Wife cakes
Wife cakes are a traditional Cantonese flaky pastry, with a thin, shatteringly crisp shell around a chewy, fragrant candied winter melon filling. The pastry is made from two doughs, a water dough and an oil dough, rolled and folded together so they bake into dozens of delicate layers. The winter melon filling, mixed with sesame and coconut, is gently chewy and pleasantly sweet rather than cloying.
- Difficulty
- Hard
- Prep
- 1 hr
- Cook
- 25 min
- Rising or chilling
- 50 min
- Total time
- 2 hr 15 min
- Method
- Oven-baked
Ingredients
Water dough
Oil dough
Candied winter melon filling
Glaze
Instructions
Step 1
Mix 150 g all-purpose flour with 15 g powdered sugar, add 45 g lard and 60 g water and knead for about five minutes, then wrap tightly and let it rest for about 20 minutes. The water dough needs a little gluten so it is stretchy enough to wrap around the oil dough without tearing as you roll. It is ready when it is as soft and smooth as an earlobe, stretches when pulled gently and does not stick to your hands.
Step 2
Squeeze and rub 110 g cake flour together with 55 g lard by hand until it forms a soft mass, then wrap it and set it aside. The oil dough contains no water, so it forms no gluten, and it is what separates the layers of water dough as they bake. It is ready when it is evenly soft, about as soft as the water dough.
Step 3
Blend or finely chop 200 g candied winter melon and mix it with 40 g granulated sugar, 90 g water, 20 g vegetable oil, 20 g desiccated coconut and 15 g toasted white sesame seeds, then gradually sprinkle in 60 g roasted glutinous rice flour and mix well. The roasted glutinous rice flour absorbs moisture and binds the filling into a chewy mass without any cooking. The filling is ready when it forms a pliable mass you can roll into balls and stops sticking to your hands after resting a few minutes.
Step 4
Divide both the water dough and the oil dough into twelve pieces each, flatten a piece of water dough, set a piece of oil dough in the center and wrap it up completely, as you would a steamed bun. The two doughs must be equally soft so the layers stay even when rolled. You are done when you have twelve round balls with tightly pinched seams and no oil dough showing.
Step 5
Roll each ball into a long tongue shape, roll it up, turn it ninety degrees, then roll it out long again and roll it up once more; cover with plastic wrap and let rest for about 15 minutes. Rolling and coiling twice creates many thin alternating layers of water dough and oil dough. The dough is ready when the little coils feel firm and show even spirals when viewed from the end.
Step 6
Flatten each coil, roll it into a round about ten centimeters across, set a ball of filling in the center and wrap it up completely, then turn it seam side down and roll it gently into a flat cake about eight centimeters across. Rolling gently keeps the pastry layers from pressing together. The cakes are ready when they are evenly thick, nicely round and the filling does not show at the edges.
Step 7
Arrange the cakes on a tray lined with parchment paper, brush the tops with 18 g beaten egg yolks, sprinkle with 3 g white sesame seeds and cut two parallel slits in the top of each with a sharp knife. The slits let steam escape so the cakes do not puff up like balloons. You are finished when each cake has a thin golden coat of egg and two slits that reveal the filling.
Step 8
Bake on the middle rack of an oven preheated to 190°C for about 20 to 25 minutes. A fairly high heat makes the steam in the water dough puff the pastry layers apart quickly. The cakes are done when the tops are glossy golden, the edges have puffed into many flaky layers and the bottoms are pale golden.
Step 9
Let the cakes cool on a rack for about twenty minutes before eating. The winter melon filling is extremely hot straight out of the oven and needs time to turn chewy again. They are at their best when the pastry is crisp, flakes fall away at a light touch and the filling is soft and chewy.
Equipment
- Oven
- Mixing bowl
- Kitchen scale
- Rolling pin
- Baking sheet
- Parchment paper
- Pastry brush
- Plastic wrap
- Food processor
- Wire cooling rack
Tips
- If you would rather not use lard, you can use vegetable shortening instead; the pastry will still be flaky and crisp, just a little less fragrant.
- Keep the dough balls covered with plastic wrap while you work so the surface does not dry out and crack.
- Candied winter melon varies in sweetness by brand, so taste the filling first and adjust the sugar to your liking.
Storage
The cakes keep for three to four days in an airtight container at room temperature. When the pastry softens, simply rewarm them in a 160°C oven for about five minutes to crisp them up again.
Common problems and how to fix them
- The pastry does not separate into layers and is as hard as a cookie.
- The oil dough may have broken through while rolling, or the two doughs were not equally soft. Wrap the oil dough completely and let the dough rest long enough between rolls.
- The pastry tears and the filling pokes out when you flatten the cakes.
- The pastry was rolled too thin or the filling is too stiff. Roll the pastry a little thicker and make the filling moderately soft before wrapping.
This recipe is based on the common ratios for this bake and is written entirely in our own words.
