Chinese Dessert?

Question

During a trip to Vancouver BC I enjoyed a chinese dessert--it had bean paste at its center and a had flour dough(or rice flour?) as its shell. Could anyone tell me the name of this dessert? I loved it and have thought about it off and on for 7 years...I'd really like to duplicate it. Thank you!

Answer 1

Sweet Bean Buns

1 pkg. pie crust mix

1 can (about 1 lb. 2 oz. ) sweetened red bean paste

1 egg yolk

2 Tablespoons water

Prepare pastry mix as directed on package. Roll dough out on floured board. Form a rectangle. Cut in 4-inch squares. Place an equal amount of bean paste in each square. Shape bean paste mound in a rectangle. Fold short ends of pastry over filling, then lap longer sides over top. Place seam side down on greased baking sheet and flatten slightly with your hand. Beat egg yolk with water and brush over each pastry. Bake in a 375* oven for 45 minutes or until brown. Cool on wire rack. Eat warm or cold.

I hope this is what you were looking for...

Answer 2

You don't really give enough details to allow positive identification: how was it served, exactly what kind of shell/exterior did it have, is it soft or harder?

"...and a had flour dough..." Sorry, do you mean "and had flour dough" or "and a hard flour dough" ? If the shell is hard as in baked, then it would be like Bigeyes' suggestion. That is a pastry eaten more like a snack than end-of-meal dessert. In Mandarin, it's called shao bing. The fillings can vary: red bean paste, lotus paste, green bean paste, soyabean paste etc. It takes some skill to make, with 2 types of dough and also effort to make the filling from scratch.

If the shell is soft, it's likely the Chinese equivalent of Japanese mochi, tang yuan (glutinous rice flour balls). It's cooked by boiling and commonly served in sweet soup, in soyabean milk, ginger soup, peanut soup. Also served dry after boiling, rolled in sesame seeds or ground up peanuts with sugar, or deep-fried golden brown. The fillings are also varied: peanut, black sesame, red bean, yam etc. Though the more traditional version has no fillings and comes in 2 colors of white & pink. The Shanghainese have their own version served in a sweet soup with sweet fermented glutinous rice.

If you could recall more details, I'll be happy to edit my answer to provide the recipe to relieve your 7-year itch (in the mouth) :)

Answer 3

Sounds like you had a sweet red bean bun... or Pao/bao.

Instead of making them.... you can get these in the frozen section of the oriental store and simply steam (or in some cases, microwave!) them.

Answer 4

was it steamed? if it was steamed, it would use wheat flour, and steamed. they are called 豆沙包 here's a pic

http://www.notempire.com/images/uploads/...

mooncakes are sorta made in a similar way,

the filling can be

a) red bean paste

b) lotus seed paste

c) white lotus seed

d) green (mung) bean paste

red bean paste is common, lotus seed paste is pricier, mung bean paste is better tasting.

here's a recipe i found

http://visualrecipes.com/recipe-details/...

there are many recipes on google, not sure which is the best one.

you can also buy these premade online, just steam and eat. also they sell them in chinese bakeries for like 60 cents or less.

the japanese also have a similar type of dessert, called mochi, but they are more like a confection made from chewy rice dough.

Answer 5

Steamed Bun Dough

2 1/4 c Bleached flour

1/2 c Sugar

1 1/2 oz Water

3 1/2 ts Baking powder

3 oz Milk

2 tb Lard

Instructions:

Mix flour, baking powder, & sugar together on a clean surface. Make a

"well" in the middle of the mixture. Gradually pour the milk into the well

while using your fingers to combine it with the dry mixture. After the milk

has been absorbed, add the H2 O and continue to work the dough. Add lard in

small pieces and continue working the dough. Using a dough scraper in one

hand, gather the dough together while kneading with the other hand. Knead

for 12 - 15 minutes until it becomes elastic. Cover dough with a moderately

damp cloth and allow to rest for one hour. Must be used within 1 - 2 hrs.

Con't be frozen. If not all used within that time frame, use as starter for

the following Form a well in 1/2 lb. of the starter and add 1 C. flour, 2

1/2 tsp. baking powder, 1/3 C. sugar and combine well. Add 1 Tbs. HOT water

and combine well. Add 2 Tbs. lard, combine well. Knead for 12 - 15  min.

Sweet Red Bean Paste Filling

Ingredients:

1 1/2 c Red beans, washed well

4 c Water

1/2 c Vegetable shortening

1 c Sugar

Instructions:

(sweet red bean paste can be bought in the store, and used straight from

the can for filling, but this is how to make it from scratch)

Place the beans and water in a saucepan, cover, bring to boil over medium

high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook for 1 1/2 hours, or til beans

are very soft.

Strain the water from the beans, and blend them into a puree in a blender

or food processor.

Press the puree through a sieve, discarding the skins, which will be left

in the sieve.

Place the puree in several layers of cheesecloth, and gently squeeze to

remove excess moisture.

Place the thickened puree back into the saucepan, together with the sugar

and vegetable shortening, and heat over low heat, stirring until it becomes

a thick paste. Stir and scrape vigourously so that it does not stick to the

bottom.

Remove from heat and let cool before filling buns.

LOOKS LIKE A LOT OF WORK!!!

Answer 6

we call them rice cakes - in China they have a few names:

Mochi (common name)

Nian gao

Tangyuan

Erkuai