Tamu Time

Tamu Time

Come with me as I explore and enjoy the local flavours Brunei has to offer.

Tamu time pairs one fresh ingredient of Brunei’s markets with pantry staples to create delicious new creations.

Lovely fresh sweet corn from the market

Sweet corn was in the market this week. Using tips from the guardian and the base of the Brazilian carrot cake, I have created a cake using all the sweet corn, husks in the syrup and home made fresh corn polenta.
It is a bit fiddly as each process takes time but the result is a golden treat.


Scrape the corn from the husks (and put aside). Put the husks in a large pan and cover with water, bring to the  boil and simmer for 5 minutes.
250 g caster sugar


Add the sugar to the water and continue to simmer until the water has reduced and water looks syrupy( about 35 minutes). Turn and squeeze the husks occasionally. It is fine to have some bits of sweet corn in the syrup.
Juice of 2 limes


Remove the husks when syrup is reduced and add the lime juice and simmer for about couple of minutes. Take off heat and leave until you need it.

Sweetcorn polenta
Put the corn you have saved from the husk in a blender with 20 / 50 mls of water and blend until smooth.
Press into a sauce pan through a metal sieve. When the husky bits are left, put them through the blender again with a bit of water. Repeat until the fibrous bits are dry, discard. Heat the creamy juice in the sauce pan,add a pinch of salt, stirring until bubbling and thickened. ( 2 to 3 minutes).

Cake
150g sweet corn polenta
200g butter
1 small carrot ( 70/ 100g)
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
250 g caster sugar
275 g plain flour
1 and 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

Preheat the oven to Gas mark 4 180 c
Butter the cake pan
Melt the butter into the polenta, cool.
Blend the polenta, butter and carrot until smooth.
In a separate bowl whisk the eggs and sugar and vanilla extract until thick and creamy.
Add the polenta mixture and whisk, then fold in the flour and baking powder.
Pour into cake tin.
Put in the oven until risen and dry when the cake tester is pushed in.

When ready take out and pour over syrup immediately and leave in pan until absorbed. Turn out and turn right way up and leave to continue to cool.


From a bag of calamansie limes, sweet, tangy lime/ orangey fruit I made lime marmalade using a Bruneian recipe for pickle and leaving out the chilli and garlic. This was folded into the cake before baking. With gulf melaka caramel and ceding , it captures the tastes of the Tamu. Just right for a birthday cake to share at Lugu lake.

200g unsalted butter, softened

200g caster sugar

4 eggs

175g self-raising flour

50g ground almonds

100g natural yogurt ( or flavoured if you have some over)

100g lime marmalade

Lime marmalade drizzle

1 tablespoons spoon lime marmalade

Juice of one lemon

50 g sugar

Mix together

  1. Heat the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Grease the base of a cake tin. Beat together the butter and caster sugar until pale and fluffy, then add the eggs, one at a time.

  2. Fold in the flour, ground almonds, yogurt and yuzu jam until you have a thick, creamy batter. Spoon the batter into the tin. Cook for 45-50 mins or until golden and risen, and the cake springs back when gently pressed.

  3. Pour on syrup drizzle and leave to cool in the tin for 15 mins, then transfer to a wire rack and leave to cool completely. (Turn it up so the syrup side is facing up wards.)

Gula Melaka icing traditional

35g plain flour

200g gula melaka

200ml water

50 mls milk

200g unsalted butter

A pinch of salt

Melt the gula melaka with water, cool slightly, make a roux sauce: whisk the sugar water, flour and milk in a saucepan and warm on a low to medium heat until thickened.Mix and leave to completely cool.

When cool put in the food mixer with soft butter and whisk until fluffy.

Brunei fruits and flowers receive book has a receipt for calamansie lime preserve.

Making this jam like preserve feels like capturing Brunei in a jar. Calamasie limes are every where in the market in bowls begging you to buy them for a dollar a bowl. They brighten up stir fries, make refreshing not to tart drinks and a preserve made zinger with ginger, chili and garlic.

I am taking the recipe and removing the garlic.

I will use the marmalade in my cake instead of the yuzu or lemon curd. The cake then becomes its own with a gulu malaka iceing, fudgy caramel and fluffy. The tart lime will off set it brilliantly.

yogurt pot cake

Note, this quantity can make 2 standard cakes which can be placed on top of each other

One pot of mango or plain yogurt ( 200ml)

Use same pot as measurement:

One pot vegetable oil

Two pots brown or white sugar

Three Pots self raising flour

3 eggs

1 mango puréed

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Topping and filling mango compote

1 mango

2 tablespoons spoons soft brown sugar

Juice of one lime

I mango sliced

Set oven to 180 c gas Mark 4

Grease cake tin

Pour yogurt into a bowel

Fill pot with measurements of oil, sugar and flour and pour into bowel with 3 eggs.

Whisk together and fold in the purred mango

Pour into prepared cake tin and bake in middle oven for 30 to 40 minutes.

Turn out of tins and cool.

When cool take one cake and pour on half the mango compote,place second cake on top and pour on the rest of the mango compote and arrange mango slices on top.

Mango compote

Slice and pure mango, add to a sauce pan with sugar and lime juice and cook down until jammy, add a bit of water if it reduces too much or becomes dry.