Malay Cake (Ma Lai Gou)

Back in the early 1930s, Malaya has a large immigrated population that brought various of dialects, culture and food into the country and thus it laid the foundation for cultural diversity of Malaysia today. Malaysia is a very multicultural country and our food culture is deeply influenced by multiculturalism. It features cuisines brought by immigrants from different countries. It’s Merdeka Day today (Malaysia’s Independence Day), and I celebrate it with Ma Lai Gou (Malay Sponge Cake). Though I do wish I had more time with Nasi Lemak but that’s for another day. Ma Lai Gou was made by the Cantonese during the British Colonisation. Now, it is a very famous dim sum cake. So let’s get started! 🇲🇾

Ingredients - 3 large eggs
-1/4 cup oil
- 3/4 cup brown sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp vanilla
- 1/3 cup evaporated milk
- 1 1/2 tbsp custard powder
- 1 cup cake flour (1 cup plain flour - 2 tbsp + 2 tbsp of corn starch)
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 3 1/2 tsp baking powder

1. Beat the eggs, oil and sugar in the mixing bowl until fluffy.
2. Add the vanilla, evaporated milk, custard powder, flour, baking powder and salt. Beat it for another minute. Break up any large lumps. Don’t overwork the batter the batter. Small lumps are okay.
3. Let the batter rest for 30 minutes. The dry ingredients will absorb and the baking powder will do its thing.
4. In a medium size bamboo steamer (or a cake tin), line it with baking paper and fold the batter to ensure the batter is well-combined.
5. Pour the batter into the steamer and let it sit for another 10 minutes.
6. Steam it on medium high heat for 30-35 minutes. Insert a toothpick into the centre of the cake and if it come out clean, then it’s cooked.
7. Transfer it to a cooling rack and let it cool slight before enjoying it while it is a little warm!