Peanut Tang Yuan

5 from 1 vote

Peanut Tang Yuan is a classic Chinese dessert consisting of soft, chewy glutinous rice balls filled with peanut filling and served in fragrant ginger soup.

Author: Jaja Bakes

Course: DessertSnackSoup

Cuisine: Chinese

Servings: 24 balls

Prep Time1

Cook Time40

Total Time1 40

Ingredients

Peanut Filling

3/4 cup (100 gr) raw peanuts, skinless
3 tbsp (30 gr) castor sugar
1/8 tsp salt
2 tbsp vegetable oil

Sweet Ginger Soup

4 cups (1 litre) water
4 inch (50 gr) ginger, peeled, sliced
4 pandan leaves, knotted, optional
2 tbsp (25 gr) brown sugar
6 tbsp (75 gr) granulated/castor sugar

Glutinous Rice Balls

1 1/4 cups (150 gr) glutinous rice flour, more for dusting
1/2 cup (120 ml) warm water, more or less

Instructions

Peanut Filling

Spread peanuts on a frying pan and heat over low-medium heat. Stir constantly for even cooking and toast until they are golden brown. Remove from heat and cool completely before using them.
Add the cooled toasted peanuts to a food processor. Pulse a couple of times until the peanuts turn into a fine powder. Don't overgrind the peanuts or they will turn into peanut butter.
In a medium bowl, add the peanut powder, castor sugar, salt, and vegetable oil. Mix until combined.
Keep the filling in the refrigerator until firm enough to handle and ready to use.

Sweet Ginger Soup

In a large pot, add water, ginger, and pandan leaves. Bring to a boil and simmer for 15-30 minutes. The longer you simmer the soup, the more gingery and fragrant it is.
Add brown sugar and granulated sugar. Stir to let the sugar dissolve. Turn off the heat.
Discard the pandan leaves and ginger slices.

Glutinous Rice Balls

In a large bowl, add glutinous rice flour. Add warm water little by little and mix with each addition. The dough will look dry at this time, but don't be tempted to add more water. Knead the dough until smooth and pliable. If it is too dry, you can add a bit more warm water. It should not be too wet either or it will not hold its shape.

Assemble

Dust your work surface with a little bit of glutinous rice flour. Transfer the dough onto the work surface. Divide the dough into 2 evenly. Return 1 dough to the bowl and cover with plastic wrap or damp towel when not using. Shape another dough into a log. Cut and divide into 12 even pieces. Shape into balls. Cover the balls with plastic wrap to prevent them drying out.
Take one ball and make an indentation in the middle with your thumb to form a small bowl. Add the 1 tsp peanut filling to the center. Slowly stretch the side of the dough over the filling. Pinch to seal and roll the ball with your palms until smooth and round. Place the ball onto a tray that has been dusted with a little bit of glutinous rice flour. Cover the tray with plastic wrap. Repeat until 24 balls are made.
Once you have shaped the balls, you can freeze them and cook them later. Or you can cook them immediately.
Bring a medium pot of water to a boil. Add the balls and cook until they float to the top.
Transfer the balls to the sweet ginger soup. Tang yuan can be served warm or at room temperature.

Nutrition

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