Ginger Milk Pudding 薑汁撞奶

Ginger has a very long history. It is greatly treasured in the East. The medicinal and healthy benefits of ginger is undisputed. I still remember when I delivered my babies, ginger was with me for a whole month, ginger with vinegar, ginger in fried rice...


But ginger is not much used in sweets. For Americans, gingerbread men or ginger cookies are usually enjoyed during Christmas time (my kids do not like them, too many spices, they said). For Chinese, ginger milk pudding is widely popular. There is a saying in Chinese: the older you are, the more appreciative you are towards ginger. In other words, you'll like ginger more as you get older. It is so true. From a physiological point of view, the older you get, the less sensitive your taste buds are, so you can withstand more spicy food. This is also the reason why older folks want more salt and sugar in their food.

In making this dessert, the older the ginger, the better. It is the starch that is rich in old ginger that makes it gel up. Otherwise, it will just be sweet ginger milk. The temperature of the milk is also critical. In Pearl's Home Cooking, the author experimented with different temperatures and she came up with 180F to be the optimum temperature for success.

Makes one cup of pudding

1 1/2 tbsp ginger juice
1 cup whole milk
1 tsp sugar (adjust according to your taste)

1)  Peel and grate ginger. Pour the juice through a sieve into a small bowl.

let the juice sit for a few minutes and you can see the starch settles on the bottom

2)  Heat the milk with the sugar in a small pot to 180F.

3)  Mix a tablespoon of the hot milk with the ginger juice. Stir well.

4)  Pour the hot milk (from about six inches above the bowl) into the ginger juice. Do not move the bowl. Cover with a plate and wait about 5 minutes.

5)  Serve warm.

Note:

1)  The author recommends to use a microwave to heat up the milk, but I like to use a thermometer and the stove. It is more accurate. If you do not have a thermometer and would like to use microwave, the following is her recommendation for different watt ovens:
1000 watt use 2 minutes, 900 watt use 2 minutes and 12 seconds, 800 watt use 2 minutes and 30 seconds, 600 watt use 3 minutes.Check the specification of your microwave and use the appropriate time.
2)  The milk is used directly from the refrigerator.

薑汁撞奶

薑已有悠久歷史,在中式菜餚中更是常備的材料。薑的效用 是不可致疑。我還記得在我生了兒女後,薑更是我每餐必備,如薑醋,薑抄飯等等。

但是在甜品的世界裹,薑的角式卻不大。在西式食譜上,聖誕節有薑餅,在中式食譜中,薑汁撞奶
這款傳统甜品很受歡迎,年紀越大越鐘意食薑。

所謂薑越老越辣,做這款甜品要揀老薑,越老越容易成功,江獻珠在其食譜『珠璣小館』中指出,越老的薑越多薑粉,牛奶是否能凝固像豆腐花便靠薑粉的多少。另外一個重要因素便是牛奶的温度,她經過多種試驗,發覺當温度達至180F (82C),與薑汁混合時,牛奶便會凝結。

此份量可做一碗

一湯匙半薑汁
一杯(八安士)牛奶,全脂
一茶匙糖(視乎個人口味加減)

1)  薑去皮,磨茸入碗內,榨出汁,用密箕隔去薑碎。
2)  攪勻薑汁,加1 1/2湯匙入碗內。
3)  牛奶加糖放小鍋內用小火加熱至180F,離火。
4)  將一湯匙熱奶放入薑汁碗內攪勻,然後從高處向下將熱奶撞入碗中,不必攪勻,用碟蓋碗,靜待兩至五分鐘,趁熱食用。

注意事項:

1)  作者冮獻珠建議用微波爐將奶加熱,但我覺得用温度計比較準確。因不同微波爐有不同瓦特(watt),她在書中更提供了不同瓦特的爐要加熱的時間:
1,000 watt要2分鐘,900 watt要2分12秒,800 watt要2分30秒, 600 watt要3分鐘
2)  牛奶是從冰箱直接取出,放入微波爐的。