Steamers & Steaming Tips (Periuk Pengukus & Tip)

Steamer #1  (Pengukus #1)

Everytime I posted steamed cakes/kuih, I received the same repeated questions about steaming equipment, handling and method. Therefore I'm hoping this entry will help to answer those questions.

Di sini Along nak kongsi beberapa tip/maklumat pengukus dan cara2 menggunakan nya sebab banyak soalan yang berkenaan yang Along terima. Di harap n3 ini dapat menjawab soalan2 tersebut.

QUESTIONS & ANSWERS / SOALAN2 & JAWAPAN2:

 1. Type of steamer that I used /Jenis periuk kukus yang Along guna?
--> Steamer #1: 8" diameter and the bottom pot is 8" high. Suitable for cakes, apam, talam, glutinous rice, etcs. Cake batter is poured directly into the upper steamer pot. Particularly useful for long hours of steaming (>4 hours) without water replenishment. All my Sarawak steamed cakes used Steamer 1. It has high dom shape cover preventing water from dripping onto the cake. My cakes turned out fluffy & not soaked. Drawback: fixed and small size and  cakes can only be round not square shape.

Pengukus #1: lebar ukur pusat 8" and ketinggian periuk air 8". Sesuai untuk kek, apam, talam, pulut, kuih, dll. Adunan kek di tuang terus ke dlm periuk lapisan atas. Kelebihan nya ialah tak payah menambah air untuk kukusan yang lama (>4 jam). Memudahkan kerja apabila Along buat kek Sarawak yg sememang nya mengambil masa mengukus yg sangat lama. Tudung yg berbentuk dom tinggi mengelakkan air menitik ke atas kuih/kek. Kek masak dgn gebu dan tidak basah. Kelemahan: saiz kek kecil dan hanya bentuk bulat.

Steamer #2 (Pengukus #2)

--> Steamer #2: 14" diameter. Suitable for cakes, apam, talam, pao, etcs. For cakes, pour into a round/square tin & cover with aluminium foil before placing into the steamer to prevent from soaked by dripping water. Due to wide diameter but low height, water get dried easily and can only last up to 2 hours. Particularly useful for small cakes/kuih like apam cups, paos due to its big size. Also useful for my square tin and big size round cake.

Pengukus #2: lebar ukur pusat 14". Sesuai untuk kek, apam, talam, kuih pau, dll. Untuk kek, setelah adunan di tuangkan ke dlm tin, hendaklah di tutup dgn kertas aluminium utk mengelakkan air menitik ke atas kuih. Bentuk periuk yg lebar & rendah menyebabkan air mudah kering dan hanya cukup utk 2 jam. Kelebihan: bersaiz besar berguna utk kuih pau, kuih2 kecil seperti apam cawan sbb boleh kukus dgn banyak sekali gus. Juga mudah pelbagaikan saiz tin dan bentuk samada bulat / persegi.

 

 Steamer #3 (Pengukus #3)

 --> Steamer #3: 24cm/9" diameter. The upper steamer has small holes which is suitable for steaming glutinous rice, vegetables, chicken, etcs. Not suitable for cakes/kuih unless you are making a small batch. I tried making chicken rice with steamed chicken in the top pot and simulataneously rice at the bottom pot - turned out lovely.

Pengukus #3: lebar ukur pusat 24cm/9". Sesuai utk mengukus pulut/beras/ayam/ubi dll. Tidak sesuai utk mengukus kek sebab saiz yg kecil. Along cuba kukus ayam di atas dan masak nasi di bawah dgn serentak.... sedap.

 --> Steamer #4: Just used any type of wok. Place a wire ring as shown below and 1-2" water and then place a cake tin or a plate of fish. Alternatively place a steamer plate (3rd photo below) and can be use to steam vegetables, cup cakes or reheating food. Suitable for short steaming.

Pengukus #4: Guna apa2 jenis kuali. Cara nya, letak jaring besi di dalam 1-2" air. Letakkan tin kek/kuih/sepinggan ikan di atasnya. Sesuai untuk mengukus masa pendek atau memanaskan makanan.

 Steamer #4 (Pengukus #4)

 

2. How to prevent water from dripping onto the cake / Bagaimana nak mengelakkan air dari menitik ke atas kuih?
--> Steamer #1 by design will solve this problem. For other types of steamer, cover cake tin with aluminium foil. Alternatively wipe the cover occasionally (may not be suitable for some recipes).
--> Pengukus #1 di reka bentuk supaya air tidak menitik ke atas kuih. Jika anda menggunakan jenis periuk yg lain, hendaklah di tutup tin kuih dgn kertas aluminium. Cara lain untuk mengelakkan air menitik ialah dgn mengelap tudung sekali-sekala (mungkin tak sesuai untuk sesetengah resepi).

3. Is it ok to open the steamer cover in the middle of steaming in order to replenish water / Bagaimana nak menggantikan air yang kering sewaktu masa mengukus?
--> For long steaming hours like Sarawak steamed cake, you need to replenish the water when it dried up. Just lift the upper pot containing the cake without opening the cover. Quickly pour in boiling water into the bottom pot and place back the top pot. Do not use cold water as that will stop the cooking process. Suggest to ensure enough water for at least the first an hour or more before lifting the upper pot to replenish water in order to avoid cake from shrinking.

--> Kek yg mengambil masa yg sangat lama utk mengukus seperti kek Sarawak, air kukusan perlu di tambah apabila kering. Cara untuk menambah air, angkat periuk bahagian atas & tuang air menggelegak ke dalam periuk secepat nya dan letak semula periuk tadi. Jangan buka tudung periuk bahagian atas. Jangan tambah air yg sejuk kerana ia akan menyebabkan proses memasak terhenti. Pastikan air mencukupi untuk mengukus sekurang2 nya 1+ jam supaya kek tak terbantut.

4. How big is fire for steaming / Nak guna api besar mana untuk mengukus?
--> I used medium fire for all my cakes but ensure that water has been rapidly boiled before start steaming. Big fire will cause the cakes to crack on surface. For cupcakes/apam use big fire if you want it to blossom. Small fire is not recommended for steaming cakes as that will cause the cake texture to become compact and not fluffy. I used medium-low fire for steaming all my talam kuih.

--> Along guna api sederhana untuk semua jenis kek tapi pastikan air betul2 menggelegak sebelum meletakkan kek ke dlm pengukus. Api yg kuat akan menyebabkan kek merekah, kecuali apabila mengukus kek cawan yang sememang nya maukan ia merekah/mekar. Api yg terlalu perlahan akan membantatkan kek. Untuk kuih talam, along guna api yg sederhana kecil.

5. Hope it is useful - let me know if anymore questions.
Ada apa2 soalan lagi....? Di harap panduan ini berguna dan yang bertanya berpuas hati.