Chinese White Honeycomb Cake -Version 2 Rose's

Looks pretty?
High and tall and porous honeycombs?

Yeah, it looks better then my previous attempt, looks better as in, it looked the way it should look. But I don't like this. Please read all below to find out why.

This is Rose's recipe

280g rice flour
280g sugar
600ml water
3 pandan leaves, knotted
1 tsp dried yeast
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tbsp cooking oil

Method:

1. Add 300ml water to the rice flour and mix well.
2. Boil sugar with 300ml water, salt and pandan leaves. When boiling, pour syrup into rice flour mixture. Stir well and strain mixture. Leave aside to cool.
3. Dissolve 1 tsp yeast in 2 tbsp lukewarm water and add to cooled rice mixture. Stir well, cover and leave to leaven for 11/2 to 2 hours till small tiny bubbles appear.
4. Grease and preheat a 30 cm round tray in steamer.
5. Add 1/2 tbsp oil to leavened mixture, stir well and pour into heated tray. Steam for 20 minutes.

Why did I choose this recipe as my 2nd atempt. It is one version that does not use any additional starch and it uses the express fermentation process, 2 hours. It is similiar to a few other recipes that many some suggested me to try, and they all use yeast and only rice flour, similar preparation process, so the results should be the same. Actually I've already book marked all the recipes I wanted to experiment with before I told you guys I wanted to do 4 versions.

So, with the two express versions that I did, with and without starch, which did I prefer?

The one with additional starch.

This version may look good, but taste wise, I don't really like it, cos it tasted a bit grainy. Don't tell me it's due to my rice flour. I used the same brand as Rose used. If you have tried eating Lai Fun that is traditional, made with just rice .. you'll understand what I mean. Traditional Lai Fun doesn't taste smooth on the palate, and it is brittle and grainy. Same goes for this version of pak thong gou.

But non traditional Lai Fun, like those you eat with Assam Laksa or Penang Laksa, is more pliable, bouncy, a lot more smoother, all due to the presence of additional starch.

I hope you understand what I'm trying to explain. I'm not trying to put down any versions, but this is just my personal opinion.

This version is just not for me. Actually I made this recipe twice, and I felt the same way twice. The white ones are my 2nd attempt with the 2nd version , and the one below is my 1st attempt with the 2nd version.

This one, my 1st attempt with Rose's recipe, was done with 2 types of sugars, white and palm, and later marbled into one cake. The marble effect wasn't obvious.

The honeycomb effect here is better than my 1st version but not as good as the 2nd attempt with Rose version above. The same recipe, but why different. Simply due to me cooking the mixture slightly to thicken it.

Me being the smartypants, with experience from the 1st version, thought eh, why this batter is so liquidy??? So I cooked it for a while to thicken it, but not as thick as before. And the outcome, short honeycombs. Then I learnt something, the reason for my termite mound interior with my 1st version is due to me cooking the batter thick!!!!

And now from then on, if I want to make a good express Bak Thong Goh, I'll use the 1st version recipe, but not to cook it. Then I'll have a nice bouncy, non grainy, high honeycombs Pak Tong Ko.

My next try out version : Aunty Yochana's 3-4 day version