Nekbat is another sweet dessert available in Terengganu especially during the fasting month of Ramadan. Nekbat is made of mixing rice flour and eggs and bake in a special container (bronze container which come with mould).
The mixed ingredients is poured into the bronze mould and covered with its lid. The heat is coming from the top and below. They use coconut husk as fuel to heat. Once the nekbat is cooked, the fire is removed and the lid is open. The plain nikbat is taken and cool in another container. The cooked nikbat turns spongy and cream in colour (due to eggs). No artificial colour or sugar is added. At this stage, nekbat is plain without sugar (tasteless).
You may wonder about its size and shape. Its size depend on the container. Some container has 12 moulds in it. It is better to have a small nikbat (one inch) as it may expand double the size when you soak it the the boiling sugary water later. Most Terengganu nikbat is oval in shape.
In Terengganu, it is not complete to eat nekbat without sugar. So the next stage is to immerse the plain nikbat in the boiling sugary water for a few minutes. The liquid must be enough to immerse or soak all the plain nikbat. You can control the amount of sugar. If you want your nikbat to taste less sugar, so put little sugar in the boiling water. To make nekbat taste better, you may put pandan leaf to get good aroma. If you wish, you can put a few cloves (chengkih) and cinnamon stick (kayu manis). Do not over cook the nikbat as it will make it too soft and it is difficult to hold or scoop.
Nekbat is usually served during the break of the fast. If you like, you can chill the nekbat in the fridge. To some people chilled nekbat tastes better.
The mixed ingredients is poured into the bronze mould and covered with its lid. The heat is coming from the top and below. They use coconut husk as fuel to heat. Once the nekbat is cooked, the fire is removed and the lid is open. The plain nikbat is taken and cool in another container. The cooked nikbat turns spongy and cream in colour (due to eggs). No artificial colour or sugar is added. At this stage, nekbat is plain without sugar (tasteless).
On the left is before they are being dip in the sugary water. On the right is the nikbat post immersed in sugary water. Note that it expanded in size.
You may wonder about its size and shape. Its size depend on the container. Some container has 12 moulds in it. It is better to have a small nikbat (one inch) as it may expand double the size when you soak it the the boiling sugary water later. Most Terengganu nikbat is oval in shape.
In Terengganu, it is not complete to eat nekbat without sugar. So the next stage is to immerse the plain nikbat in the boiling sugary water for a few minutes. The liquid must be enough to immerse or soak all the plain nikbat. You can control the amount of sugar. If you want your nikbat to taste less sugar, so put little sugar in the boiling water. To make nekbat taste better, you may put pandan leaf to get good aroma. If you wish, you can put a few cloves (chengkih) and cinnamon stick (kayu manis). Do not over cook the nikbat as it will make it too soft and it is difficult to hold or scoop.
Nekbat is usually served during the break of the fast. If you like, you can chill the nekbat in the fridge. To some people chilled nekbat tastes better.
You can buy this nikbat (the plain) or the sugary nikbat from the markets or Ramadan markets all over Terengganu. Happy travelling.
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