The red colour of this Natural Red Hee Pan is contributed by red yeast rice powder. Red yeast rice is usually available at Chinese Medicine shop, it doesn’t have any flavour but is a good natural red colouring. Beetroot juice is not suitable for this Natural Red Hee Pan recipe as its colour will fade when steamed over high heat for long period.

Check out other popular Hee Pan (Xi Ban) recipes from us: https://mykitchen101en.com/category/kuihs-pastries/sweet/hee-pan/

CHINESE VERSION: 天然红彩喜粄

natural red hee pan

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Natural Red Hee Pan (Xi Ban) | MyKitchen101en

Yields: 12 pcs

Ingredients:

  • 180 g pandan infused hot water*
  • 120 g sugar
  • 1 tsp instant yeast + 1 tbsp plain water
  • 170 g plain flour
  • 170 g glutinous rice flour
  • 1 ½ tsps red yeast rice powder**
  • 3 tbsps corn oil (or other vegetable oil)

Directions:

1 Prepare 12 pieces of round banana leaves (diameter = 9.5 cm), then coat with oil.

Red yeast hee pan xi ban

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2 *Pandan infused hot water: Boil 250 g of water with 3 pcs of pandan leaves until you smell the pandan fragrance. Measure out 180 g of hot water. (Reminder: You may just use hot water if couldn’t get pandan leaf.)

Red yeast hee pan xi ban

3 Add sugar to pandan infused hot water, stir until fully dissolved, set aside to cool.

Red yeast hee pan xi ban

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4 Add 1 tbsp of water to instant yeast, mix well.

Red yeast hee pan xi ban

5 Sieve together plain flour, glutinous rice flour and red yeast rice powder, mix well. (Reminder: **Red yeast rice is usually available at Chinese Medicine shop. Grind red yeast rice into fine powder using dry mill grinder and sift through before using. Keep unused portion refrigerated for storage.)

Red yeast hee pan xi ban

6 Add in cooled sugar syrup and instant yeast, mix into a dough with chopsticks. Add in corn oil, knead until well blended.

Red yeast hee pan xi ban

7 Divide dough into 12 portions (57 g each).

Red yeast hee pan xi ban

8 Coat palms with oil, shape dough into a ball, put onto a piece of banana leaf, press lightly with palms, then arrange in steamer racks.

Red yeast hee pan xi ban

9 Bring 500 ml of water to the boil in steamer, off the heat, then add in 1 Liter of plain water.

Red yeast hee pan xi ban

10 Put steamer racks over the warm water, cover and proof for 30 minutes. (Reminder: Bamboo steamer is suggested for steaming as it prevents condensation water from dripping onto hee pan).

Red yeast hee pan xi ban
Red yeast hee pan xi ban

11 After proofing for 30 minutes, turn to high heat until water is boiling (about 3 minutes), then reduce to medium heat and steam for another 12 minutes. When steaming is done, slightly open the lid to leave a gap, allow Natural Red hee pan to cool for 5 minutes in the steamer before removing.

Red yeast hee pan xi ban

12 Set aside to cool completely before serving.

Red yeast hee pan xi ban

Natural Red Hee Pan (Xi Ban)

The red colour of this Natural Red Hee Pan is contributed by red yeast rice powder. Beetroot juice is not suitable for this recipe as its colour will fade when steamed over high heat for long period.

  • 180 g pandan infused hot water*
  • 120 g sugar
  • 1 tsp instant yeast + 1 tbsp plain water
  • 170 g plain flour
  • 170 g glutinous rice flour
  • 1 ½ tsps red yeast rice powder**
  • 3 tbsps corn oil (or other vegetable oil)
  1. Prepare 12 pieces of round banana leaves (diameter = 9.5 cm), then coat with oil.



  2. *Pandan infused hot water: Boil 250 g of water with 3 pcs of pandan leaves until you smell the pandan fragrance. Measure out 180 g of hot water. (Reminder: You may just use hot water if couldn’t get pandan leaf.)



  3. Add sugar to pandan infused hot water, stir until fully dissolved, set aside to cool.



  4. Add 1 tbsp of water to instant yeast, mix well.



  5. Sieve together plain flour, glutinous rice flour and red yeast rice powder, mix well.



  6. Add in cooled sugar syrup and instant yeast, mix into a dough with chopsticks. Add in corn oil, knead until well blended.

  7. Divide dough into 12 portions (57 g each).



  8. Coat palms with oil, shape dough into a ball, put onto a piece of banana leaf, press lightly with palms, then arrange in steamer racks.

  9. Bring 500 ml of water to the boil in steamer, off the heat, then add in 1 Liter of plain water.

  10. Put steamer racks over the warm water, cover and proof for 30 minutes. (Reminder: Bamboo steamer is suggested for steaming as it prevents condensation water from dripping onto hee pan).



  11. After proofing for 30 minutes, turn to high heat until water is boiling (about 3 minutes), then reduce to medium heat and steam for another 12 minutes. When steaming is done, slightly open the lid to leave a gap, allow Natural Red hee pan to cool for 5 minutes in the steamer before removing.

  12. Set aside to cool completely before serving.



Red yeast rice is usually available at Chinese Medicine shop. Grind red yeast rice into fine powder using dry mill grinder and sift through before using. Keep unused portion refrigerated for storage.

hee pan/xi ban
Chinese, hakka
hee pan, natural red hee pan, natural red xi ban, xi ban