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Sunday, 7 September 2014

FOOCHOW TANG YUAN ( SI YANG)







' SI YANG ' 
in Foochow dialect is 'Tang Yuan'
These are prepared during 'Deong Zai',
to mark the beginning of winter season.

How this is done according to Foochow custom?
My mom still follows very strictly.

On the night before the 22nd day of last month of the Chinese Calender,
she will gather her grandchildren,
sitting together to make these round rice balls.

These rice balls are then left in a tray overnight
and
to be cooked for breakfast the next morning.

The children will have a fun time
playing with the dough
and 
eating some of the goodies she prepared,
like oranges, biscuits and sweets.

She has been doing this every year.
Now, the grandchildren are away overseas,
she still does it with the 'youngest' daughter and daughter-in-law
who stay with her!

As she makes the rice balls
she will sing this olden childhood song in Foochow:





A simple song
but full of meaning, she says.

If you are a Foochow
you may know how to sing this song too.

Tang Yuan or Si Yang are little round rice balls
which signify complete & togetherness.

As such, these are also cooked for special occasions 
like Weddings or New Year Re-union too.

My mom
is among the older generation 
who believes that
it is a way of showing filial piety by giving the parents 
these little glutinous balls
called Si Yang

Instead of serving these glutinous rice ball in sweet ginger/pandan syrup,
Foochow people like to serve them DRY

Soya bean is first fried and then ground into powder
with sugar being added to give sweetness.
This is used as a dusting powder for the glutinous rice balls
to prevent them from sticking together


Soya Bean powder (SI HOON) Recipe
200g soya bean fried in a kuali
                           or baked in oven for 30min @150'C turning at least twice
When the beans are cooled, ground to powder
& kept in an airtight container to be used later
Sugar is then added to give sweetness

SI YANG Recipe
100g glutinous flour
90g water

1) make a well in the flour
2) slowly mix in water to form a soft dough, not sticky dough!
3) form into a ball, cover & left aside for 2 hours or refrigerate overnight
4) roll into small balls
5) cook in boiling water until the SI YANG floats
6) mix 10 Tbsp soya bean flour & 10 Tbsp castor sugar
7) drain the glutinous ball & pour into the soya bean mixture to coat
8) serve hot



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