm thick.
6
Once the custard is at room temperature, cover it and refrigerate for at least two hours; it is ready when the surface is not sticky to the touch and the whole thing will not flow.
7
Turn the set custard out of the container and cut it into batons of about 6 by 2 by 2cm, roughly twelve pieces.
8
Put the flour, the beaten egg and the breadcrumbs into three separate containers.
9
Coat each baton in turn in flour, egg and breadcrumbs, making sure every surface is covered.
10
Pour 700ml of oil into a pan and heat to 165 to 175 degrees over medium heat; without a thermometer, drop in a few breadcrumbs, which should float within two seconds and keep giving off small bubbles.
11
Fry the batons in two or three batches for sixty to ninety seconds each, turning them once or twice so all sides colour evenly.
12
When the surface is an even gold, lift them out and drain on kitchen paper for about two minutes before eating.

Source: HowToCook · WorldBite adaptation · Unlicense source text; bilingual recipe adapted by WorldBite.