Ginger milk curd (薑汁撞奶)
A Cantonese dessert that sets itself: hot sweetened milk poured onto fresh ginger juice turns into a silky, gently spicy custard in minutes.
- Prep
- 10 min
- Cook
- 5 min
- Serves
- 2
Method
- 1
Make the ginger juice. Peel and finely grate the ginger, then squeeze it through a piece of muslin or press it through a fine sieve. You need about 2 tablespoons of juice. Divide it between 2 small bowls.
- 2
Heat the milk. Warm the milk and sugar in a small pan, stirring, until it reaches 70 to 75°C — steaming, but well before any bubbles appear. A kitchen thermometer helps.
- 3
Pour. Stir the ginger juice in each bowl (the starch settles), then pour half the milk into each bowl in one go, from a little height. Don't stir.
- 4
Leave to set for 5 to 10 minutes without moving the bowls. It's ready when a spoon laid gently on top doesn't sink. Eat warm.
About this dish
There's no gelatine or egg in this dessert: a natural enzyme in fresh ginger sets the milk. It's a classic from Shunde (順德) in Guangdong, sold in dessert shops all over Hong Kong — and a sweet way to have some ginger during the confinement month.
If it doesn't set
- Check the milk temperature. Boiling milk stops the ginger enzyme working; milk that's too cool won't set either. Aim for 70 to 75°C.
- Use fresh, mature ginger. Old, dried-out ginger or young ginger may not have enough of the enzyme.
- Use whole milk. Lower-fat milk gives a softer, less reliable set.
- Stir the juice just before pouring — the starch sinks to the bottom of the bowl.
Sources
About these recipes
- These are traditional home recipes, shared for cultural interest. They are not medical or nutritional advice, and we don’t claim any dish treats, prevents or cures anything.
- If you have allergies, gestational diabetes or a special diet, or take any medicines or herbal remedies, check with your midwife, health visitor, GP or pharmacist before changing what you eat.
- Follow UK food-safety advice: cook meat, fish and eggs thoroughly; cool leftovers and get them into the fridge within 1 to 2 hours; eat them within 2 days; and reheat only once, until steaming hot.
- Some recipes contain alcohol, and cooking doesn’t remove all of it. If you’re breastfeeding, read our guide to ginger vinegar and chicken in rice wine first.
Experienced carers cook dishes like these every day of the confinement month, and adjust them to how you’re feeling.
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