Making this dish is not difficult, you just need to know the secret to making delicious caramel from the recipe, how to stir the mixture and especially the steaming step.
The greasiness of chicken eggs and milk, mixed with the bitter aroma of coffee, is just right, enough for you to feel the inherent cool sweetness of caramel. Whenever mentioning caramel ice cream, Hanoians immediately remember Hang Than Street, where in the summer, young people flock together to “cool off life”. It’s not difficult to make soft, shiny caramel like the one in Hang Than. The secret of this dish lies in many factors: the recipe, how to stir the mixture of milk, eggs, sugar and especially the steaming step. Below are detailed instructions on how to make perfect caramel for you.
Eggs, milk,… are the main ingredients to make caramel
How to make caramel:
Step 1: Make the custard mixture (main ingredient of caramel cake)
Eggs are separated from the white, leaving only the yolk. Pour condensed milk into the eggs. Then add about 1.5 boxes of hot water, 1.5 boxes of cooled boiled water, and add 2 more vanilla tubes. Stir the mixture thoroughly, taking care not to create foam.
Alternatively, you can use a blender and blend for a few minutes until the mixture is even and fluffy. You will see a lot of foam on the surface, but leave it there for a while until the foam is gone. If too much foam is mixed in, it can lead to the caramel cake getting pitted when steamed.
Step 2: Distill the stock (which is caramel)
Dry the pot, add white sugar, cook over low heat, the sugar dissolves, changes color to yellow and then cockroach brown. Boil over low heat. If the heat is too high, it will easily burn. The color will be too dark and may cause a burning smell. Boil the sugar until it’s brown, then pour a little water into the pot and boil until it becomes thick.
While it’s still hot, pour into each plastic cup about 1 tablespoon of caramel liquid. Wait a while for the water to dry. If you have time, let it cool on its own. If you don’t, just put it in the refrigerator for a few minutes.
Step 3: Steam the caramel cake
After finishing making the broth, go back to check the egg cream mixture in step 1, you will see that the layer of foam on the surface is almost gone. Gently pour the custard mixture into the cake mold after letting the caramel layer harden. Note that you must let the caramel layer harden before pouring in the egg cream mixture, otherwise these two layers will be mixed together.
Then put it in a steamer and let it simmer. During the steaming process, remember to remove water from the lid of the steamer to prevent water from dripping onto the surface of the caramel. Just steam for about 20 minutes.
The best way to check if the cake is ready or not is to stick a chopstick into the cake. If the cake doesn’t stick to the tip of the chopstick, the cake is cooked.
After the cake is cooked, let it cool and then put it in the refrigerator to use. When taking the cake out of the mold, gently score a knife around the edge of the mold and then slowly take the cake out, being careful to avoid breaking the cake.
Above are instructions on how to make traditional caramel. You can vary this caramel dish by eating it with fruit, coconut milk, jelly or buffalo pearls, etc., bringing a new and attractive flavor.
