Transcript of Roots & Recipes Interview

Interview with Luann (Mingie) Fong

August 29, 2009

Where did you get the recipe for gao?

I got the recipe from my mom. She was the one who made it every year for Chinese new year.

Is this food a tradition in the family?

Yes, like my mom, I make a pan for each sibling, one to serve at my Chinese New Year's dinner and extras are given to other family members.

Are there any memories that were because of making or eating gao?

My mom used to make gao every new years, and after she died in 1972, my dad and I said we would do it. A couple days before Chinese New Year, I took all the ingredients out and I waited for him to start. He was waiting for me to start. We both said we thought the other person knew what to do. As the years went by we got better because of the experience.

Does it have any symbolic meaning to the chinese culture?

- red hoong jow (red dates) = good luck

- sesame seeds = big family (many children)

- stickiness = family stays ("sticks") together

- red paper wrap and/or ti leaves = prosperity (wealth)

What does gao mean to our family?

Gao is a traditional chinese food at new years time. I make a pan for each [of my] sibling, and extras to serve and share. In sticking with the Chinese tradition, my mother told us to not eat the gao until after Chinese New Year. But now we are so anxious to eat it that we don't wait.

Ingredients?

- Mochiko or Gluten Flour

- (Chinese) brown sugar

- Water

- Wesson Oil

- Sesame Seeds

- Dried red Jujube {red date} (Hoong Jow)

- (OPTIONAL) Grated coconut

- (OPTIONAL) Coconut milk

Did you ever try to add an extra ingredient that wasn't in the recipe, maybe just to try it out?

mixed grated coconut; also, any left over gao can be sliced and dipped in a raw egg and fried or just fried by itself until crispy on the outside and soft throughout.

How do you make it? (recipe)

Round steaming container (8" wide and 4" deep) OR (8" wide and 1" deep)

1 lb. box of Mochiko or Gluten Flour

Liquid: 1 lb. of Chinese brown sugar (comes in blocks)

Boil in 2 cups of water. Cool and watch for any debris before adding.

Optional: You may add grated coconut or substitue half the liquid with coconut milk

Mix above and add 1/4 cup Wesson Oil. Mix well.

Fill pan until 1/8 from the top. It will rise during steaming and shrink back when cooled.

Steam for 6 to 8 hours for the 4" deep pan OR 2 hours for the 1" deep pan.