KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 21 — Today is the Winter Solstice Festival or Dūngzi in Cantonese. It’s the shortest day and longest night of the year.
A cold time, so it’s tradition to have a bowl or two of tong yun (glutinous rice balls). This year I feel like something more luxurious yet equally simple and traditional.
How does a big bowl of red bean soup with tong yun sound?
The round rice dumplings, its name is a homophone for togetherness in Chinese. Its shape represents unity, harmony and all things good.
What better way to enjoy this than with some silky-smooth hung dau sui? There is nothing like a bowl of homemade red bean soup.
The combination is a winning one, and will be much praised by your family as you celebrate the Winter Solstice by eating tong yun together.
It’s a sacred time, precious time with our families. May we eat well and stay warm, however cold the days get, however long the nights last.
RED BEAN SOUP WITH TONG YUN (GLUTINOUS RICE BALLS)
We begin with a handful or two of dried red beans. The first thing to do is to get them rehydrated and soft again.
What we want is a red bean soup where the beans have nearly dissolved, with just a bit of texture.
If there is too much of a chew or, even worse, a couple of hard beans here and there, then the entire experience of slurping the tongsui is ruined somewhat.
To this end, there are different techniques to achieve this tender result. You can simply soak the dried beans in water overnight; some get by with even a few hours of soaking, though the beans might still be a tad tough.
What I like to do is to soak them overnight, then drain and rinse the beans before freezing them.
Freezing the soaked red beans will turn the water inside the legumes into ice. This helps in breaking down the beans further when we cook them.
Choose whichever method suits you best so long as the dried beans have been rehydrated and will disintegrate easily when you boil them.
To perfume the smooth hung dau sui that you have made, don’t skimp on the chan pei. It lends the sweet red bean soup a delicate and unmistakable fragrance.
Where I do take a shortcut is in the tong yun. Instead of making them from scratch, I am more than happy to use frozen glutinous rice balls. So convenient.
Not only does this save time, I can also choose the filling I desire, be it crushed peanuts or aromatic black sesame seeds.
This quick hack allows me to spend more time on the red bean soup itself, ensuring a lush base for the auspicious Dūngzi orbs.
Ingredients: Red bean soup
300 g dried red beans, rehydrated
1500 ml water, first boil
1500 ml water, second boil
1 piece dried tangerine peel, soaked
1 piece pien tong (Chinese slab sugar), or more to taste
A pinch of salt
A packet of frozen tong yun (approx. 200-300g)
Method
Prepare the dried red beans: Soak them in enough water to cover all of it overnight. Drain and rinse, then freeze the rehydrated beans for at least six hours.
Fill a large pot with water. Add the frozen red beans. Bring to a boil and then immediately drain.
Refill the pot of drained beans with more water and bring to a boil again.
Once the water is boiling, add the dried tangerine peel. The dried orange peel only needs to be soaked in cold water for 30-40 minutes before using.
Reduce the heat to a simmer. Allow to simmer for about 2 hours until the beans have softened and the liquid has reduced to your liking.
Once the red bean soup is the right consistency, season with pien tong (Chinese slab sugar) and a pinch of salt. Stir until all the pien tong has completely dissolved.
Check the taste and season with more pien tong if necessary. Turn the heat off and cover the pot.
In a smaller pot, bring water to boil. Add the frozen tong yun. Boil until the glutinous rice balls have started to float. Use a slotted spoon or small spider strainer to transfer the balls into serving bowls.
Ladle the red bean soup over each bowl and serve immediately whilst hot.
