Table of Contents
Pork Yuan Xiao {Rou Tang Yuan 肉汤圆} features extra soft sweet rice dumplings filled with deliciously juicy minced pork. They are one of Huai Yang Cuisine‘s classics. People enjoy them as breakfast, snacks, or side dishes.
For the Sweet version of Tang Yuan, check out here for homemade from scratch Red Bean or Sesame Tang Yuan.
Sweet Rice Flour Fun Facts
Sweet Rice, sometimes referred to as sticky rice or glutinous rice, is a short-grain rice that is naturally & deliciously chewy. Despite the name, sweet rice is gluten-free.
Sweet rice is very popular in China’s Yangtze River Delta, my hometown area. People make all kinds of sweet or savory foods featuring sweet rice or sweet rice flour.
Red Bean Tang Yuan {Hong Dou Tang Yuan 红豆汤圆}, Brown Sugar Sweet Rice Flour Cake {Hong Tang Nian Gao 红糖年糕), Qing Tuan {Green Sweet Rice Flour Dumplings with Red Bean Paste 青团}, Red Bean Sweet Rice Flour Minis {Hong Dou Xiao Yuan Zi 红豆小圆子}, just to name a few.
What are the two types of Sweet Rice Flour and How are they used for?
When people mill sweet rice into flour in a regular fashion, they become Regular Sweet Rice Flour, or Nuo Mi Fen 糯米粉 in Chinese. Qing Tuan and Brown Sugar Sweet Rice Flour Cake {Hong Tang Nian Gao} are made from the Regular Sweet Rice Flour.
When people mill sweet rice into flour while having them submerged in the water, they become water-milled sweet rice flour or Shui Mo Nuo Mi Fen {水磨糯米粉} in Chinese. They are extra soft and smooth. The secrete behind the extremely soft and smooth Tang Yuan {汤圆} and Red Bean Mochi Soup {Hong Dou Xiao Yuan Zi Tang 红豆小圆子}
How to make a Sweet Rice Flour Wrapper for Yuan Xiao?
Yuan Xiao also known as Tang Yuan {汤圆}, loosely translates into Soup and Round, is made from Water-Milled Sweet Rice Flour. Because rice flour doesn’t contain gluten, therefore the dough is not stretchy and flexible at all compared to all-purpose flour. To shape Sweet Rice Flour Wrapper is almost like pottery.
Read here for a detailed step-by-step tutorial on how to make Tang Yuan Wrapper.
How to Prepare a Delicious Minced Pork Filling for Dumplings?
Use home-ground pork if possible
Home ground Pork, made from a combination of pork belly and pork shoulder or butt, is truly the secret behind super yummy pork fillings. Using a meat grinder to just chop the pork to pieces while still maintaining its meaty texture is essential to juicy tasty pork.
That’s exactly the reason people used a cleaver to chop the pork on a thick wood cutting board into minced pork during the old days in China. Luckily I can use a Stand Mixer meat grinder attachment to get the job done easily nowadays.
Marinate the pork for delicious Pork Yuan Xiao
Shaoxing Wine, Soy Sauce, and Da Jiang {fermented bean paste}, along with little delicious spices go a long way. Star anise, ginger, and coriander are no doubt among the most delicious and healthiest spices.
Organic spices taste so much better with a stronger pleasant aroma. If the organic powdered form is not available, you can use a spice grinder to turn seeds into powder easily. That’s usually how I get my coriander powder.
How to Wrap Tang Yuan {Sweet Rice Dumplings}
True, sweet rice flour wrappers are not as forgivable as all-purpose flour wrappers, because they are gluten-free. However, it is still doable when you handle it with gentle but firm hands. By the way, it is very much like pottery.
Keeping your hands damp all the time while handling the sweet rice flour wrappers is essential. See here for a detailed and easy-to-follow tutorial to learn how to wrap sweet rice dumplings like a pro.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I freeze Pork Sweet Rice Flour Dumplings the same way as Jiao Zi (Northern China dumplings)?
Sweet Rice Flour Dumplings {Tang Yuan 汤圆 or Yuan Xiao 元宵} are not as freezer-friendly as the regular all-purpose flour dumplings. That said, you can still use the same technique to freeze them and then use them within 3 months.
When freezing freshly wrapped dumplings, first lay individual dumplings flat on a board without overlapping and then put them into the freezer for 4 hours or more. Once they become stiff, you can then transfer them into a freezer ziplock bag or container.
How do I cook frozen Sweet Rice Flour Dumplings {Tang Yuan}?
Remove them from the freezer and leave them in the refrigerator overnight to thaw thoroughly before cooking. This differs from regular all-purpose flour dumplings, which do not require de-thaw.
How do I serve Pork Yuan Xiao {Rou Tang Yuan 肉汤圆}?
Use a ladle to scoop out dumplings along with the water and add them into a bowl. Keep sweet rice dumplings in the water will make sure they remain soft. They do not need any dipping sauce, simply enjoy a super soft, smooth dumpling with amazingly juicy & tasty pork fillings.
Pork Yuan Xiao {Tang Yuan, Sticky Rice Dumplings}
Pork Yuan Xiao, also known as Pork Tang Yuan, or Rou Tang Yuan 肉汤圆 is a popular savory sweet rice dumpling featuring extra soft water-milled sweet rice dumplings filled with juicy tasty minced pork. They are one of Huai Yang Cuisine's classics. People enjoy them as breakfast, snacks, or side dishes.
Ingredients
For Pork Filling:
- 1 lb ground pork, home ground preferred
- 2 tbsp Shaoxing wine
- 1 tbsp naturally aged soy sauce, or dark soy sauce
- 2 tbsp light soy sauce
- 2 tsp Zhenjiang vinegar
- 1 egg
- 1 tbsp arrowroot flour
- 1 1/2 tsp cane sugar, organic unrefined preferred
- 1 tbsp Da Jiang {fermented bean paste)
- 1/4 tsp star anise powder
- 1/2 tsp coriander seeds powder, freshly ground
- 1/2 tsp ginger powder
- 1/4 cup water
- 1 stalks of green onion, finely chopped
For Sweet Rice Flour Wrappers:
- 454 g ( 1 lb) water-milled sweet rice flour, shui mo nuo mi fen {水磨糯米粉}
- 410 g water, room temperature, filtered or previously boiled, plus additional few tablespoons if needed
Instructions
- Prepare Pork Filling. Add everything under "For Pork Filling" in a mixing bowl, and mix well together into pork filling. See tips & tricks on how to make tasty pork filling for dumplings & buns.
- Fill a large stockpot (8 Qt.) with 70% water, cover it with a lid, and bring it to a boil. This may take about 20 minutes.
- While waiting, prepare water-milled sweet rice flour dough and wrappers. See a detailed step-by-step tutorial on how to make sweet rice flour wrappers and how to wrap sweet rice flour dumplings. You can wrap it into a pointed pear shape or a ball shape.
- This recipe makes about 40 Ping Pong ball-sized Tang Yuan. Divide the sweet rice flour dough into 40 equal portions, each weighing about 21 g. Use a kitchen scale to help gauge the portion. Shape and Wrap sweet rice flour dumplings one at a time.
- Place freshly wrapped dumplings on unbleached parchment paper and cover with a food film. Repeat until you have wrapped all Pork Tang Yuan.
- Once the water is reaching a boil, add about 20 Tang Yuan to the boiling water. The sweet rice dumplings will sink to the bottom of the pot. Use a stainless steel skimmer to gently scoop the dumplings off the bottom and make sure they are not sticking to the bottom of the pot. Cover the pot with a lid and bring it to a boil again.
- Once the water is boiling and almost rising to the top of the pot, add a cup of tap water into the pot, gently stir the dumplings, cover with a lid, and wait for it to reach a boil again.
- Repeat this another 4 times or until all dumplings are floating to the top of the water surface, showing they are fully cooked. The cooking time is longer for Pork Tang Yuan vs. Red Bean or Sesame Tang Yuan since we are cooking the ground pork from raw.
- Serve immediately using a ladle, add dumplings along with the water in the pot into a bowl.
- Repeat for cooking the remaining 20 Rou Tang Yuan. Enjoy a satisfyingly delicious Rou Tang Yuan {肉汤圆 Pork Sweet Rice Flour Dumplings}.
Notes
- This recipe makes about 40 Ping Pong ball-sized Tang Yuan. If you prefer larger ones, then double the dough portion to about 40 g for each Yuan Xiao. Keep in mind that you may need to cook a little longer for larger Tang Yuan.
Recommended Products
As an Amazon Associate, I earn a small amount of commission from the qualifying purchases.
-
OXO Steel Ladle -
Solid Stainless Steel Spider Strainer Skimmer -
Organic Ground Ginger -
Organic Coriander Seeds -
Organic Cane Sugar -
Organic Anise Seed -
Shinho Sweet Bean Paste / Tian Mian Jiang (6.3oz) -
Arrowroot Flour -
Zhenjiang Vinegar -
Light Soy Sauce -
Wan Ja Shan Naturally Brewed Soy Sauce (2 Pack, Total of 33.8fl.oz) -
Shaoxing Wine -
Water-Milled Sweet Rice Flour
Nutrition Information
Yield 10 Serving Size 4 Pork Tang YuanAmount Per Serving Calories 319Total Fat 11gSaturated Fat 3.9gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 7.2gCholesterol 70mgSodium 457mgCarbohydrates 39gFiber 1.4gSugar 2.5gProtein 13g
Nutrition calculation is provided by"NutritionValue.org" to the best of my knowledge. Nevertheless, I use lots of homemade, all natural, unprocessed, unrefined raw & wholesome ingredients which are not always readily available in the referenced source. Therefore the calculation may not always be accurate.
