Hei Zhima Tangyuan

China's sweet of reunion: glutinous rice flour kneaded into a soft, stretchy dough and wrapped around a molten filling of toasted black sesame ground with sugar and lard, the balls poached until they bob to the surface and float in their warm, faintly sweet ginger water, eaten at the Lantern Festival and the winter solstice for the togetherness their round shape stands for

Origin: China

From the journey of Sesame.

Tangyuan are eaten at the Lantern Festival that closes the lunar New Year and at the winter solstice (Dongzhi), their round shape and the round bowl they sit in standing for reunion, completeness, and the gathering of the family; the very word tuanyuan, reunion, echoes in their name. Of all the fillings, black sesame is the most beloved: toasted until intensely fragrant and ground with sugar and a little lard into a paste that melts to a dark, running liquid when the ball is cooked. Sesame reached China along the Silk Road and its black-seeded form became a prized ingredient in its own right, valued in Chinese medicine as a tonic for the blood, the hair, and old age, and ground into the sweet pastes, soups, and fillings of the southern kitchen. The skill of tangyuan is all in the dough, kneaded with just enough warm water to stay soft and elastic so it seals around the filling without cracking in the pot.

Ingredients

Black sesame filling

  • 80 g black sesame seeds
  • 60 g caster sugar
  • 50 g lard or unsalted butter, softened

Dough

  • 200 g glutinous rice flour (sticky rice flour)
  • 170 ml warm water, plus more as needed

To serve

  • 4 slices fresh ginger
  • 2 tbsp rock sugar or caster sugar
  • 800 ml water

Method

  1. Make the filling. Toast the black sesame seeds in a dry pan over medium heat, stirring constantly, for 3 to 4 minutes until they smell deeply fragrant and a seed crushed between the fingers is dry and oily. Cool, then grind to a fine paste in a spice grinder or mortar.
  2. Mix the ground sesame with the sugar and the softened lard until it forms a thick, dark paste. Press into a small tray or shape into a log, then chill for 20 minutes until firm. Divide into 16 small portions and roll each into a ball; keep chilled.
  3. Make the dough. Put the glutinous rice flour in a bowl and stir in the warm water a little at a time, mixing, until it comes together into a soft, smooth, pliable dough that does not stick to the hands, adding a touch more flour or water as needed. Knead for a minute, then cover.
  4. Divide the dough into 16 pieces. Roll one into a ball, then press into a disc and cup it in your palm. Set a chilled sesame ball in the centre and gently gather the dough up and over to enclose it completely, pinching to seal, then roll smooth between your palms. Repeat, keeping the finished balls covered.
  5. Bring the 800ml water to the boil with the ginger slices and the rock sugar to make a light, fragrant poaching syrup. Lower in the tangyuan in batches and stir gently once so they do not stick to the base.
  6. Simmer for 4 to 5 minutes: the balls will sink, then rise and bob at the surface when cooked through, the dough turning glossy and translucent. Give them a further minute floating, then ladle into bowls with some of the ginger syrup. Serve hot.

Notes

Tangyuan are best eaten the moment they are cooked, when the filling is liquid and the skin tender. Uncooked, they freeze beautifully: open-freeze on a tray, then bag them, and cook from frozen, adding a minute to the poaching time, which is how most households keep them ready for the festivals. The ginger syrup can be replaced with a fermented sweet rice wine broth (jiuniang) for the classic Shanghai version, or the balls simply served in plain hot water.

The Gastrographer

The Gastrographer

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