Andrea Nguyen
Author & Teacher
Send a messageMy Books
One of Cooking Light's 2010
Favorite Cookbooks!
Asian Dumplings
(Ten Speed Press, 2009)
Reviews & Press Release
Enhanced e-book with how-to videos now available!
Into the Vietnamese Kitchen
(Ten Speed Press, 2006)
Reviews & Press Release
E-book release: 5/11/2011
Recent PostsJapanese Sweet Rice Dumplings with Brown Sugar Syrup Recipe (Shiratama Dango)Homemade Kinako Toasted Soy FlourInstant Feel Good Foods: Deviled Eggs and Kewpie MayonnaiseEnhanced Asian Dumplings eBook and New Book Info!Dashi Carnitas Tacos Recipe2011 Japan Disaster: Elizabeth Andoh’s Experience & RequestsMail Call: Western Ways with Asian Food? Refrigerator Gold: Leftovers Panfried NoodlesReader Contribution: A Vietnamese Waif’s First Mardi Gras Pho Secret Ingredients: Dried Earthworms (Sa Sung)Awards + Praise
James Beard Foundation
Award Finalist
2007 Best Asian Cookbook
IACP Awards Finalist
2010 Best Single Subject Cookbook
2007 Best First Book
2007 Best Int'l Cookbook
National Public Radio
Best 10 Cookbooks of 2009
Cooking Light Magazine
Oct. 2009 "Editors' Dozen" Top Picks
2010 Editors' Favorite Cookbooks
CHOW.com
Winter 2009 Gift Guide
Handy InfoAsian IngredientsAsian MarketsBasic Vietnamese KitchenBook Reviews + moreCooking Tips and ToolsEssentials: Fish SauceEssentials: NoodlesEssentials: Pho Noodle SoupEssentials: RiceEssentials: Rice PaperGardeningHow to Find Asian Markets & IngredientsMama SaysTet New Year CelebrationTravel« Homemade Kinako Toasted Soy Flour |Main
March 28, 2011Japanese Sweet Rice Dumplings with Brown Sugar Syrup Recipe (Shiratama Dango)
Today I sent out the last recipe chapter to get tested for Asian Tofu. Whew! Relaxation time. I wanted to make a little Asian dumpling for fun, not for tweaking multiple times for print. I wanted the pleasure of fooling around with dough to create a satisfying afternoon snack. No pressure.
I picked these little guys. For months, I'd been thinking about trying these chewy-soft rice dumplings in Elizabeth Andoh's Japanese vegan cookbook, Kansha. The dough is fast and easy to prepare.
Elizabeth formed her sweet rice flour dough into little balls for a classic Japanese sweet dumpling called shiratama dango. I decided to make the dumplings larger and dimpled so that they'd have tiny wells for holding thick brown sugar syrup – called kuro mitsu in Japanese. Plus, I could also pile on some adzuki beans in those indented dumplings. Sweet adzuki bean paste is commonly eaten with shiratama dango but canned beans and the brown sugar syrup do the trick.
The above combination of poached dumplings, buttery beans and sweet syrup was good. However, it was splendid with the addition of nutty toasted soy flour (kinako), which I had to make on the fly. Here is my afternoon dumpling snack for you to try.
Sweet Rice Dumplings with Brown Sugar Syrup, Adzuki Beans and Kinako
Shiratama Dango
Based on recipes from Kansha by Elizabeth Andoh. If you are unfamiliar with the rice flours below, see the ingredient discussion in Asian Dumplings or this page at Asian Dumpling Tips.
Serves 4 to 6
Kuro mitsu:
2/3 cup packed dark brown sugar
1/4 cup water
Pinch of salt
2 1/4 ounces (1/2 cup) glutinous rice flour, any Thai brand
2 ounces (1/3 cup) Mochiko sweet rice flour
About 6 tablespoons water or unsweetened soy milk
3/4 to 1 cup cooked adzuki beans (canned is fine)
About 2 tablespoons purchased or homemade toasted soy flour (kinako), optional
1. In a small saucepan, combine the sugar and water. Heat over medium high heat, stirring until the sugar has dissolved. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat to vigorously simmer for about 3 minutes, until the syrup has thickened a fair amount. Dip a spatula or spoon into the syrup and it should cling before dripping off. A dark shiny film should remain on the spatula or spoon.
When the syrup is done, take it off the heat and wait for the bubbling action to subside before stirring in the salt. Pour the syrup into heatproof glass jar or bowl and set aside to cool. You should have about 1/2 cup.
2. For the dumplings, combine the two rice flours in a bowl. Drizzle in half of the water (or soymilk) and use your fingers to stir and moisten the ingredients. Then gradually work in the remaining liquid, kneading the dough into a PlayDoh type of consistency that’s firm yet soft and smooth. Toward the end, add the liquid slowly as a little of it can affect the dough dramatically. This dough can dry quickly and crack. Take care to cover it if you’re going to walk away for too long.
3. To shape the dumplings, work with half of the dough at a time, covering the other half with a dishtowel to prevent drying. Roll the dough into a 12-inch-long log. Cut it crosswise into 12 pieces. Roll each one into a 3/4-inch ball and then flatten it into a thick disc, about a scant 1/2 inch thick.
Use your index finger or thumb to make an indentation in the center. Set aside and repeat with the remaining dough. You’ll form two dozen 1-inch-wide dumplings total. When done, cover them with the dishtowel.
4. Fill a large saucepan or pot with about 3 inches of water and bring to a boil. Depending on the size of the pan, drop in half or all of the dumplings. (In a 3-quart pan, I do 2 batches.) After all the dumplings float to the top, let them cook for another minute, then use a skimmer to scoop them from the water. Drop them into a bowl of cold or room temperature water to let them cool.
The dumplings are tastiest within 30 minutes after they are made. They will still be at their peak soft-and-chewy selves. If you leave them in the water longer they’re gradually firm up. To revive them, drain them and dunk them in boiling water to soften (essentially a quick recooking) or warm and soften them in the microwave oven.
5. For each portion, put 2 to 3 tablespoons of adzuki beans in a small shallow bowl. Top with some dumplings, and a drizzle of the sugar syrup. Then finish with about 1 teaspoon of the toasted soy flour. Eat with a spoon to ensure that you get some of each of the ingredients in every bite.
You can follow this conversation by subscribing to the comment feed for this post.
Those look so delicious! I love that dessert.
Cheers,
Rosa
Posted by:Rosa |March 28, 2011 at 11:30 PMIt's a comforting sweet preparation. Some people describe it as a dessert dumpling but why wait for dessert?! :-)
Posted by:Andrea Nguyen |March 29, 2011 at 10:42 AMyour website is so great that i love it very much. thank you for sharing it with us.
Posted by:Nike Duck Shoes |March 29, 2011 at 05:36 PMI think I gained calories simply by reading that recipe -- but it was worth it :)
Posted by:Merry |March 29, 2011 at 06:24 PM Verify your Comment Previewing your CommentPosted by: |This is only a preview. Your comment has not yet been posted.
\ABS\Auto Blog Samurai\data\Best Asian Food Blogs\Viet World Kitchen\spinner.gif)
Your comment could not be posted. Error type: Your comment has been posted. Post another comment The letters and numbers you entered did not match the image. Please try again. As a final step before posting your comment, enter the letters and numbers you see in the image below. This prevents automated programs from posting comments.
Having trouble reading this image? View an alternate.
Your Information
(Name and email address are required. Email address will not be displayed with the comment.)
Name is required to post a comment
Please enter a valid email address
Invalid URL
Be Connected
Get news via RSS or email 
Get updates in Facebook
Follow me on TwitterSearch VWK
\ABS\Auto Blog Samurai\data\Best Asian Food Blogs\Viet World Kitchen\buttonc.png)
Share Shots#flickr_badge_source_txt {padding:0; font: 11px Arial, Helvetica, Sans serif; color:#666666;}#flickr_badge_icon {display:block !important; margin:0 !important; border: 1px solid rgb(0, 0, 0) !important;}#flickr_icon_td {padding:0 5px 0 0 !important;}.flickr_badge_image {text-align:center !important;}.flickr_badge_image img {border: 0px solid black !important;}#flickr_badge_uber_wrapper {width:150px;}#flickr_www {display:block; text-align:center; padding:0 10px 0 10px !important; font: 11px Arial, Helvetica, Sans serif !important; color:#3993ff !important;}#flickr_badge_uber_wrapper a:hover,#flickr_badge_uber_wrapper a:link,#flickr_badge_uber_wrapper a:active,#flickr_badge_uber_wrapper a:visited {text-decoration:none !important; background:inherit !important;color:#3993ff;}#flickr_badge_wrapper {background-color:#ffffff;border: solid 1px #000000}#flickr_badge_source {padding:0 !important; font: 11px Arial, Helvetica, Sans serif !important; color:#666666 !important;}www.flickr.com
More in Viet World Kitchen pool. Add yours!RecipesAppetizer and Snack RecipesBanh (Crepes, dumplings, cakes, bread) RecipesBanh Mi Sandwich RecipesBasic Sauces, Stocks and Garnishes RecipesChile Sauce RecipesClaypot (Kho) RecipesDeep-Fried RecipesDessert and Sweets RecipesDipping Sauces RecipesDrink and Beverage RecipesGluten-Free RecipesGrilled RecipesMain Course RecipesMeat RecipesNoodles RecipesOne-Dish Meals RecipesPho RecipesPoultry and Egg RecipesRice RecipesSalad RecipesSeafood RecipesSoup RecipesStir-Fry RecipesStreet Food RecipesVegan RecipesVegetable Sides and Pickles RecipesVegetarian Recipes Vietnamese RecipesNon-Vietnamese RecipesViet World Kitchen | Copyright 2002-2011 by Andrea Nguyen | Privacy Policy document.write(unescape("%3Cscript src='" + (document.location.protocol == "https:" ? "https://sb" : "http://b") + ".scorecardresearch.com/beacon.js'%3E%3C/script%3E"));COMSCORE.beacon({ c1: 2, c2: "6035669", c3: "", c4: "http://www.vietworldkitchen.com/blog/2011/03/japanese-sweet-rice-dumplings-with-brown-sugar-syrup-recipe-shiratama-dango.html", c5: "", c6: "", c15: ""});
No comments:
Post a Comment