Tangyuan With Peanut Filling Recipes

TANG YUAN RECIPE (PEANUT OR BLACK SESAME SEED FILLING)

Steps:

• Toast the seeds and nuts separately in a pan on the stove.
• Let them cool. Then add them separately to a blender along with the sugar and process until they form a paste.
• Remove the mixture to a bowl and add half the lard each to the peanut and the sesame seed paste. Mix until it forms a doughy consistency.
• Roll them into 10 portions each. Refrigerate the filling balls in the fridge until ready to use.
• For the dough, add boiling water into a heatproof bowl containing the glutinous rice flour. Stir continuously.
• Add room temperature water to the mixture little by a little while stirring slowly.
• Knead the dough until it becomes smooth and no longer sticky.
• Divide into 20 equal parts. Roll them into balls.
• Wrap the filling in the dough by flattening the dough balls into a circle, placing the ball of filling in the centre, and pushing up slowly until the wrapper completely covers the filling.
• Boil a large pot (around 1.5 litres) of water. Add the brown sugar and ginger. Once it boils, add the glutinous rice balls carefully. Move them with a spoon to prevent them from sticking.
• When the tang yuan float to the top, cook for a minute more and then dish out along with the syrup.
• Serve warm, or refrigerate and then serve cold. Keep the serving liquid warm so that the filling stays runny.

TANG YUAN

Steps:

• Make the soup: Combine the ginger and sugar in a large saucepan with 6 cups water. Bring to a boil over high heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar, then turn the heat to the lowest setting. Let steep until ready to cook.
• Make the filling: Process the sesame seeds in a food processor until very finely ground. Add the sugar and pulse until the mixture is as fine as sand, then pulse in the peanut butter until the mixture forms a smooth mass. Taste and add more sugar if you'd like, then pulse to incorporate.
• Using a measuring teaspoon, scoop and pack a flat spoonful of the sesame seed mixture, then push it out of the spoon onto a rimmed baking sheet using your fingertip. Repeat with the remaining mixture and note how many pieces you get. (It should be around 24.) Press and gently squeeze each spoonful into a ball. Transfer to the freezer to firm up.
• Make the dough: Place the flour in a medium bowl and set the bowl on a damp kitchen towel so it won't slip. Bring 2/3 cup water to a boil in a small saucepan on the stovetop or in a heatproof liquid measuring cup in the microwave. Add the oil to the water, then pour the mixture into the flour in a slow, steady stream while stirring with chopsticks or a fork. Continue stirring until the liquid is incorporated. The mixture should look like floury pebbles. Cover with a damp towel or plastic wrap and let stand 5 minutes to cool.
• Squeeze and gather the pebbles into a ball in the bowl. Roll onto a clean work surface and knead, flouring the dough and surface if the dough sticks, until very smooth and room temperature, 3 to 5 minutes. The dough should feel supple. Roll into a snake 1 inch in diameter and cut into the number of dough filling balls you have, dividing evenly.
• Take the filling balls out of the freezer. Roll a piece of dough into a ball, then press the edges with your fingertips to form a 2 1/2-inch round with a dime-size belly of thicker dough in the middle. Center a filling ball in the dough, then gather the sides around it to enclose. Pinch the seams shut and gently roll into a smooth ball. Repeat with the remaining filling and dough. (The dumplings can be frozen on a baking sheet until firm, then stored in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 3 months. Cook directly from the freezer.)
• Bring the ginger soup to a simmer over medium heat. Add the dumplings one at a time, then simmer gently until the balls float, the dough is a little translucent and the filling is steaming hot, about 10 minutes. Divide the dumplings and soup among bowls and serve hot. (The ginger isn't meant to be eaten.)