A light snack, a perfect dessert in Summer
Summer has always been my favorite season. The daytime is pleasant and long, layers of clothes are tossed away, which makes the outdoor life much enjoyable. If it turns out too hot, an ice-cream is the straight answer.
On the other hand, staying in the kitchen may become unbearable. I need to switch on the air-con while working next to the stove. It is indeed the season calling for dishes requesting little cooking.
This is when today’s dish comes to the stage: Zongzi made of tapioca pearls, which requests only boiling in the cooking process. A light and gluten free snack in the hot days.
TAPIOCA ZONGZI FOR DRAGON BOAT FESTIVAL
The Dragon Boat festival falls on the 22nd June this year, the beginning of the summer holidays, when not all our friends are off to the seaside yet. This means I still have chances to host dinners to celebrate this occasion! I have decided to take a challenge and make an untraditional sweet version of Zongzi using the tapioca pearls.
Check the recipe of a savory Zongzi with chicken and mushroom filling
WHAT ARE TAPIOCA PEARLS
The tapioca pearls are made with starch extracted from the inner part of the stem of Palm trees. They are a commonly used ingredient in Southeast Asia cuisine. These starch pearls are in the similar size as the millet cereal, hard when raw. Once cooked they become chewy and transparent. A popular Southeast Asian dessert using tapioca pearls is the Sago pudding: tapioca pearls mixed with sweetened coconut milk and other tropical flavorings.
In this recipe, I am making Zongzi with two sweet fillings: mango, a seasonal fruit; and sweetened azuki beans, a top choice for all Asian dessert lovers.
ZONGZI MADE OF TAPIOCA PEARLS WITH SWEET FILLING (西米甜粽)
Course: SNACKCuisine: Cina, Sudest asiaticoDifficulty: Media20
Zongzi1
hour40
minutesIn this recipe, I am making Zongzi with two sweet fillings: mango, a seasonal fruit; and sweetened azuki beans, a top choice for all Asian dessert lovers.
INGREDIENTS
- Zongzi with mango filling
Tapioca pearls: 125g
Sugar: 2 tbsp
Sunflower oil: 2 tbsp
Water: 75ml
Mango: 1
- Zongzi with sweetened azuki bean filling
Tapioca pearls: 125g
Sugar: 2 tbsp
Matcha powder: 1 tsp
Sunflower oil: 2 tbsp
Water: 75ml
Sweetened azuki beans: q.b
- Utensils:
Fresh bamboo leaves (“L” 28-32cm)
Kitchen twine
Pot for cooking pasta
Preparation
- Zongzi with mango filling
- Put the tapioca pearls and sugar into a bowl. Add in oil and water and mix everything evenly.
- Prepare the bamboo leaves: take the leaves out from the package. Cut out the end where has the hard stem. Brush a layer of sunflower oil on the smooth side of the leaves.
- Cut the mango in small pieces.
- Overlap two leaves about half part. Bring the end towards the head to create a cone.
- Put one tablespoon of tapioca pearls at the bottom; add in 2-3 pieces of mango; cover with another tablespoon of tapioca pearls.
- Bring down the bamboo leaves to cover the cone. Fold away the leaves following the instructions.
- Tie the leave using the kitchen twine and close the Zongzi with a knot.
- Repeat the step 4-7 until you finish all the ingredients.
- Zongzi with sweetened azuki beans
Follow the steps above with the following adjustments: - Add 1 tsp of matcha powder into the tapioca pearls in step #1.
- Replace the mango with sweetened azuki beans.
- Cooking
- Boil water in a pot. Put the Zongzi into the boiling water making sure all Zongzi are well covered by water.
- Lower the fire to minimum, cover with the lid and simmer for 30-45 minutes.
- Turn off the fire and leave the Zongzi in the pot to cool by themselves.
- Enjoy the Zongzi when they are cooled down. Or keep them in the fridge (for 3-4 days) and eat whenever you want.
- You can also keep the raw Zongzi in the freezer and cook them following the steps above whenever you want.
VIDEO RECIPE
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