SHAH ALAM, Sept 22 — What happens when a viral food trend lands in the hands of bakers who can’t help but try and make it better?
In Cake Jalan Tiung’s case, the result is a butter tteok that is darker, crunchier and more dessert-like than the versions elsewhere.
Made with glutinous rice flour and plenty of butter, the Korean-inspired baked rice cake has taken the internet by storm, from South Korea to Malaysia. (The tteok in its name translates to “rice cake” in Korean.)
“The first bite is the edge: deeply crispy and caramelised, with a rich buttery aroma,” says Hidzad Bin Lahuree, who runs the Shah Alam bakery with his wife, Nur Shafinaz Binti Abdul Rahman. “Then it gives way to a light interior with a slightly mochi-like chewiness.”
The combination is clearly compelling: crunchy, caramelised, chewy, and a little char from the oven. Really, what’s not to like?
There is also another factor at play: our country’s continuing fascination with South Korean culture.
Hidzad says, “From K-dramas and K-pop to skincare, cafés and food, anything South Korean is very much in vogue in Malaysia right now. Butter tteok arrived riding that wave.”
But the Korean connection alone would not be enough to explain the craze in Malaysia.
“We love chewy things here, so it feels familiar, but the crisp edge makes it feel new,” Hidzad explains.
The simple flavour profile also helps: butter, a hint of sweetness and a deeply browned exterior. Simple yet far from straightforward. There’s just something irresistible about these buttery rice cakes.
Hidzad says, “It’s a trend that happens to taste really good, and amazingly simple clean flavours which is very rare.”
He adds, “Butter tteok is also very social-media friendly, because when you break a piece open you see that golden crust and soft centre.”
Cake Jalan Tiung itself only came across the trend recently. Hidzad confesses, “Here’s a fun fact: neither of us has ever tried butter tteok in South Korea!”
Like many others, the couple encountered it through social media, where the buzz was enough to spark their curiosity. They began experimenting with their own version nearly two months ago.
But the first attempts did not quite satisfy them. Hidzad recalls, “To our palate they tasted too much of glutinous rice, too ‘pulut’, if that makes sense.”
For a bakery better known for pastries and desserts, that was a challenge they were ready to take on.
Rather than simply reproduce what was already popular, Hidzad wanted “something closer to a dessert, so we reworked it until it was almost like a very crunchy canelé.”
It took about four rounds of testing before Cake Jalan Tiung was happy with the taste and appearance.
That relatively short development period belies the precision involved: the bakery was not merely trying to make a rice cake with a crisp outside, but one with a very particular contrast between crust and centre.
Cake Jalan Tiung’s version — which comes with a small serving of condensed milk on the side for dipping, adding a little extra indulgence — has proven to be remarkably popular.
“Within two weeks of launching, it became a smash bestseller,” Hidzad says. “In August alone we sold around 4,000 sets.”
The difference between Cake Jalan Tiung’s version and other butter tteok is immediately apparent. The bakery deliberately bakes its rice cakes darker, creating a deeply browned shell with a slightly imperfect appearance.
“It’s our signature Cake Jalan Tiung style: we bake darker,” Hidzad explains. “That gives a crisp outer shell and a rustic look, with a light airy interior underneath.”
There is also another detail that might not be obvious immediately. Hidzad shares, “It has an almost mochi texture inside but we don’t use any mochi. Instead it comes from using tapioca flour.”
Again, simple but not always straightforward. Take getting the exterior just right; this requires more than simply baking until the cakes turn dark.
Hidzad says the deep, crisp crust needs a high-end oven, which is “why we use an Unox, plus special trays that can handle very high temperatures.”
This approach reflects Cake Jalan Tiung’s philosophy of marrying flavours and textures that feel both familiar and slightly unexpected, such as their now iconic pandan and gula Melaka croissant, but never chasing novelty for its own sake.
“We’re bakers first,” says Hidzad. “So we treat butter tteok the way we treat everything else at Cake Jalan Tiung, with attention to colour, crust and texture.”
For their butter tteok, that means keeping the flavour deliberately clean. This, Hidzad says, means “real high quality French butter and restrained sweetness, with the sweetness in the background instead of taking over.”
That also explains why the cakes are left looking almost deliberately unfinished.
“Rustic elegance means we don’t over-decorate,” he says. “It comes out dark golden and slightly imperfect, and that’s part of its charm.”
So you might not necessarily reach for the prettiest piece.
“The ideal one, at its freshest, has a shell that crackles when you bite it, then a light warm interior with a slightly mochi-like chewiness, and butter on the finish rather than sugar.”
Indeed, that freshness is crucial. Like many baked goods built around texture, butter tteok is at its best soon after it comes out of the oven.
Today, Cake Jalan Tiung makes around 450 pieces every day, which is 150 sets of three pieces each. They are available from 10:30am and sell out almost daily.
From Seoul to Shah Alam, butter tteok is clearly a new feather in Cake Jalan Tiung’s cap.
But perhaps more importantly, it is also a way for this hardworking duo to give their customers more reason to smile.
Or as Hidzad puts it: “You should feel comforted and always want another piece.”
Cake Jalan Tiung
No. 9, Jalan Sukun 4/7,
Seksyen 4, Shah Alam.
Open daily (except Thu closed) 8am–6pm
Phone: 012-878 7258
Web: cakejalantiung.com
IG: instagram.com/cakejalantiung/
FB: facebook.com/cakejalantiung/
