← Nouns Cooking · Malaysian & Singaporean

Ingredients

• 150 g fine rice flour
• 90 ml pandan water (or plain water), more as needed
• ¼ tsp Salt
• 100 g gula melaka (palm sugar), finely grated
• 60 g freshly grated coconut, steamed for 5 min with a pinch of salt
• 2 Pandan leaves, cut into squares, for serving

Method

1. Dry-toast the rice flour in a pan over low heat for 5 min, stirring, until it feels light and powdery but has not coloured. Cool completely.
2. Mix the salt into the water and sprinkle it over the flour a little at a time, rubbing with your fingertips into damp breadcrumbs that clump when squeezed. Sieve it for a fluffy texture.
3. Lightly fill small moulds (or tiny cups) with the crumbs, make a dip in the middle, add a teaspoon of gula melaka or coconut, and cover loosely with more crumbs. Level the top without pressing.
4. Turn the cakes out onto squares of pandan or baking paper on a steamer tray and steam over high heat for 6–8 min, until cooked through and fluffy.
5. Serve warm with extra grated coconut.

Tips

• Do not press the flour down: loosely packed crumbs give the light, crumbly texture.
• Kueh tutu is the Singapore name; across the causeway, the larger palm-sugar version is called putu piring.

Sources

Written in our own words after cross-checking these recipes:

What To Cook Today The Meatmen