Alright, so Winter Solstice rolled around again. You know how it is, gets dark super early, and there’s this whole tradition thing about eating something warm and sweet. For ages, my family just bought the frozen stuff, but this year I thought, why not try making something myself? Felt like doing something hands-on.
Deciding What to Make
First off, had to decide what dessert. So many options, right? But Tang Yuan, those little glutinous rice balls, they just scream Winter Solstice to me. Seemed classic, traditional. Plus, I figured, how hard could it be? Just rice flour and water, mostly. Famous last words, maybe?
Getting Started: The Messy Part
Went to the Asian market to grab the right kind of glutinous rice flour. Got two bags, just in case. Also picked up some black sesame powder and sugar for the filling – gotta have that sweet, nutty stuff inside.
Back home, kitchen time. Poured the flour into a big bowl. The recipe I kinda glanced at said “add water slowly”. Okay, easy enough. Started adding water, bit by bit, mixing with my hands. Let me tell you, “glutinous” is the right word. That stuff got sticky. Like, really sticky. All over my hands, the bowl, the counter… Yeah, it was a bit of a mess. Took a while to get it to a dough that wasn’t either rock hard or total goo. Patience was key, I guess.
Then the filling. Mixed the black sesame powder with sugar and a tiny bit of lard (some old recipe suggested it, supposed to make it smoother). Looked kinda grey and weird, but smelled good.
Rolling and Shaping
Next step: making the actual balls. Pinched off a small piece of dough, flattened it in my palm, put a tiny scoop of the sesame filling in the middle. Then came the tricky part – closing it up and rolling it into a nice, round ball without the filling squishing out. My first few attempts were… well, let’s just say they weren’t exactly spheres. Some were lumpy, some kinda leaked. But hey, practice makes perfect, or at least, practice makes slightly-less-lumpy balls.
- Pinch dough
- Flatten
- Add filling
- Seal carefully
- Roll (and hope for the best)
It was slow work. Just me, the dough, the filling. Took way longer than I expected. But it was kinda calming, you know? Just focusing on making these little things.
Cooking and Eating
Finally had a whole plate of them ready. Got a big pot of water boiling. Gently dropped the Tang Yuan in, one by one. Gave them a little stir so they wouldn’t stick to the bottom. Then just waited. They bobbed around in there, and after a few minutes, they all floated to the top. That’s how you know they’re done.
Scooped them out into bowls, along with some of the hot water (the traditional way, kinda like a simple sweet soup). They weren’t perfectly round like the store-bought ones, but they were mine. Took a bite. Warm, soft, chewy, with that sweet, rich black sesame filling bursting out. Honestly? Pretty darn good. Way better than the frozen ones, felt like real accomplishment.
So yeah, that was my Winter Solstice dessert adventure. A bit messy, took some time, but totally worth it. Made the dark evening feel a bit brighter, you know?
