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Alternative names | Yuanxiao |
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Place of origin | China |
Region or state | East Asia |
Main ingredients | Glutinous rice flour |
Variations | Regional variants differing in ingredients and method |
Other information | Traditionally consumed during Yuanxiao (Lantern Festival) |
Tangyuan | |||||||||||||||||
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Traditional Chinese | 湯圓 | ||||||||||||||||
Simplified Chinese | 汤圆 | ||||||||||||||||
Literal meaning | soup ball | ||||||||||||||||
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Yuanxiao | |||||||||||||||||
Chinese | 元宵 | ||||||||||||||||
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Hokkien name | |||||||||||||||||
Traditional Chinese | 圓仔/米圓 | ||||||||||||||||
Simplified Chinese | 圆仔/米圆 | ||||||||||||||||
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Wu Chinese name | |||||||||||||||||
Traditional Chinese | 湯團/湯糰 | ||||||||||||||||
Simplified Chinese | 汤团 | ||||||||||||||||
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Tangyuan are a traditional Chinese dessert made of glutinous rice shaped into balls that are served in a hot broth or syrup. They come in varying sizes,anything between a marble to a ping pong ball, [1] and are sometimes stuffed with filling. Tangyuan are traditionally eaten during the Lantern Festival, [2] but because the name is a homophone for union (traditional Chinese :團圓; simplified Chinese :团圆; pinyin :tuányuán) and symbolizes togetherness and completeness,this dish is also served at weddings,family reunions,Chinese New Year,and the Dōngzhì(winter solstice) festival. [3]
Tangyuan are traditionally eaten during the Lantern Festival,which falls on the 15th day of the first month of a lunar new year,which is the first full moon. The festival falls each year on a day in February in the Gregorian calendar. [1] People eat tangyuan for good luck and hopes of filling their life with sweetness and joy. [1]
The traditional filling for tangyuan is made from sesame,peanuts,sugar,and animal fat. The Silk Road and the Maritime Silk Road enabled the exchange of goods and ideas. Sesame was imported from Central Asia during the Han dynasty (202-220BC),and peanuts entered the country through trade with Filipino merchants from the Philippines during the Ming dynasty (1368-1644).
The practice of eating tangyuan has been around for over 2,000 years,and has had several names over the years. [1] During the Yongle era of the Ming dynasty,it was called yuanxiao in northern China. This name translates to 'first night',where yuan (元) means 'first' and xiao (宵) means 'night'.
People in southern China call the dish tangyuan or tangtuan. In the Hakka and Cantonese varieties of Chinese,tangyuan is pronounced as tong1 yan2 or tong1 jyun4-2,and the term tangtuan is not commonly used. [2] Legend has it that during Yuan Shikai's rule from 1912 to 1916,he disliked the name yuanxiao because it sounded identical to "remove Yuan" (Chinese :袁消; pinyin :yuán xiāo);thus he gave orders to change the name to tangyuan. [4] This new moniker directly translates to 'round balls in soup' or 'round dumplings in soup'. Nowadays,tangyuan refers to the southern style,whereas yuanxiao refers to the northern style. The two are primarily differentiated by their method of preparation. [5]
Tangyuan originate from southern China,whereas people in the north call the dish yuanxiao. Like tangyuan,yuanxiao are glutinous rice balls stuffed with filling that are eaten during the Lantern Festival and other important gatherings. Although they look alike,they are two separate things. The fundamental difference lies in their making,fillings,cooking,and storage. [5]
Yuanxiao have sweet and solid fillings and are served in a thick broth. The surface tends to be dry and soft,and they have a short shelf life. [5] The process of making the dish begins with preparing the solid fillings that are then cut into small pieces. The filling is dipped into water then the dry glutinous rice flour repeatedly,until a round shape is achieved. [5]
Tangyuan can be stuffed with a variety of soft filling that are either sweet or salty,and are served in a thinner soup. The texture is smooth and glutinous,and they can be stored frozen for a long time. [5] Tangyuan are made by wrapping the soft filling in a glutinous rice "dough" and shaping it into a ball. [5] The southern variation is served in a broth that changes depending on the filling. Daikon radish and fish cake broth are used for savory fillings,tong sui for sweeter options. [6]
For many Chinese families in mainland China as well as overseas,tangyuan are traditionally eaten during the Lantern Festival,Chinese New Year,and gatherings with family to celebrate. Their round shape and the bowls in which they are served hold cultural and symbolic significance,symbolizing togetherness,unity,and reunion. [2]
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Tangyuan is a versatile dessert with a delicate taste and soft, chewy texture. While it can be served in its simplest form as a plain white ball of glutinous rice, it can also be stuffed with either black sesame or other fillings, for example, crushed peanuts, colored, fried, and boiled. [7] Tangyuan is made by wrapping the glutinous rice around the filling that is filled with lard oil and shaping it into a ball by hand. [7] Tangyuan can be sweet or savory, using more traditional fillings like black sesame. Sweet Tangyuan can be served in ginger-infused syrup, whereas savory Tangyuan are served in a clear soup broth. Unfilled Tangyuan are served as part of a sweet dessert soup known in Cantonese cuisine as tong sui (literally: "sugar water").
While Tangyuan began as a traditional delicacy eaten during festivals, it has now evolved into a dessert that is consumed year-round. As it became more widespread, different renditions are introduced to the traditional Chinese Tangyuan to cater to consumers. New fillings, shapes, and coloring of the glutinous rice are introduced; chocolate and custard fillings are substituting traditional approaches. [8]
The most renowned varieties come from Ningbo in Zhejiang Province. [9] However, they are traditionally eaten throughout China.[ citation needed ]
Tangyuan has also come to be associated with the Winter Solstice and Chinese New Year in various regions. [10] Today, the food is eaten all year round. Mass-produced tangyuan is commonly found in the frozen food section of Asian supermarkets in China and overseas.[ citation needed ]
As the Chinese dessert spread to other regions of Asia, a variety of renditions emerged from different cultures.
Jiandui , or sesame balls, are a variation of tangyuan. They are made with glutinous rice flour that is fried and coated with sesame seeds to achieve a crisp, chewy texture. The insides of the dessert are stuffed with lotus paste, black sesame, or red bean paste. [11]
Japanese daifuku-mochi are similar to tangyuan. They were initially introduced from Southeast Asia during the Heian period, [12] . This traditional Japanese dessert is mochi (glutinous rice) stuffed with sweet filling like anko, which is a sweetened red bean paste made from azuki beans. [13] While daifuku-mochi are similar to tangyuan, the preparation process is different. A process called wet milling is used to achieve a chewy texture that is less soft than their Chinese counterpart. [12]
In Indonesia, an adapted version called wedang ronde (Javanese : ꦮꦺꦢꦁ ꦫꦺꦴꦤ꧀ꦝꦺ, romanized: wédang rondhé, lit. 'round ball beverage') is a popular food eaten during cold temperatures. The round colored balls of glutinous rice can be filled with crushed peanuts and sugar, or left plain, and are served in a sweetened, mild ginger broth often boiled in fragrant pandan leaves. Crushed, toasted peanuts, tapioca pearls, and slices of coconut can also be added.
In Malaysia, buah Melaka (lit. ' Malacca fruit') or "onde-onde" is a dessert mainly made of glutinous rice flour which is popular among Malay Malaysians. The green pandan-colored ball is sprinkled with dry coconut shavings and filled with semi-liquefied sweet gula Melaka (lit. 'Malacca sugar'), a type of molasses made from palm nectar. [14] It is enjoyed throughout the tropical summer year and usually sold by Malay street hawkers and the Melaka straits-born Chinese community. It is usually enjoyed during teatime and breakfast. A common accompaniment is hot Darjeeling tea. Buah Melaka most likely originated from Straits-born Chinese Baba–Nyonya in Malacca, hence the name. [15]
In Myanmar, mont lone yay baw (မုန့်လုံးရေပေါ်) is a traditional festive dish, served during Thingyan, and filled with pieces of jaggery and served with coconut shavings.
In the Philippines, traditional Chinese tangyuan is called chiōng-uân-îⁿ (Chinese :狀元圓; lit.' zhuangyuan ball') or siōng-guân-îⁿ (Chinese :上元圓; lit.' Lantern Festival ball') in Philippine Hokkien by Chinese Filipinos.
In Thailand, bua loi (บัวลอย) is a sweet glutinous rice flour balls in the coconut milk or ginger syrup.
This section needs additional citations for verification .(July 2023) |
In southern Vietnam, a similar dish called chè trôi nước , is served in a mild, sweet liquid flavored with grated ginger root. In northern Vietnam, bánh trôi (also called bánh trôi nước) and bánh chay are analogous, with the latter being served with coconut milk. The Hmong people in northern Vietnam also have a similar dessert called thắng dền, made with glutinous rice for the balls, mung beans, coconut meat, or sesame for the filling, served in hot grated ginger root soup, sometimes with roasted peanuts. [16]
Mochi is a Japanese rice cake made of mochigome (もち米), a short-grain japonica glutinous rice, and sometimes other ingredients such as water, sugar, and cornstarch. The steamed rice is pounded into paste and molded into the desired shape. In Japan, it is traditionally made in a ceremony called mochitsuki. While eaten year-round, mochi is a traditional food for the Japanese New Year, and is commonly sold and eaten during that time.
Glutinous rice is a type of rice grown mainly in Southeast and East Asia, and the northeastern regions of South Asia, which has opaque grains, very low amylose content, and is especially sticky when cooked. It is widely consumed across Asia.
Kuih are bite-sized snack or dessert foods commonly found in Southeast Asia and China. It is a fairly broad term which may include items that would be called cakes, cookies, dumplings, pudding, biscuits, or pastries in English and are usually made from rice or glutinous rice. In China, where the term originates from, kueh or koé (粿) in the Min Nan languages refers to snacks which are typically made from rice but can occasionally be made from other grains such as wheat. The term kuih is widely used in Malaysia, Brunei, and Singapore, kueh is used in Singapore and Indonesia, kue is used in Indonesia only, all three refer to sweet or savoury desserts.
Malaysian Chinese cuisine is derived from the culinary traditions of Chinese Malaysian immigrants and their descendants, who have adapted or modified their culinary traditions under the influence of Malaysian culture as well as immigration patterns of Chinese to Malaysia. Because the vast majority of Chinese Malaysians are descendants of immigrants from southern China, Malaysian Chinese cuisine is predominantly based on an eclectic repertoire of dishes with roots from Fujian, Cantonese, Hakka and Teochew cuisines.
Chinese Indonesian cuisine is characterized by the mixture of Chinese with local Indonesian style. Chinese Indonesians, mostly descendant of Han ethnic Hokkien and Hakka speakers, brought their legacy of Chinese cuisine, and modified some of the dishes with the addition of Indonesian ingredients, such as kecap manis, palm sugar, peanut sauce, chili, santan and local spices to form a hybrid Chinese-Indonesian cuisine. Some of the dishes and cakes share the same style as in Malaysia and Singapore, known as Nyonya cuisine by the Peranakan.
A rice cake may be any kind of food item made from rice that has been shaped, condensed, or otherwise combined into a single object. A wide variety of rice cakes exist in many different cultures in which rice is eaten. Common variations include cakes made with rice flour, those made from ground rice, and those made from whole grains of rice compressed together or combined with some other binding substance.
Peranakan cuisine or Nyonya cuisine comes from the Peranakans, descendants of early Chinese migrants who settled in Penang, Malacca, Singapore and Indonesia, inter-marrying with local Malays. In Baba Malay, a female Peranakan is known as a nonya, and a male Peranakan is known as a baba. The cuisine combines Chinese, Malay, Javanese, South Indian, and other influences.
Lo mai chi, known in Mandarin as nuomici, is a type of Chinese pastry. It is one of the most standard pastries in Hong Kong. It can also be found in most Chinatown bakery shops overseas. It is also referred to as glutinous rice dumpling. Today there are many different modern variations such as green tea flavor, mango flavor, etc.
In Vietnamese, the term bánh translates loosely as "cake" or "bread", but refers to a wide variety of prepared foods that can easily be eaten by hands or chopsticks. With the addition of qualifying adjectives, bánh refers to a wide variety of sweet or savory, distinct cakes, buns, pastries, sandwiches, and other food items, which may be cooked by steaming, baking, frying, deep-frying, or boiling. Foods made from wheat flour or rice flour are generally called bánh, but the term may also refer to certain varieties of noodle and fish cake dishes, such as bánh canh and bánh hỏi.
Chè trôi nước is a Vietnamese dessert made of glutinous rice filled with mung bean paste bathed in a sweet clear or brown syrup made of water, sugar, and grated ginger root. It is generally warmed before eating and garnished with sesame seeds and coconut milk. It is often served during Lunar New Year or more recently, served in the Cold-Eating Festival.
Chè is any traditional Vietnamese sweet beverage, dessert soup or stew, or pudding. Chè includes a wide variety of distinct soups or puddings. Varieties of Chè can be made with mung beans, black-eyed peas, kidney beans, tapioca, jelly, fruit, and coconut cream. Other types are made with ingredients such as salt, aloe vera, seaweed, lotus seed, sesame seed, sugar palm seeds, taro, cassava and pandan leaf extract. Some varieties, such as chè trôi nước, may also include dumplings. Chè are often prepared with one of a number of varieties of beans, tubers, and/or glutinous rice, cooked in water and sweetened with sugar. In southern Vietnam, chè are often garnished with coconut creme.
Javanese cuisine is the cuisine of Javanese people, a major ethnic group in Indonesia, more precisely the province of Central Java, Yogyakarta and East Java.
Yuanxiao are dumplings of glutinous rice flour, filled with sesame or peanut powder and sugar, or sweet red bean paste, eaten in a soup during the Lantern Festival, the fifteenth day of the Chinese New Year. They are similar to tangyuan, but are traditionally prepared in a basket, and served mainly in Northern China.
Bua loi or bua loy is a Thai dessert. It consists of rice flour rolled into small balls, and cooked in coconut milk and sugar. Some Bua loi also adds sweet egg into the recipe. It was inspired by Tangyuan, a Chinese dessert that is traditionally eaten around the Lantern festival. Bua Loi is also traditionally eaten during the Dongzhi Festival in Thailand, which is a festival for the Chinese-Thai bloodline. There are a variety of versions of Bua loi such as ones that use food coloring instead of natural color, use soy milk instead of Coconut cream, add sliced pumpkin inside the rice balls, et cetera. There are other types of Bua loi from other countries such as China, Japan, Indonesia, Myanmar, Philippines, Southern Vietnam and Malaysia. 1 cup of Bua Loy has total calories of 295.5 kilocalories, protein of 10.4 grams, carbohydrate of 6.3 grams, and fat of 25 grams.
Red bean paste or red bean jam, also called adzuki bean paste or anko, is a paste made of red beans, used in East Asian cuisine. The paste is prepared by boiling the beans, then mashing or grinding them. At this stage, the paste can be sweetened or left as it is. The color of the paste is usually dark red, which comes from the husk of the beans. In Korean cuisine, the adzuki beans can also be husked prior to cooking, resulting in a white paste. It is also possible to remove the husk by sieving after cooking, but before sweetening, resulting in a red paste that is smoother and more homogeneous.
Tong but lut is a Cantonese dessert. Glutinous rice flour balls in sugar syrup are sprinkled with crushed roasted peanuts. The stickiness of the balls prevents the topping from coming off, hence the name.
In the Burmese language, the term mont translates to "snack", and refers to a wide variety of prepared foods, ranging from sweet desserts to savory food items that may be cooked by steaming, baking, frying, deep-frying, or boiling. Foods made from wheat or rice flour are generally called mont, but the term may also refer to certain varieties of noodle dishes, such as mohinga. Burmese mont are typically eaten with tea during breakfast or afternoon tea time.