Tangyuan

Tangyuan is a Shanghai local food, as a kind of traditional food in China. Tangyuan, sometimes called glutinous rice balls in English, is small balls made from glutinous rice flour. This traditional Chinese dessert is well loved by all generations.  Put them into the water and cook them till they float on, then you can eaten this famous Chinese dessert.


The Tastes of Tangyuan

Tangyuan can either be filled with sweet or savory fillings, or unfilled.
The unfilled one is smaller in size and also tends to be more colorful. This kind of Tangyuan is served as part of a sweet dessert soup.
The other kind of Tangyuan gets fillings inside. Popular sweet fillings are black sesame paste, peanut paste and red bean paste, while the savory filling is usually made of pork and spices.


The Types of the Sweet Broth

Besides the filling of Tangyuan are determined the taste of this dessert, the sweet broth used to cook is another important factor of this food.
It is common that the Tangyuan are cooked in a pot of boiling water, and served with a sweet broth. So there are many types of sweet broth, such as red bean soup, ginger and rock sugar, etc.


The Cultural Background of Tangyuan

Due to its round shape which is taken as a propitious symbol in Chinese culture, Tangyuan are always eaten to celebrate the reunion and harmony of a family.
Besides eating these during the winter solstice, Tangyuan are also made on special celebrations (such as Chinese New Year and Chinese Lantern Festival) and used as an offering to the gods. They are also served during weddings.


Where to Eat

In Shanghai, there are many old stores for Tangtuan. The Wang Jia She Confectionery Store located on West Nangjing Road of Jing'an District is one of the most famous.