Pan-fried Nian Gao with Egg
by wiffy on January 27, 2012
in Asian,Chinese,Chinese New Year Recipes,Eggs,Grilling & Pan Frying,Recipes,Singapore
Similar Recipe: Nian Gao Sweet Potato “Sandwich” & Nian Gao in Grated Coconut
Chinese like to keep nian gao or Chinese New Year Cake at home during the lunar new year celebrations for auspiciousness. The Chinese word “nian gao” 年糕 sounds like “higher year” so it signifies greater success in the coming year. The stickiness also represents family togetherness and closeness. After the celebrations, my mother will usually pan-fry the nian gao with egg for breakfast. She will dip the nian gao slices in nothing else but beaten egg, but trying her method out myself, I find that the egg do not stick to the nian gao well. So I made a light egg batter with flour and I find that the egg batter works much better this time round. Try out this easy recipe if you have leftover nian gao lying around. Serve it with Chinese tea to aid digestion as nian gao is sticky and filling. For tip on cutting nian gao, check out the cooking note and photos on page 2.
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Pan-fried Nian Gao with Egg Recipe
- Serves: 4-6 (as a snack)
- Prep: 10 mins
- Cook: 15 mins
"Nian Gao" is eaten during Chinese New Year as it signifies success and togetherness. Serve this snack with Chinese tea to aid digestion as nian gao is sticky and filling.
Ingredients
- 300 grams nian gao 年糕 (tikoy)
- 2 eggs beaten
- 5 tbsp plain flour sifted
- 1/2 tbsp cornflour or baking soda sifted
- 1 tbsp ice water
- pinch of salt
- 1 tbsp cooking oil
Instructions
- Slice the nian gao to uniform, thin square pieces.
- In a bowl, whisk eggs, flour, cornflour (or baking soda), water and salt until the batter is of a semi-thick and smooth consistency.
- Heat a pan with oil. Dip nian gao slices in egg batter and pan-fry in batches (add more oil if needed), until lightly browned on both sides. Serve with Chinese tea.
(Get the step-by-step photos, cooking notes and ingredient list on page 2)
Pages: 1 2
Ingredients Used baking soda • egg • flour • nian gao • oil • salt
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{ 24 comments… read them below or add one }
Interesting dish! It looks like French Toast….sorta? Beautiful photos! :)
Oh yes, it does look like French toast… reminder that I have not made it for some time :D
that’s the way I eat it back at home-and if I do get my hands on nian gao- this year, we are watching our sugar intake, so not having this but just looking at this makes me drool.
Must try it
YUMMY! I just loved the nian gao!
In Malaysia, nian gao is known as “kuih bakul”. My mother-in-law also told me about frying it with egg batter. Now, I’m excited to try it out. How many nian gao did you use for this recipe?
I learnt a new name for it, thanks. I used one nian gao for this recipe.
I love egg battered nian gao too!
Wow. I am literally drooling over these pictures!
Thanks for the recipe. If I use sweet potatoes, do I have to boil the sweet potatoes first?
I usually have nian gao fried with dough, but fried with egg does sound like an interesting AND yummy idea! definitely trying this with my excess nian gao :)
You can either boil or pan-fry first.
I just had nian gao for breakfast yesterday but I just fried it with beaten eggs only. Can I use potato starch instead of flour for the egg-flour batter ?
Hi sorry I am not sure if it will turn out too starchy as I have not tried it before, but you can give it a try.
This is how we ate nian gao when we were younger too :)
I love to eat this with fish and milk. Tea is also good to serve with…
The fried cake pieces look golden and delicious! What a great use of leftover cakes.
Intriguing! Like toast, or prata, but those who know nian gao, know that it’s sticky and sweet and so this dish comes across really intriguingly. Feels like I’ve had it before in my youth but it’s been so long, I wish I could taste this right now!
Hey.. I would just like to ask can I replace the flour with cornflour? :)
yup, you can do so.
Hi,
It looks good. But just a question though.
How do you preserve your nian gao?
Mine always gets fungus on it even when I cut them into small pieces and put them in an airtight container in the fridge.
I usually put my nian gao in a spring roll wrap and fry them.
Happy New Year in advance!
I never have problem with fungus as I put them in the fridge. Don’t even need container. But I only slice them before cooking, not beforehand.
Love this dish very much but does it matter if the Nian gao is hard or soft? Cos my Nian Gao is soft now
check out page 2 of the recipe for tip on how to cut nian gao easily.