February 5, 2023, the 15th day of the first lunar month, is the Lantern Festival. Since it’s a tradition to eat yuanxiao at this celebration, let’s make some yuanxiao by rolling!
Use a sweet filling and roll it into round balls. May your life be filled with sweetness, happiness and perfection. Roll your best wishes into yuanxiao and roll out a prosperous Year of the Rabbit.
Vancouver Bodhi Meditation Center wishes you a happy Lantern Festival. May you and yours have good health and a happy and harmonious life.
A Simple Yuanxiao Recipe
Ingredients:
- 1 lb glutinous rice flour*
- a large bowl of water
- 70 g honey
(or a sweetener of your choice, ex. maltose syrup, white sugar**, etc.) - 150 g roasted nuts and seeds of your choice
(ex. white or black sesame, peanut, pumpkin seed, walnut, cashew, etc) - optional: osmanthus honey
* glutinous rice flour cannot be replaced by rice flour or wheat flour.
** if only white sugar is used, add 1-2 tablespoons of cooking oil to make the filling sticky.
Instructions:
- Prepare the filling:
- Put the roasted nuts in a food processor and grind them into a fine texture.
- Mix the nuts with honey or maltose syrup and sweet to your taste.
- Roll the filling with your hands into small round balls.
- Cover with plastic wrap and freeze overnight.
(Freezing helps to keep the filling in shape. It’s easier to roll and prevent the glutinous balls from cracking.)
- Rolling the yuanxiao:
- Bring the filling out from the freezer (do not defrost).
- Prepare two large bowls:
- one bowl with glutinous rice flour (about 1 cm thick layer)
- one bowl with plenty of water
- Put a filling ball into the flour bowl and start rolling the ball in one direction.
- Once the filling ball is covered in glutinous rice flour, quickly dip it in water, then return it to the flour bowl.
- Repeat this rolling and moistening cycle.
- for a thinner layer: repeat for 5 cycles.
- for a thicker layer and more chewy taste: repeat for 10 cycles.
- Cooking yuanxiao:
- Boil a pot of water.
- Add yuanxiao to the pot.
- Stir gently to prevent the balls from sticking to the bottom of the pot.
- Cover the pot and cook until the yuanxiao floats to the top of the water.
- Add a cup of cold water to the pot and cook uncovered until the water boils again.
- Cook for another 1-3 minutes and the yuanxiao is ready to serve!
- Serving:
- Place a few yuanxiao into a small bowl for each severing.
- Add a couple of spoonfuls of the cooking liquid.
- Add osmanthus honey to the bowl for a sweet taste and beautiful presentation.
