Sachima

Sachima (or saqima) is a traditional Chinese egg pasty, which basically is made from fried egg noodles, and then mixed in syrup. The flavors and texture might differ from different regions, as people modifying the syrup and adding more and unique ingredients. But we all love its fluffy texture and strong aromatic flavor bought by noodles and deep-frying process. 

We all know how delicious deep-fried sweet bread is and this Sachima is another worthing trying dessert. During my childhood, Sachima was one of the greatest treat during holidays, although quite expensive.  It is also great idea to make sachima as holiday gifts. 

Although the process requires lots of wok, once you go through the process. It is quite simple. Keep the following note in mind then you can start making yummy sachima at home.

Cook’s Note

Caution first: this recipe need some basic understanding about the state of the syrup. If you are beginners, I highly recommend starting with a small batch and test first even with the recipe.

About the right type of flour
All purpose or bread four works better than cake flour. There is a misunderstanding about the type of the flours. Cake flour is commonly used in desserts and cakes which requires a fluffy texture. However we need strong gluten support for Sachima. It is quite similar with Youtiao, Chinese deep-fried oil stick. 

Size of the noodles
noodles for sachima should be short and thin. They expand a lot after deep-frying. Smaller strips make the final shape better.

How to determine the right time for frying the noodles
The simplest way is to add one noodle strip and count the time needed for floating. If it can float on surface less than 3 seconds, the oil temperature is just in the right range. 

The right temperature of the syrup
I recommend a syrup temperature between 115 degree C to 120 degree C. The syrup forms a soft texture. While high syrup temperature turns the dessert hard and crispy, just like how it performed in another popular Chinese dessert: peanut candy. 

Why I cook the syrup in another pot?

This is actually a question. Cook the syrup in a mixing pot seems more efficient, but I choose to cook the syrup in another pot. The reason is sometimes, not all of the syrup should be added. The surface of the noodles can be differ based on how the noodles are cut and fried. So we need to adjust the amount of syrup used to achieve a best result of coating all of the noodles lightly.  

How and when to cut the Sachima
You can cut your sachima in the baking tray when it is still warm but not hot. Or cut with a bread knife after cooled completely.

What if the syrup is not well cooked
There are two situations if the syrup is not well cooked. If the syrup is under cooked, it turns quite sticky after cooled down. Or if it is over cooked (higher than 200 Degree C), it turns quite crispy after cooled down like how it performs in sesame candy or peanut candy. 

Steps

Mix baking powder with all purpose flour and then add the egg in. Mix everything to a ball (set aside for 15 minutes if it is sticky )and continue kneading until smooth. The dough can be quite sticky at the very beginning but further with the kneading process, it presents a smooth texture. Cover the dough and rest for at least 30 minutes. I highly recommend resting the dough for 1 hour so it can be easier to roll out.  Do not knead the dough again after resting!!! 

Spread some dusting flour (starch flour the best ) on your operating board, and roll the dough into a large wrapper (around 30cm long). Cut the large pieces into several parts and then further cut the flour piece into thin strips.

Heat oil until really hot and test with one strip. Drop one strip in and see whether it can float immediately. If the strip lay down in the bottom of your pot, continue heating.

Fry the strips by small batches until slightly brown. Do not over fry the flour strips, otherwise cannot form soft texture. Shake off extra oil and then transfer all of the strips in a large pot.

In a deep sauce pot, place sugar, maltose, salt and water. Heat over medium fire until the syrup reaches 115 degree C (water the video to determine your syrup temperature ).  Don’t stir the syrup before the sugar dissolves and do not over cook the syrup.

Pour the syrup to noodles by 2 or 3 batches. Mix quickly and make sure every strip of noodles are well coated with syrup. (Need to be very quick). In winter days if the room temperature is too low, place the mixing pot on stove with slowest fire. 

Transfer them to a lined square mold. Slightly flatten to form better shapes. Wait until completely cooled down, cut into smaller pieces and serve. 

For the leftovers, package in air-tight bags and keep in room temperature up to 1 week. Do not leave it exposure in air, otherwise the humidity of the air can cause the sugar turns sticky again and further spoil the texture and taste. 

See how fluffy the inside the noodle strips.