Chinese cruller (you tiao) recipes

[tatamagouche]

Does anyone know of a really good Chinese American cookbook containing these?

[lyntc10]

This is what I've heard isn't bad. But no one in my family has ever tried to make them, maybe because we're terrified of all that oil. We just buy the frozen ones at the store or the ones they sell in the food stalls in Malaysia, and having tasted both, I'd say the frozen ones are pretty similar to the ones that people make.
Ingredients:
6 C. ( 1 1/2 lbs) high protein flour
2 C. water
oil
2 t. ammonium bicarbonate or I T. baking powder
2 t. baking soda
11/2 t. alum* (food grade)
1 1/2 t. Salt

Preparation instructions:
1: Place ingredients A in a mixing bowl; add water and stir until the ingredients have dissolved. Add flour and mix well; let stand for 15-
20 minutes. Use your hand to take some dough around edges and drop it into the center of the dough; let stand for 15-20 minutes. Continue to
drop the dough in the center of the bowl 3 or 4 times until the dough is elastic and smooth. Turn the dough over and lightly coat the surface
with oil so that the dough will stay moist. Let it stand for I hour.Remove the dough from the bowl and place it on a sheet of plastic
wrap; wrap the dough and form it into a rectangular shape. Let it stand for 4 hours. If a large batch is made, cut the dough into several I I/; lose
pieces then wrap each piece in a sheet of plastic wrap.

2: Unwrap the dough. Use a rolling pin to roll the dough and attech if into a long strip (Fig. 1). Roll the dough into a rectangular shape, 3" wide and
1/16 thick (Fig. 2). Crosswise cut the rectangular shaped dough into strips, 1/3 wide (Fig. 3). Put two strips on top of each other Fig, 4); Use
a thin rod (skewer) or the back of a cleaver to press lengthwise in middle of the strips (Fig. 5); this will attach them securely to each
other. Follow the same step for the other strips. Heat the oil for deep-frying; pick up a strip from the ends and gently stretch it to make it
longer (Fig. 6). Carefully drop it into the hot oil and turn it over continuously with chopsticks until the cruller expands and turns golden
brown; remove.

The hot cutlers may be placed in split "Flaky Sesame Flat Breads" (''Shau Bing") or served with "Salty or Sweet Soy Bean Milk".
* Alum may be omitted if it is unavailable.

[buttertart]

I think they are in the Wei-Chuan Chinese Snacks and possibly in Florence Lin's book on noodles and dumplings - will check and let you know. They require an unusual leavener I believe.