Go Big or Go Boom, Bake Your Own Rice Cooker Cake (Bomb)

Go Big or Go Boom: How to Bake Your Own Rice Cooker Cake (the Right Way)

Zeus Zou, Associate Editor | Mar 9, 2020 2:22 pm | Add a comment | 914 reads

Everyone nowadays likes to claim that they are a foodie and flood their social media accounts with beautifully retouched pictures of food... but the reality is that with most Chinese youth chained to a 996 working schedule, and spoiled by cheap food delivery services only a few clicks away, the nation's average cooking skills are still in serious need of improvement.

And then suddenly, we've been blessed with so much time in the kitchen that maybe, just maybe, we might become as good a cook as all of our grandmas combined. Whether the self-quarantined have been giving it their best shot in the kitchen to impress their friends, nurture a hobby, save some money, adopt a healthier diet, or just simply try to survive due to a shortage of delivery services, Chinese (and foreigners) have found a sort of culinary renaissance – to varying results.

One recipe that has viral during this unusual period is a cake that you can bake with a rice cooker. At least, that's what people are trying to make.

Warning: Explosive and biohazard weapon ahead.

Three... two... one... ready?

If you haven't completely lost your appetite after laying eyes on the above kitchen nightmares, there is actually a right way to cook a cake in a rice cooker that won't alert the authorities to a bomb scare nor shame you out of cooking forever. Let's get to it!

Recipe for (non-explosive) rice cooker cake

Ingredients:

100g self-raising flour (sieved)
4 eggs
45ml milk
25ml oil
70g sugar
White vinegar or lime juice

Method

Separate the egg yolks from the whites into two separate bowls.
Break the egg yolks and gradually add 10g (about two tablespoons) of sugar. Add the milk once the yolk mixture is a brighter yellow, then add the oil and continue to mix to ensure all ingredients are blended.
Sieve the flour and add, mixing evenly till the dough is lump-free. Take care not to overmix. Put aside.
Take the bowl containing the egg whites, add a few drops of white vinegar or lime juice, and whisk. Gradually introduce the remainder of the sugar in three batches: once when bubbles appear in the egg whites, again when the mixture starts to become smooth, and finally when the egg whites start to take shape. Take care to mix evenly, and whisk until firm peaks form in the mixture.
Brush the inside of your rice cooker with a thin layer of oil, and set to preheat.
Add one-third of the egg white to your yolk blend and mix them evenly, then pour the whole mixture back into the remaining bowl with the egg whites and gently combine, again taking care not to overmix.
Wearing oven gloves, remove the inner bowl of your rice cooker, pour the mixture in, and gently tap it against the countertop to remove any air pockets.
Return to the rice cooker, and cook on "heating" mode for 20 minutes, then switch to the "rice cooking" mode for another 40 minutes. Resist the urge to open the lid until the full cooking time has elapsed!
Once cooked, remove your cake from the rice cooker, tip upside down onto a plate, cut, serve, and enjoy.