For people obsessed with ube like myself, it gets frustrating buying ube powder that turns out to be half fake. I got a few Filipino ube powder packages from Amazon and the ube powder doesn't soften even when soaked overnight in water. The finished product tastes a bit of real ube but is grainy even after using an immersion blender. I suspect the powder has peels included to increase the weight. There is no other explanation for the bits that never soften. I used it to make ube buns.
I sometimes prefer powdered ube for longer storage and they don't take up a lot of space in the pantry. Powdered ube also is good for mixing in bread doughs. I have a pound of already cooked and frozen ube paste in the freezer but I can only store a little at a time before it develops freezer burn.
The procedure is a bit tedious. The ube tubers have to be steamed, peeled, grated, dehydrated, powdered using a dedicated coffee grinder, and sifted. 24 ounces of fresh ube will yield a very small amount of powder, ¾ cup (½ cup plus 2 tablespoons of fine powder plus 2 tablespoons of slightly coarse powder). I put the portions in individual parchment pouches. It is time consuming for very little amount but I am satisfied because I know the powder is the real thing and pure without nasty ingredients.
dehydrated grated cooked ube
I cooked the 2 tablespoons coarse ground powder into ube spread. I like the jam a bit runny so I can spread it on toast or pandesal.
The 2 tablespoons powder was soaked in 1 cup warm water for 3 hours then cooked in 2 cups whole milk, 3 tablespoons sugar, and 1½ tablespoons salted butter until of spreadable consistency. Yield is 8 ounces of ube spread.
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