Image credit: 3than Wong
Cakoi, or Youtiao is a common snack for Malaysians alike. Cakoi is a long-shaped, golden brown fried dough snack. It is present in mainly Chinese and Indo-Chinese cuisine. Normally, it is eaten during breakfast with rice porridge, starch or soybeans. In some parts of the northern peninsula of Malaysia, cakoi is also known as patongko, which is the origin of the word from Thailand which also refers to this type of kuih.
Homemade Cakoi
Image credit: 3than Wong
Ingredients
- 300 g
All Purpose Flour - 200 ml Water (or milk)
- ½ tsp
Salt - 2 tsp
Sugar - 1 tsp
Baking Soda - 1 tsp
Instant Yeast - 1 tbsp
Oil (options – melted butter, or margarine)
Instructions
Dough
- Prepare a clean and large mixing bowl
- Add all purpose flour, salt, sugar, baking soda and instant yeast into the mixing bowl.
- Use a fork to mix them up.
- Then begin adding water a little at a time and continue to stir to mix in the water.
- Once all the water is added, keep mixing with the fork until you have a dough that begins to form.
- Scrap off all the dough from the fork and the side of the mixing bowl.
- Begin kneading with your hand. Knead until dough becomes smooth.
- Add oil and knead until all the oil is absorbed into the dough.
- At this stage the dough should be slightly sticky and moist.
- Roll the dough into a round shape.
- Then add 1 tsp of oil onto the dough and gently apply it around the dough.
- Also oil the surface of the mixing bowl.
- Leave the dough inside the mixing bowl, keep covered with cling wrap and let it rise for 1 hour.
Cutting and Shaping
- Generously flour your working table and then gently transfer the risen dough onto the floured area.
- Again flour the dough.
- Then gently pull and shape it into a rectangular shape
- Use a rolling pin and gently roll into 3 – 4 mm thickness of elongated rectangular shape.
- Then cut them into about 1 inches width (2.5cm width).
- Prepare a bowl of clean water and a clean bamboo skewer.
- Use the skewer to press in the middle of the dough vertically as the length of the dough to create a middle lining. Do this step to alternate pieces of the dough.
- Then dip the skewer in the water and again slightly moist the middle line of the dough.
- Once the middle line is moist, place the non-lined piece of dough on top of the lined dough
- Then again with the skewer, gently press on the middle to ensure that the top piece sticks to the bottom piece.
- Repeat this process until all the cut dough is done.
Deep Frying
- Preheat cooking oil to 180°C in a frying pan.
- Gently lift up a piece of dough and slightly stretch it and put it into the hot oil.
- As it is being fried, turn it consistently to ensure it is well fried.
- Once it becomes a golden brown shade, transfer to a plate, and serve.
Recipe credit: 3than Wong
