Sweet Pumpkin Balls
Form the pickled pumpkin flesh into small balls, deep-fry, and coat with syrup and sesame sugar powder.
Ingredients
Pumpkin flesh (marinated in sugar water for 12 hours, then stewed)
1200 g
Sugar water (for marinating)
500 g
Bean water
200 g
Cake flour (mixed into the pumpkin)
100 g
Egg white
1
Powdered sugar (mixed with sesame)
100 g
White sesame seeds (toasted and ground)
25 g
Wet arrowroot starch (for thickening)
to taste
Water (for syrup)
100 g
Granulated sugar (for syrup)
100 g
Red bean paste filling (stuffed into the balls)
to taste
Lard (for frying)
to taste
Instructions
1
Step One
Marinate the pumpkin flesh in sugar water for about 12 hours. Remove the pumpkin and reserve the liquid in the clay pot. Place a bamboo rack at the bottom of the pot, lay in the pumpkin pieces, set the pot on a charcoal stove, and stew over low heat for about 2 hours, until the pumpkin flesh becomes firm. Remove and set aside to cool.
2
Step Two
Place the pumpkin on a wire strainer to drip off the syrup, then transfer to a cutting board and mash with a knife. Add the cake flour, mix well, and divide into 24 equal portions. Stuff each portion with red bean paste filling and shape into pigeon-egg-sized balls. Deep-fry in lard for a few minutes — the oil must not be too hot (to avoid burning) nor too cool (or the pumpkin balls will fall apart). After frying, pour the pumpkin balls and oil into a wire strainer to drain.
3
Step Three
Wash the wok, add 100 g water and 100 g granulated sugar. Once the mixture comes to a boil, stir in a small amount of wet arrowroot starch, then add the fried pumpkin balls and toss until evenly coated. Transfer to a serving plate.
4
Step Four
Toast the sesame seeds until fragrant, grind them up, mix with the powdered sugar, and sprinkle generously over the pumpkin balls. Serve immediately.
