Tangyuan with peanut filling

Votes: 1

Time: 2 hours 10 minutes
Complexity: easily
Servings: 4

Tangyuan are soft rice flour balls traditionally eaten for dessert during a family dinner on Chinese New Year's Eve. Each bowl of tangyuan symbolizes unity, and the smoothness of each ball is a wish for a smooth year for the family. A sweet surprise is hidden in the center of these soft, slightly firm rice balls. The classic tangyuan filling is made with black sesame seeds, but this recipe offers an unconventional twist using homemade peanut butter. To make the rice flour dough easier to work with and roll the filling, a small, boiled rice ball is kneaded into it. Tangyuan balls are usually white, but to present them beautifully as a flower in a bowl, tint part of the dough pink.

The recipes use measuring containers with the following volumes:
1 glass (st.) - 250 ml.
3/4 cup (st.) - 180 ml.
2/3 cup (st.) - 160 ml.
1/2 cup (st.) - 125 ml.
1/3 cup (st.) - 80 ml.
1/4 cup (st.) - 60 ml.
1 tablespoon (tbsp) - 15 ml.
1 teaspoon (tsp) - 5 ml.
1/5 teaspoon (tsp) - 1 ml.

Ingredients for the recipe:

0.5 cup + 1 tablespoon roasted unsalted peanuts
5 tbsp. granulated sugar
A pinch of coarse salt
2.5 tbsp chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1cm pieces
1 1/4 cups sweet rice flour, plus more as needed for working with dough
0.5 cups + 1 tablespoon boiling water
Pink gel food coloring to tint the dough

Ingredient Substitution Suggestions

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Recipes with similar ingredients: rice flour, Peanut

Cooking the dish according to the recipe:

Lightly toast the peanuts in a small skillet over medium heat, tossing occasionally, until heated through, about 3 minutes. Transfer the peanuts to a food processor, add the sugar and salt, and process on high speed, stopping the processor as needed to scrape down the sides of the bowl, until the peanuts form a paste, about 3 minutes more. Peanuts can be replaced with black sesame seeds..
Stir in the butter until very smooth, about 30 seconds. Transfer to a small bowl and freeze until the paste hardens, about 45 minutes.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the rice flour and boiling water until the water is absorbed and the dough is soft and not sticky.

Meanwhile, bring water to a boil in a medium saucepan.
Pinch off a small piece of dough (about 1 teaspoon), roll it into a 1-cm diameter ball, add it to a pan of boiling water, and cook until it floats to the surface, about 2 minutes. Pat the ball dry, then knead it back into the dough in the bowl until smooth. If the dough is still sticky, add more rice flour.
Using gloved hands, scoop up three-quarters of the dough and mix it with 5 drops of pink gel food coloring (see Note) until the dough is uniformly pink. Divide the pink dough into 20 pieces, roll them into balls, and cover with a damp towel. Using clean hands, divide the remaining white dough into 4 pieces, roll them into balls, and cover with another damp towel. Set aside.

Note
If you don't want to use artificial coloring, you can add 1 tablespoon of beetroot juice instead.
Scoop out the chilled peanut filling, 0.5-1 teaspoon at a time, to make 24 servings, and place on a plastic-lined plate. Freeze until firm, about 15 minutes.

Roll each piece into a ball and freeze until firm, about 10 minutes.
Flatten each piece of dough into a 5cm (2-inch) disc and place a ball of peanut filling in the center. Carefully wrap the dough around the filling and roll into a smooth ball. If the peanut filling becomes too soft, freeze it for an additional 10 minutes. Once all the rice balls are assembled, place them under a damp towel to keep them moist and soft.
In a large saucepan, bring water to a gentle simmer and cook the rice balls, a few at a time, stirring occasionally to prevent them from sticking, until they begin to float, 5-7 minutes. Place 1 white rice ball in a small bowl, surrounding 5 pink rice balls with a little water from the saucepan to form a flower. Serve warm.