Green glutinous rice balls (湯圓) without green food colouring in red bean soup! Do this by adding matcha powder into the dough. Keep reading to find out more!
Glutinous rice balls also known as 'tong jyun' (cantonese)/'tang yuan' (mandarin) are round rice dumplings made with glutinous rice flour and water. Their round shapes symbolise being whole and feeling united with your family, so it's great to share these with them! They are usually eaten during Winter solstice, Chinese new year and ... actually you can eat it at any time of the year.
Matcha powder
Be cautious about how much matcha powder you add in as too much may cause the rice balls to taste bitter. 1 tsp of matcha powder into 1/4 cup glutinous rice flour should result in a reasonable balance of taste in 4 matcha rice balls.
Glutinous rice flour
Glutinous rice flour gives a dough a chewier and stickier texture. It does well for dessert and it has a smooth texture. I used this Thai glutinous rice flour which worked equally well! Any glutinous rice flour will do for this recipe.
Matcha for green rice balls
To skip green food colouring, incorporate some matcha powder in to the rice balls. Adding sweetness beside matcha flavours always compliments the dish so adding red beans beside them was a way in this recipe.
Matcha powder has been proven to contain anti-oxidants such as catechins and can promote heart health. You may know that matcha powder is used in matcha lattes, matcha cakes, matcha cookies etc. So this ingredient is very useful!
Storage
If you want to make a few batches of rice balls, you can freeze the rice balls in an airtight container for up to 3 months.
Adzuki beans
Adzuki beans/red beans can improve digestion, the function of your kidneys and help manage diabetes.
These beans are commonly used in Hong Kong desserts such as sweet red bean soup. You can find these in your local Asian supermarket.
Soak these in an airtight container in water overnight in the fridge or for at least 8 hours then boil them over low heat for an hour until they are soft. After boiling, keep the liquid and don't discard as the water from the red beans can still provide health benefits.
Adding some brown sugar will add some sweetness to the soup.
Similar to my previous glutinous rice balls recipe linked below, check this out if you're interested in pink glutinous rice balls without pink food colouring!
https://jimosbooseeness.wixsite.com/hungry247/post/tong-jyun-glutinous-rice-balls-%E6%B9%AF%E5%9C%93
Total time: 1 hour 30 mins
This makes 4 rice balls
Ingredients:
4 tbsp glutinous rice flour
1 tsp matcha powder
5 tbsp warm water
Soup:
1/4 cup adzuki beans
1 litre water
1/4 cup dark brown sugar
Method:
Soak the adzuki beans in an airtight container with water overnight. Once soaked, boil a pot of water then add in soaked adzuki beans. Once the water returns to a boil, cover the pot and simmer for 1 hour until the beans soften. Add in dark brown sugar in the last 10 minutes of boiling. Mash half of the amount of beans, leaving some mashed and some whole.
Whisk glutinous rice flour and matcha powder in a bowl until evenly combined. Tablespoon by tablespoon, mix in the warm water with the rice flour and keep combining until it's able to form a smooth dough. You may need to add less or more flour/water to achieve the right consistency so always add little by little.
Form 4 equal-sized balls from each flavour by rolling the dough in the palm of your hands. Cover the balls with a damp cloth/cling film to keep them from drying out.
Fill 1/2 of a separate pot with water and boil. Add in the matcha glutinous rice balls. Once the balls start to float on to the surface, continue to boil them for another minute.
Serve the matcha rice balls with the red bean soup.
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