Sago Pudding

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •1.25-litre (5-cup) charlotte or pudding mould
• •2-litre heavy-bottomed saucepan
• •Deep roasting tin for the bain-marie
• •Balloon whisk
• •Broad flexible spatula

Instructions

1. 1

   Prepare the mould

   Heat the oven to 325°F (160°C) and bring a kettle of water to the boil. Coat the inside of a 1.25-litre charlotte or pudding mould with half the softened butter, reaching cleanly into every flute and corner. Add the moulding sago and roll the mould slowly until the base and sides wear an even scattering of pearls; tap out only those that remain completely loose. Set the mould in the cold while you make the pudding so the coating holds fast.

   Bare patches usually mean the butter was spread too thinly. Touch those places with a little more butter and roll the sago around again.
2. 2

   Swell the sago

   Combine the pudding sago, milk, and split vanilla bean in a heavy saucepan. Leave them together for 15 minutes, then bring the milk slowly to a bare simmer over medium-low heat. Cook for 25 to 35 minutes, stirring frequently and scraping the bottom and corners, until nearly every pearl is translucent with no more than a pinprick of white at its centre. The mixture should resemble loose porridge. If it clumps before the pearls soften, remove it from the heat and whisk in 1 tablespoon of warm milk at a time until it loosens. Ça se rattrape. Don't scrape up a scorched patch; transfer the unburnt mixture immediately to a clean pan.

3. 3

   Enrich the base

   Remove the vanilla bean. Whisk the egg yolks with the sugar and salt until smooth, then whisk in a ladleful of the hot sago to warm them gradually. Stir this tempered mixture back into the saucepan over the gentlest heat and cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly, until it thickens slightly without boiling. Take the pan off the heat and stir in the remaining butter. Let the base cool for about 10 minutes, stirring twice, until warm rather than hot; folded whites collapse against a scalding mixture.

4. 4

   Fold in the whites

   Beat the egg whites in a clean bowl until they form supple medium peaks, firm enough to hold a curve but not dry or grainy. Stir one-quarter of the whites into the sago base to lighten it, then fold in the remainder in two additions with a broad spatula, turning from the bottom of the bowl until no white streaks remain. Work gently but decisively. If the whites begin to weep while waiting, whisk them briefly until smooth again before folding.

5. 5

   Bake in bain-marie

   Spoon the mixture into the prepared mould, leaving at least 2.5 cm at the top for its rise, and smooth the surface without pressing out the air. Set the mould in a deep roasting tin and pour in enough boiling water to come halfway up its sides. Bake for 45 to 55 minutes, until the pouding is lightly golden, risen, and set around the edges while the centre retains a small, unified tremble. A thermometer inserted at the centre should read about 172°F to 176°F (78°C to 80°C). If the water begins boiling hard, lower the oven and add a little cool water to the tin; violent heat curdles the custard at the edge.

6. 6

   Rest and unmould

   Lift the mould from the bain-marie and let the pouding settle for 15 minutes. Place a shallow serving dish over the mould, hold both firmly, and invert them together in one confident movement. Wait several seconds before lifting the mould. If the pouding refuses to release, wrap the base and sides in a hot, damp cloth for 20 seconds and try again; don't carve around it and sacrifice the pearled edge. Serve warm or at room temperature, with cold heavy cream passed separately if you like. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Buy true small pearl sago from a South Asian or Southeast Asian grocer and read the label carefully. Tapioca pearls will set a pudding, but the source specifically calls for sago in the mixture and around the mould.
• •Add the sugar only after the grains are nearly tender. Sugar competes for moisture and can leave the centres stubbornly opaque if it enters too early; patient swelling is the whole technique.
• •A metal charlotte mould gives the cleanest rise and release. A straight-sided metal mixing bowl of the same capacity will work, though the finished pouding will be domed rather than fluted.
• •A vanilla bean gives the milk a round perfume without obscuring the sago. If the bean isn't sensible for the budget, stir in 2 teaspoons (10 ml / 9 g) vanilla extract after the saucepan leaves the heat.
• •The pouding is deliberately gentle in sweetness. Pass cold cream at the table rather than burying it beneath a complicated sauce; cooking well is not cooking fancy.

Advance Preparation

• •The pouding can be baked one day ahead. Let it cool completely in its mould, cover, and chill; bring it out 30 minutes before unmoulding so the butter softens enough to release cleanly.
• •For the lightest texture, the cooked sago base may be prepared up to 30 minutes before the egg whites are folded in. Keep it covered and warm, because a cold, firmly set base will knock the air from the whites.
• •Leftovers keep covered in the cold for up to two days. Serve them cool or let them lose their chill naturally; reheating can tighten the custard.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 200g)