Sesame Seed Balls With Red Bean Fillings

Sesame seeds balls or known as Jian Dui in Chinese usually served at Dim Sum restaurant and very popular among Chinese community. A must in Dim Sum restaurant which comes with red bean,mung bean or lotus seed paste fillings. This Chinese pastry made of glutinous rice flour is a common sight in South East Asia and make a special treat during Chinese New Year.

I have a bag of leftover red bean paste from my red bean bread and decided to make this delicious pastry. With easy and simple ingredients one can prepare this beautiful deep fried delicacy in jiffy. Crispy exterior, soft and chewy interior with sweet red bean filling makes an ideal tea time snack. I love the way the sesame balls expands during the frying process but the trickiest part is not to burn the sesame seeds and keep turning the balls while frying but the taste worth the effort.

Ingredients

2 cups glutinous rice flour
1 1/4 cup water
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup red bean filling
1/2 cup white sesame seeds
1 bowl of water
Vegetable oil,for deep frying

Methods

Boil 1 1/4 cup water in a pan. In a large bowl add glutinous rice flour,baking powder and salt. Whisk all together to combine.

Add the boiling water and knead to form a soft and smooth dough. Divide dough into 12-14 equal portions.

Flatten the ball into a disc with your palm and place 1 tsp red bean filling in the middle. Wrap dough to seal the edges and roll the dough to form a ball.

Dip the ball in the 1 bowl of water carefully removing excess water and roll the ball onto white sesame seeds. Repeat the process with the remaining dough.

Heat oil in a pan over a medium flame and deep fry till the sesame balls approximately 3 minutes or until golden.

Remove from heat and transfer to a plate lined with kitchen towel to drain excess oil.

Serve warm with a cup of hot sweet tea

Notes

• The amount of water depends on the brand of glutinous rice flour. Different brand requires different amount of water. Add water little by little to form a non sticky and smooth dough.

• Always fry in medium or medium-low heat for even cooking. 

• Make sure during the wrapping of the dough, the edges flatten to pretty thin so that no uncooked sealed edges.

• Remove excess water after dipping the balls in a bowl of water and the balls fully coated with sesame seeds to avoid the balls bursting while frying
• Keep turning the balls while frying to prevent the sesame seeds from burning 

• Fry 4 balls at a time and avoid over crowding the frying pan.