Making Chinese Red Wine - ( Sarawak Foo Chow Recipe.)

Ingredients
1.5 kg glutinous rice
2-3 wine biscuits
800gm -1 litre filter water
300 gm red rice bran
 

Method

1.Cook approximately 1.5 kg of glutinous rice with water in normal rice cooker. Once cooked, take it out and set aside to cool overnight

2. Once the glutinous rice is properly cooled, take in lumps and coat with blended red rice bran .

3. Place inside a clean jar. And add some crushed wine biscuits. Apply some wine biscuits on every layers .

4  Pour in approximately 800 gm to 1 litre of filtered water. Less if you like your Ang Chew really concentrated and more vice versa.

5.Cover with a piece of clean cloth held tight with rubber band/strings

 *.During the fermentation process, the red rice mixture will start to float upwards causing 'boiling' bubbles and these form the essential Ang Chew. This stage will happen between 24 to 48 hours and will last for another few days. At this stage, it is important to stir the mixture at least twice a day to avoid overflowing or use only half a jar/container. During this process, the red rice mixture will separate from the liquid and stay afloat. The mixture will then stabilise and red rice will slowly sink back towards the bottom of jar

6.This is when the cloth can be taken off and replaced with a proper lid or on top of the cloth

7.Keep aside to continue the fermentation. The entire procedure will take approximately a month.

8. The whole content will then be filtered with a piece of white clean cloth hanged and allowing it to drip or place a piece of cloth on a strainer. Pour the whole jar content onto the cloth and strain it overnight.
This recipe yeilds about 5 bottle of concentrated red wine.

Tips:
All utensils must be clean and dry.
Beer bottles should be  washed and dried. Then a little Ang Chew was poured into each bottle and thrown away. Then filled each bottle. This way the Ang Chew will last better
The lees or the residues is the Ang Chow, which can be  kept for various cooking purposes and of course to make the famous Foochow preserved vegetable Chow Chai.

Note:
It is normal to see mouldy substance on top of the red rice mixture at the early stages especially during the 24 -48 hours as fermentation is only beginning. Stir the mixture if you see this as alcohol will kill the mouldy substance off and hence making it negligible. But if mouldy substance is seen floating on the Ang Chew, it is a goner.Water vapour is also normal at the early stages.

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