Pong Tai Hai – Light and Cool Dessert

Helooooooo, no naughty thoughts on the name of this dessert, okay! LOL! I learned to cook this dessert from Jaymee Ong’s (the Chinese Australian parentage, sultry model) show in Asian Food Channel, Just Desserts. Pong Tai Hai (in Hokkien dialect, scientific name Scaphium Spp, Malay Name Kembang Semangkuk) is a type of fruit that will expand when you soak it in water. Then you have to remove the skins, fibre and seeds before you can cook it. Pong Tai Hai is quite commonly seen in Leng Chee Kang stalls in Penang and also in other northern states in Malaysia. The texture of the flesh is jelly like and smooth. You can purchase this fruit from Chinese medicine shop. Pong Tai Hai has cooling effect on the body and I heard that, over consumption of this fruit can make you bald. So if you want to have ‘botak’ (bald) hairstyle like ‘Kojak’, then you should buy I kilogram of this fruit and consume all of them in one sitting. It is good to safe money on haircut during this economical downturn period! Ha ha ha! Don’t worry, the addition of chestnuts (which are known to be heaty) in this dessert balanced off the cooling effect of Pong Tai Hai. This is a cool and light in taste type of dessert. Very suitable to be eaten on a hot day!

Ingredients
Pong Tai Hai, 9 to 10 fruits, soaked in water, remove seeds, fibre and skins
Chest nuts, 7 pcs, soaked in boiling water to soften and remove the red fibre inside
Chinese yellow pear, 1 pc, slice into thin strips
Rock Sugar to taste 2 bowl of water

 Pour the water into a pot and bring to a boil. Add chest nuts and boil until it turns soft. Add pear, pong tai hai and rock sugar. Boil for a short while. This dessert is best eaten chilled! Pong Tai Hai fruits before soaking in water..........Expanding in water! Final result, fully expanded!...................................The flesh after removing the impurities! Clockwise from top, the flesh, seed and skins.......Skins, fibre and seeds that was removed!

Related post on Dessert : 1) http://peteformation.blogspot.com/2009/06/thab-thim-krab-water-chestnut-with.html 2) http://peteformation.blogspot.com/2009/05/pong-tai-hai-light-and-cool-dessert.html 3) http://veganformation.blogspot.com/2008/12/vegetarian-sweet-potatoes-dessert-tong.html 4) http://veganformation.blogspot.com/2008/12/wheat-dessert-with-coconut-palm-sugar.html