Kick off Lunar New Year with a bowl of good luck with this bouncy chewy Black Sesame Tangyuan! These smooth and sticky glutinous rice balls are swimming in a sweet gingery syrup, then topped with toasted sesame seeds for a little crunch. I’m spilling all my tips on making these perfect sweet rice balls as a dairy-free version you can also make ahead!
Tangyuan, or glutinous rice balls or sweet rice balls, is a traditional Chinese recipe and one of my favorite dishes for Lunar New Year! You can find them stuffed with all kinds of filling – crushed peanuts, red bean paste, lotus paste, or (my favorite!) black sesame paste!
🎥 Video: Watch How to Make this Tang Yuan Recipe
🥘 Ingredients
Glutinous Rice Flour
The key ingredient to making the tangyuan dough is glutinous rice flour, also known as “sweet rice flour” or Mochiko. You can easily find it online, in Asian markets, or sometimes in the international aisle of the grocery store.
Glutinous rice flour is NOT the same as regular rice flour! Glutinous rice flour is actually gluten-free & made of ground short grain glutinous (sticky) rice. That’s what creates that bouncy chewy texture, just like in Sesame Balls and Palitaw! If you have leftover glutinous rice flour from this Tangyuan recipe, you can also make Mochi Ice Cream or Mochi Daifuku too!
Regular rice flour, on the other hand, is made of regular white or brown rice – so regular rice flour is not a substitute. But it’s great for recipes like Puto (Filipino Rice Cakes) to create a light airy texture compared to all-purpose flour.
Don’t confuse the two, otherwise, you’ll create an inedible (& devastating) dessert. You’ve been warned!
- Black Sesame Seeds: This is the base of the tangyuan filling, so grab good quality black sesame seeds! Buy roasted black sesame seeds if possible to save time. Otherwise, if you only have raw black sesame seeds, toast the sesame seeds in a dry pan for a few seconds until they smell fragrant. This extra few seconds brings out their natural oils & enhances their nutty flavor!
- White & Brown Sugar: The white sugar is to add sweetness to the tangyuan fillings and balance the bitterness of the black sesame seeds. The brown sugar is for the ginger syrup and adds a subtle toffee-like flavor!
- Coconut Oil: A fat binds the filling together and adds flavor! To make this tangyuan dairy-free, I’m using coconut oil, however, butter also works. Make sure they’re softened, to easily bind with the rest of the ingredients.
- Salt: Don’t overlook the salt! Adding a pinch of salt in the filling and syrup makes ALL the difference for a slightly sweet-salty flavor complexity.
See recipe card for quantities.
🔪 Instructions
The instructions below may seem intimidating, but don’t worry!! Tang yuan comes together in 3 parts – the filling, dough, and ginger syrup or broth.
Make the Black Sesame Filling
Step 1: If your black sesame seeds are raw, heat a pan on medium heat and dry toast the sesame seeds for about 1 minute, or until you smell their nutty aroma and they’ve plumped up.
Transfer them into a food processor and grind them until they create a rough paste. You may need to give your food process breaks so it doesn’t overheat.
Step 2: Add the sugar, coconut oil, and salt, then grind again until smooth. Transfer the black sesame filling to a bowl, cover, and keep in the fridge for 15-30 minutes, or until firm.
Make the Dough
Step 3: In a large bowl, add the glutinous rice flour, then slowly whisk in hot water. It’s important to use HOT water to create that bouncy consistency.
Knead everything together until it forms a dough with the consistency of Playdoh/clay. If the flour doesn’t completely come together, add a little bit of water at a time – but not too much, otherwise, it’ll turn mushy instead of chewy after being cooked! If the dough is too wet, add a little more flour. This is your chance to play & adjust with your food!
Optional but recommended: Scoop 1 teaspoon of the dough, flatten into a disk, then add to a pot of boiling water. Once it floats to the top, remove and knead it into the rest of the dough. This creates an even chewier texture!
Step 4: Once your dough is smooth, divide the dough in half and add ube extract to half of the dough. Use gloves (unless you’re okay with purple-stained hands) to knead the dough until it’s a uniform color.
Roll each dough into logs, then divide & roll them into 6 even balls each (12 balls total). Cover the unused dough with a damp cloth to prevent them from drying out.
Remove the black sesame filling from the fridge, scoop about 1 teaspoon of filling, then roll it into a ball. If the filling is too hard to scoop, let it warm up at room temperature a bit.
Flatten the dough into an about 2-inch disk, then add the black sesame ball in the center. Carefully gather the dough around the filling, close by pinching, then gently roll into a ball. Double check there are no broken seams, otherwise, it’ll burst while cooking. Cover the tangyuan while making the rest to prevent them from drying out.
While you’re wrapping, make the ginger soup to save time!
Make the Ginger Syrup & Assemble
Step 5: In a small pot, add water, ginger, sugar, and salt. Boil for 10-20 minutes, depending on how strong you like the ginger flavor. Taste and adjust – if you want the broth sweeter, add more sugar, if you want a stronger ginger flavor, boil it longer.
Just keep in mind, the tangyuan is sweet, so the ginger syrup doesn’t have to be too sweet. Once it’s just how you like it, turn off the heat and cover to keep warm.
Step 6: Heat a separate medium-sized pot of water on medium, bring to a boil, then gently add your tangyuan in batches to prevent overcrowding. Stir IMMEDIATELY so they don’t stick to the bottom of the pot. Once the water starts to boil, add about ½ of cold water, then wait for it to boil. Do this 2 more times, for a total of 3 rounds of water being added to the pot.
This step is important because it gives the sugar time to fully melt for a smoother filling consistency!
Step 7: Once the tangyuan are floating to the top, divide them into serving bowls, ladle on the ginger syrup, and garnish with toasted black sesame seeds. Enjoy immediately!
❄️ Make-Ahead & Freeze
These black sesame tangyuan and just like wontons, they’re a labor of love! Save time by making them ahead of time & freezing them!
Once you’re wrapped your tangyuan, roll them in more glutinous rice flour to prevent sticking, then shake off any excess. Transfer them to a sheet pan with enough space between them so they don’t stick together. Freeze for until solid (1-3 hours), then transfer to an airtight container.
To cook from frozen, add them to boiling water WITHOUT defrosting. Follow the instructions in the recipe. It may take a few more minutes for them to cook, but you’ll know they’re ready once they’re floating to the top.
👩🏽🍳 Key Tips
- Adjust to Get Perfect Dough Consistency: The tangyuan dough should be the consistency of Playdoh / clay. Using HOT water with the glutinous rice flour is a MUST. If the dough is too crumbly & won’t come together, add more water a LITTLE at a time. If the dough is too wet, add a LITTLE flour at a time. Play & adjust!
- Chill Filling for Easy Handling: Chill the black sesame filling until it easily scoops together. If it becomes too hard to scoop, just leave it at room temperature for a few minutes to warm up.
- Don’t Make Dough Too Thin: This can create bursts while boiling! Try to keep the dough an even 2-3cm thick throughout.
- Avoid Overfilling: I get excited about the filling too, but don’t get tempted to overstuff the dough, otherwise, the filling will leak everywhere else before it gets to your mouth!
- Seal Tangyuan Well to Prevent Breaking: Make sure to seal the tangyuan balls well so they don’t burst while boiling. Try to make your dough disks even thickness, pinch the seams closed, then roll them until smooth. Double check for cracks & avoid air pockets!
💭 Recipe FAQs
🎊 More Easy Lunar New Years Recipes!
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Black Sesame Tangyuan (Glutinous Rice Balls)
Ingredients
BLACK SESAME FILLING:
- ⅓ cup roasted black sesame seeds
- ¼ cup sugar
- ¼ cup coconut oil or butter
- Pinch salt ⅛ teaspoon
DOUGH:
- 1 cup glutinous rice flour sweet rice flour
- 1/2 cup hot water
- 1/4 teaspoon ube extract for the purple color, used for half the dough
GINGER SYRUP:
- 4 cups water
- 3- inch knob ginger peeled and sliced
- ½ cup brown sugar packed
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Instructions
Black Sesame Filling
- Heat a small pan on medium heat, add black sesame seeds to the dry pan, then toast them for about 1 minute, or until it has a nutty aroma.
- Transfer black sesame seeds to a food processor, then grind until it forms a rough paste. You might need to give your food processor breaks to prevent overheating. Add sugar, salt, and coconut oil then grind again until well combined.
- Transfer to a bowl and chill in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes, or until slightly hardened so it’s easier to handle later.
Dough
- While the filling is cooling, make the dough. Put the sweet rice flour into a mixing bowl. Slowly add in the HOT water, while stirring with chopsticks to form a dough. Knead together until it forms a smooth Playdoh/clay consistency. If the dough is too dry & won’t come together, add a little water at a time. If it’s too wet, add a little more flour. Keep in mind, the dough can’t be too wet, or it will not hold its shape. Cover dough with a damp towel.
- Optional but recommended: Boil some water in a small pot, take about a teaspoon of dough & form a disk. Add it to the boiling water and cook the piece of dough until it floats. Scoop it out and knead it to the rest of the dough until combined.
- For ube dough (optional): Divide the dough in half, then add ube extract to one half and cover the unused half with a damp paper towel to prevent it drying out. Use gloves, then knead the ube dough until it’s an even color.
- Roll the doughs into logs, then divide them into 6 balls each (12 balls total). Keep the unused dough balls covered with a damp paper towel while assembling.
- Take out the filling – it should be slightly hard, but still workable. If it’s too firm to scoop, let it warm slightly at room temperature. Roll about a teaspoon of filling into balls. Then take each dough ball and flatten into about 2-inches disks. Add the filling to the center, and close the dough over the filling. Roll the ball around in your hands until it’s smooth and round. Double check there are no air pockets or broken seams, otherwise, they’ll burst while cooking. At this point, you can freeze them. See notes below for details.
Sweet Ginger Soup
- While you finish rolling, make sweet ginger syrup. In a small saucepan, combine water, ginger, brown sugar, and salt. Heat on medium-high until it’s boiling, then reduce heat to medium-low to simmer for 10-20 minutes, occasionally stirring until the brown sugar has completely dissolved. Taste & adjust – if you want a stronger ginger flavor, simmer longer. If you want it sweeter, add more brown sugar, but keep in mind the tang yuan is already sweet too. Turn off heat and cover with a lid to keep warm.
- Bring a separate medium pot of water to a boil. Add the tangyuan in batches if needed because they will expand when cooked. Stir immediately to prevent them from sticking. Once the water comes to a boil, add a 1/2 cup of water to the pot. Repeat this step two more times ( 3 times total) – this will give enough time for the sugar and coconut oil to melt.
- Remove tangyuan and divide them into serving bowls. Ladle the sweet ginger soup and garnish with more toasted black sesame seeds. Enjoy immediately!
Notes
- Glutinous Rice Flour: I use Erewan’s brand, which you can easily find online or at Asian markets in the GREEN bag. It’s NOT the same as regular rice flour, which comes in the red bag. You CANNOT substitute glutinous rice flour for regular rice flour because they are made from different types of rice & you won’t get the chewy texture if you try to swap them.
- Make Ahead / Freezer: If you plan to freeze them, roll the uncooked tangyuan in more glutinous rice flour, then shake off any excess. Transfer them to a tray with enough space so they aren’t touching. Freeze until solid, then transfer them to a Ziplock or airtight container to keep in the freezer for up to 1 month.
Nutrition
Exact calculations may vary. For the most accurate nutritional information, use your preferred nutrition calculator, actual ingredients, and quantities used for the recipe. Please consult with your physician or registered dietitian if more precise nutrition calculations are needed for health reasons.
hey homie! I’m Mikha!
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