• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

The Missing Lokness

Easy Everyday Recipes

  • Home
  • About
  • Recipe Index
  • So-Cal Travel Guide
  • Privacy Policy

Sweet Glutinous Rice Dumplings with Black Sesame

February 13, 2013 By Lokness 14 Comments

Sweet Glutinous Rice Dumplings with Black Sesame | Delicious sweet sesame rice dumplings for lunar new year! #chineserecipe #lunarnewyear #chinesenewyear #glutinousriceflour #blacksesame #dessert #dessertrecipe #steamed | The Missing Lokness

This is my interpretation of my grandma’s (my mom’s side) recipe. It is a dish from a specific region in China called “Chaozhou/Chiuchow 潮州”. My grandma is from Chiuchow. The original name of this snack is “Lok Tang Ci 落湯糍”, but most people will know this as “Nuomici 糯米糍”. Why is this sweet snack being served on Chinese New Year? It is because the word “Ci 糍” sounds almost exactly like the word “Chin 錢 (money)” in Chiuchow dialect. The dumplings are the symbol of wealth.

The dumplings should be made on New Year eve. On the first day of New Year, everyone in the family will go to grandma’s house. We greet each other, give red packets, receive red packets, sit around, eat and chat. These dumplings are one of the things that everyone loves. When the steaming hot dumplings come out of the kitchen and arrive on a table, everyone would run over with a pair of chopsticks and munch on their dumplings. Great memory!

One really interesting thing: My mom and my aunt are never allowed to eat the dumplings. It is because they are married. In Chinese culture, when a daughter married someone, she is the member of the husband’s family. Any family traditions from the daughter’s side of the family will not pass down to the daughter. And the daughter is considered an outsider. Since the dumplings symbolize wealth, my mom never got to eat the dumplings after she got married. But this year, my grandma has suddenly changed the rule to allow my mom to eat under one condition. No take out. (No money is being taken away from the family). Mom said that she hasn’t eaten that for 30 years. Haha… Lucky mom!

But yes, these little dumplings are gooey. Dip as much sugar as you want when eating. Don’t start talking when eating. I don’t think anyone will understand you when you have that sticky dumpling in your mouth. It is fun and tasty, and it will bring you wealth! Have a great new year!

P.S. Special thanks to my fifth uncle for helping out with the background information and recipe tips! I can’t finish this post without his help.

Sweet Glutinous Rice Dumplings with Black Sesame | Delicious sweet sesame rice dumplings for lunar new year! #chineserecipe #lunarnewyear #chinesenewyear #glutinousriceflour #blacksesame #dessert #dessertrecipe #steamed | The Missing Lokness

Sweet Glutinous Rice Dumplings with Black Sesame | Delicious sweet sesame rice dumplings for lunar new year! #chineserecipe #lunarnewyear #chinesenewyear #glutinousriceflour #blacksesame #dessert #dessertrecipe #steamed | The Missing Lokness
Print Pin

Sweet Glutinous Rice Dumplings with Black Sesame

Makes 10 – 12 dumplings
Course Dessert
Cuisine Chinese, Chiuchow
Keyword black sesame dessert, chinese, chinese new year dessert, glutinous rice flour, rice dumpling, sweet dumpling
Servings 4 people

Ingredients

  • 150 grams glutinous rice flour
  • 170 milliliter water
  • ½ cup roasted black sesame seeds
  • 1 teaspoon vegetable oil (plus extra for handling dough)
  • 1½ tablespoons sugar

Instructions

  • Ground the sesame seeds with a grinder into a coarse powder. Transfer to a plate. Set aside.
  • In a large pot or wok (with lid), put in the steaming rack and add water that reach 1 inch below the top of the rack. Bring the water to a boil over medium heat.
  • Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, add the flour. Mix in the water and oil until combined. The dough should be almost like play dough, but runnier. Transfer the dough to a medium bowl that can be steamed and fit in the wok.
  • Put the bowl on top of the steaming rack. Cover with lid and steam for 15 – 20 minutes or until the dough is cooked through.
  • Once the dough is ready, remove the bowl and place on a table. Have someone holding the bowl, stir the dough clockwise with a strong, long and thin utensil (like the handle of a wooden spoon) for 3 – 4 minutes. The dough will get stickier and tougher.
  • To make the dumplings, slightly grease a pair of chopsticks on one end. Holding the pair of chopsticks tightly, stab into the dough, pull out and twist the pair of chopsticks together to get approximately 1 tablespoonful of dough. Now, take one chopstick in each hand. Scrap the chopsticks back and forth against each other, until the dough has moved to the end of a chopstick. Use a slightly greased hand to separate the dumpling from the chopstick. Roll the dumpling in the sesame seeds until the dumpling is completely covered. Place the dumpling on a small steaming plate. Repeat with the rest of the dough.
  • To serve, cover the dumplings (in the steaming plate) with aluminum foil. Re-steam the dumplings for 2 – 4 minutes. Serve immediately. Dip the dumplings in sugar to serve.

Notes

  1. I don’t have a grinder or granite mortar. I tried to use the plastic bag and rolling pin method, but it didn’t really work. At the end, I used a wooden spoon to grind the seeds little by little in a small bowl. It was painful. Use a grinder!
  2. Stirring the dough after 1st steaming will help to make the dough more gooey, which is critical.
  3. I found the chopsticks to be helpful for making the dumplings. You can use any methods you want. The goal is to turn the cooked dough into 10 – 12 1-tablespoon balls.
  4. The dumplings can make 1 day ahead. After the dumplings have been rolled with the sesame seeds. Place them on a steaming plate and cover with plastic wrap. Keep in the fridge. When ready to cook, remove the plastic wrap and cover with aluminum foil. Re-steam the dumplings for 12 – 14 minutes until ready to serve.
  5. If you cannot find roasted sesame seeds, you can get regular black sesame seeds and toast them yourself. How to toast sesame seeds: Read
(Slightly adapted from tastehongkong.com)

I am submitting this post to Chinese New Year Delights 2013 hosted by Sonia aka Nasi Lemak Lover.

Filed Under: Cook, Dessert/Sweet Tagged With: black sesame, chinese, Chinese New Year, dumpling, glutinous rice flour, Lunar New Year, snack, sweet

Previous Post: « Happy Chinese New Year!
Next Post: Trip to San Diego Zoo »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Mich Piece of Cake says

    February 13, 2013 at 8:46 pm

    I love these! And being a black sesame fan, I love that the dumplings are coated in black sesame.

    Reply
    • Lokness says

      February 14, 2013 at 2:06 pm

      Thank you Mich! Hope you will give this a try. Happy New Year!

      Reply
  2. anne says

    February 15, 2013 at 5:18 am

    Just passing by to ask for some lai see ?! lol Your glutinous sweet rice dumplings look really delicious ! I love this kind of snack 😀

    Wishing you and your family Happy Chinese New Year !!! May the year of the Snake bring you good health , good luck and happiness !

    Reply
    • Lokness says

      February 15, 2013 at 4:26 pm

      Haha…. Thank you, Annie! Wish you a happy and healthy New Year too!

      Reply
  3. TasteHongKong says

    February 15, 2013 at 8:20 pm

    May this lovely dessert brings you a prosperous year too! This is such an interesting post, and I learned something new; thanks for sharing and thanks for the link.

    Reply
    • Lokness says

      February 20, 2013 at 10:02 am

      Thank you! Same to you. Thanks for your great recipe. If I didn’t see it from your blog, I will never think of making it. And of course, I will never find out the history and stories of this family snack. 🙂

      Reply
  4. Amy Tong says

    February 15, 2013 at 8:38 pm

    糯米糍 are my kids favorite. They ask me to make them all the time. 🙂 And they only care for the black sesame ones. hehehe….Yours look absolutely wonderful. Now, I want to make some to enjoy with my kids. My method is a bit different, instead of steaming the dough, I cook it on stove top. 😉 Happy CNY to you and your family. Wish you all the best in year of Snake.

    Reply
    • Lokness says

      February 20, 2013 at 10:10 am

      Oh yes, cooking in boiling water definitely works too! That will be a great method when I have no one to help me to stir the dough. 🙂 Happy CNY!

      Reply
  5. Nate says

    February 26, 2013 at 11:38 pm

    I think we had the reverse of this for dessert last night. Delicious.

    Nate-

    Reply
    • Lokness says

      February 27, 2013 at 9:49 am

      I think you probably have something like this (http://lokness.wordpress.com/2011/02/02/chinese-new-year-sesame-glutinous-rice-balls/). They are truly delicious. Make me want some now! 🙂

      Reply
  6. Zoe says

    February 27, 2013 at 7:09 pm

    Hi Lokness

    I love the way you wrote about these rice dumplings with your family stories, culture and history. Being a Singaporean Chinese, I know that married women are considered out of their maternal families but didn’t know that married women are not supposed to eat these traditional dumplings. Kinda harsh, isn’t it?

    Reading your stories does remind me a little bit about myself, living away from home… That’s why I’m trying the preserve some of food culture as much as possible.

    Nice to know you via blogging. Hope to hear from you again soon 😀

    Zoe

    Reply
    • Lokness says

      February 28, 2013 at 8:54 am

      Hi Zoe,

      Thank you for the comment. To know that someone appreciate my story, it means a lot to me.

      I agree with you. It is definitely harsh and silly for not letting married women to eat the dumplings. I am amazed that how every little things have meanings behind it. It is good and it is bad. But oh well, that is the Chinese culture. We can only choose what to pick.

      If I am still living in Hong Kong, I may not even aware or care about the story behind the dumplings. It is because I am far away from home. I want to know more about my family and the traditional food. Just like you, I want to bring and keep some traditional culture/food in my family. Keep up with the good work! Great to know you. 🙂

      Lokness

      Reply

Trackbacks

  1. The Missing Lokness | Fried Red Bean Puffs says:
    January 31, 2016 at 8:12 am

    […] Chinese New Year. Our family is not very traditional. The only snack that my grandma makes are the sweet glutinous rice dumplings with black sesame. Other than that, we all munch on dried fruit, chocolate, roasted seeds and fresh fruit. Every […]

    Reply
  2. Homemade Sesame Glutinous Rice Dumplings (Tang Yuan) | The Missing Lokness says:
    February 14, 2018 at 12:54 pm

    […] dumplings symbolize family togetherness, which will bring happiness to the family. There is also another version of these dumplings that do not have filling, but coat with sesame seeds on the outside. My […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Hello there!

Welcome! I'm Lokness. Currently live in Los Angles. Grew up in Hong Kong. Obsessed with chocolate & ice cream. Cooking is something I love. This is where I share my stories and recipes. Want to know more? Click here.
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter

Never Miss a New Recipe!

Sign up to receive notifications of new posts by email. No spam!

Popular Posts

  • Baked Custard with Tapioca | This baked custard is mixed w/ chewy tapioca pearls & filled w/ sweet lotus paste. A classic Hong Kong dessert. Hot, rich, creamy & not too sweet! #dessert #hongkong #tapiocapearl #custard #dessertrecipe #baking #lotuspaste #chestnutspread #redbeanpaste #chineserecipe | The Missing Lokness Baked Custard with Tapioca
  • Magnolia Bakery Banana Pudding (From Scratch) Magnolia Bakery Banana Pudding (From Scratch) #magnoliabakery #copycatrecipe #banana #pudding #bananapudding #partyfood #nilawafer #dessert #dessertrecipe | The Missing Lokness Magnolia Bakery Banana Pudding (From Scratch)
  • Easy Sushi Bake #sushibake #hawaiianrecipe #imitationcrab #avocado #easyrecipe #furikake #seaweed #dinner #dinnerrecipe #appetizer | The Missing Lokness Easy Sushi Bake
  • Hong Kong Style Borscht Soup #soup #hongkongfood #vegetables #beefbone #borschtsoup | The Missing Lokness Hong Kong Style Borscht Soup
  • Sangchu Geotjeori (Korean Lettuce Salad)

missinglokness

🍩 Recipe Developer & Food Lover (I cook & eat around the city!) 🐹 Animals Lover 🏠 Los Angeles🌴(From HK 🇭🇰)

Sometimes, something simple is the best. My go-to Sometimes, something simple is the best. My go-to is a cheeseburger w/ extra toasted bun & onion. Bryan likes his double-double w/ onion. The fries were perfectly crispy, and I like to dip them in the spread sauce. Please order me 2 fries next time!😂 How do you like your In-N-Out?
Ice cream time! This Vanilla Blueberry Thyme Swirl Ice cream time! This Vanilla Blueberry Thyme Swirl Ice Cream is creamy, little vanilla-y w/ bits of blueberries & a hint of thyme. That vibrant blueberry swirls also makes the prettiest purple color too! I made this ice cream using my blueberry thyme jam, so it’s very easy.🫐🍨

Recipe link in profile ⬆️ #ontheblog #TheMissingLokness

https://www.themissinglokness.com/2022/04/15/vanilla-blueberry-thyme-swirl-ice-cream/
A perfect bowl of Korean shaved ice for a warm nig A perfect bowl of Korean shaved ice for a warm night. We both got Injeolmi, which is milk flavored ice w/ mochi, roasted soybean powder & condensed milk. It was light, little nutty & not too sweet.🍧

🌟Oakobing
📍37 N Arroyo Pkwy, Pasadena, CA 91103
Spring time means berries. Let starts w/ Blueberry Spring time means berries. Let starts w/ Blueberry Thyme Jam! Sweet, lemony & earthy. A nice surprising combo, but both blueberry & thyme compliment each other really well. I once served this once w/ a slice of Basque cheesecake, & it was fantastic! The jam is good on all sort of things, like yogurt and charcuterie board. 🫐

Recipe link in profile ⬆️ #ontheblog #TheMissingLokness

https://themissinglokness.com/2022/03/24/small-batch-blueberry-thyme-jam/
When I think of comfort food, this Satay Beef Cell When I think of comfort food, this Satay Beef Cellophane Noodles in Clay Pot (沙嗲牛肉粉絲煲) definitely is up there on the top. One of my favorites to order in Hong Kong! It’s hearty & rich. That tender beef & noodles are coated w/ a savory & slightly sweet satay sauce. Little kick from the chili & the earthiness from the mushroom. Bold flavors! Please just give me a bowl of rice already! Btw, this takes only 30 mins to put together, which makes a great weeknight dish. 

Recipe link in profile ⬆️ #ontheblog #TheMissingLokness

https://themissinglokness.com/2022/03/10/satay-beef-cellophane-noodles-in-clay-pot/
Maude (@mauderestaurant) has reopened & we’re ba Maude (@mauderestaurant) has reopened & we’re back! It closed down during the pandemic & eventually was selling sweet & savory pies for a while. Once we heard Maude was about to reopen, we made reservation. It’s a 9-course tasting menu w/ the focus on California cuisine this time. Everything was incredible. We chose to sit on the chef’s table & watched them plating & cooking. Precision & speed w/ lots of components. We had our many firsts, like cactus, caviar, & black truffle. Our favorites of the night were caviar w/ peas, abalone & bread w/ aged butter. We really love this place & look forward to going back soon!

🌟Maude
📍212 S Beverly Dr, Beverly Hills, CA 90212
❣️Always a multi-course tasting menu & changes often.
Am I dreaming? Hailing in Pasadena? The mix of hai Am I dreaming? Hailing in Pasadena? The mix of hail & rain probably lasted for a good 30-minute. I was very excited at first, then it got crazy. Hail was collecting everything & my patio started to flood. I took out a broom & removed some of the hail. That worked, the water started to move & subside eventually. So glad my apartment wasn’t flooded. Whew! I have seen hailing, but this is another level. The ground was covered in hail. Really incredible!
Morning bun from Tartine Bakery Pasadena. Crispy & Morning bun from Tartine Bakery Pasadena. Crispy & chewy laminated croissant bun w/ the taste of cinnamon & orange zest. This location just opened a couple weeks ago. It’s a luxury to have a bakery like this in the neighborhood. I know I’ll be stopping by there all the time. Thinking about their croissant, lemon tart, brownie & baguette already! @tartinepasadena @tartinebakery

🌟 Tartine Bakery (Multiple locations in LA/SF)
📍 277 W Green St, Pasadena, CA 91105
Load More... Follow on Instagram

Copyright © 2022 · The Missing Lokness · Privacy Policy

 

Loading Comments...