Happy Early Winter Solstice Day
I was supposed to make the glutinous rice ball (tang yuen) over the weekend but since I wanted to make peanut filling this year, I get my Mom to buy me the crushed peanut from my hometown and they arrived only on Monday and since I’ll be going away again this weekend, that left me weekdays to make the rice ball so that I can put up in my blog before the actual day that falls on 21st December instead of the usual 22nd December due to some leap year thingy in the chinese lunar calendar. (*phew! finally the full stop!)
And every year, I will need to refer back in my 2006 achieve for the old tales. I was taught by my Mom to make 3 white ping pong sized and 3 red ping pong sized first. Place them on the centre of your plate and now you can start shaping the tiny ones. The 6 ping pong sized tang yuen (glutinous rice ball is too darn long), represent each calendar month of the year. Oh, wait! How come I have 6 large size only? It was supposed to be 12 right? I better called my Mom now.
*toot toot*
*toot toot*
Dotter: Ma, those small tang yuen surrounding the 6 big tang yuen represent what?
Mom: This year is not 6 big. This year you have to make 13 big tang yuen cos this year is leap year got extra one month.
Dotter: 
I already make 6 big wor.
Mom: You check the chinese calendar la. It’s written in there.
Dotter: So the small one represent what?
Mom: The big ones is the parents and the small…
Dotter: But, but…
Mom: But what!
Dotter: I thought you say the big one represent each calender month of the year?
Mom: Aiyah, can also la. This is Tuan Yuen (family reunion). Like a big family gathering. The small ones represents the children and the grandchildren.
Dotter: Oh!
Mom: You better don’t simply write la. Go check out the book or go ask Lilian Too.
Dotter: Haha!
There ya go. Some folklore on Winter Solstice day. It is a good education for the kids. We will be having another around of tang yuen tonight. The two girls never ate any because they doesn’t like the brown colouring from the brown sugar that I am using and another reason is because they never like ginger. Maybe tonight I’ll cook some plain syrup for them.
But my Boy love it so much! He loves to dipped the tang yuen in the left over crushed peanut that I used for the filling. To make your own filling, roast or pan fried peanut (with skin) on dry pan till crunchy. Keep stirring the peanut throughout the whole cooking process. That may take up about 30 min to 45min hence now you know why I rather buy them from shops. Let them cool completely before removing the skin from the peanut. You can do this while watching tv. This may take you another 20mins. Watch out for the flying flakes! Next, pound them in a mortar. Add coarse sugar in the peanut. NOW YOU KNOW WHY I RATHER BUY THEM FROM SHOPS! It cost about RM2.00 for a small packet of crushed peanut.
I won’t be updating till next Monday. Till then, have a great weekend ahead and Happy Winter Solstice. Don’t let our Chinese customary die. Educate your kids what Winter Solstice is all about (even though my own knowledge is quite limited also. LOL)
Annie Q said,
December 17, 2008 @ 12:17 pm
wah! Got “story” somemore..hhahahah i only know how to eat. 😛
But i’m not really like “tong yuen” but i like those filling with black sesame..instant one..that is yum yum!!!!
Have a great trip to singapore and Happy winter Solstice to you & your family too!!!
day-dreamer said,
December 17, 2008 @ 12:45 pm
I didn’t know about the small surrounding the 6 big tang yuan thingy… haha.
huisia said,
December 17, 2008 @ 3:23 pm
wow, i really don’t know got such a story la, when i make tang yuan, simply means i want to eat…haha…
Arlene said,
December 17, 2008 @ 5:22 pm
Wah good story teller very entertaining la!
allthingspurple said,
December 17, 2008 @ 6:39 pm
huahh.. never knew the tang yuen represents family members , okay, and/or the calendar months. haha
when we were kids, my gran would make seperate ones for us kids too, those without the inners and without the gingers.
Mommy to Chumsy said,
December 17, 2008 @ 10:52 pm
Happy “Tung Chit” to you and your family. My saliva is dripping now just seeing your peanut filled tong yuen 😀
whoisbaby said,
December 18, 2008 @ 1:21 am
ya, this weekend the tong yuen festival. i go buy readymade one then boil for myself since i am only the one eating here. my mil doesn’t make this because she has diabetes and don’t eat sweet stuff much.
giddy tigress said,
December 18, 2008 @ 5:28 am
wished I could have a bowl right now…maybe I’ll go get those instant glutinous rice balls…but but…don have daun pandan wor….
sila said,
December 18, 2008 @ 7:37 am
very interesting custom, and cool to teach your children this too.
although i find the winter solstice depressing and cold.. 🙁
athena said,
December 18, 2008 @ 8:10 am
y’know I actually checked and this year the Winter Solstice really falls the Dec 21st. Fuhyouh…those Chinese Calendars folks are dem good at calculating with such precision!
jasmine said,
December 18, 2008 @ 8:21 am
wah..we are also planning to get shan leo involved in making tong yuen!!! looks really fun leh
chinnee said,
December 18, 2008 @ 1:40 pm
got sell ready crushed filling? last time i blend myself. got sesame filling?
sasha said,
December 18, 2008 @ 2:01 pm
lerrrr this year never celebrate. But luckily can eat tang yuen anytime of the year .
wen said,
December 18, 2008 @ 7:03 pm
my hub said the hock chiew style is that the crushed peanut to be outside of tong yuen wor. i like ur style too, i might wanna do a few diff version this yr!
lil prince's mum said,
December 19, 2008 @ 10:32 am
Ur daughter help u to make tang yuen? How sweet~
Kyels said,
December 19, 2008 @ 6:46 pm
Happy Winter Solstice Day!
(:
Elaine said,
December 19, 2008 @ 10:11 pm
aiyo..got such rules one meh?? I don’t know wor..I didn’t even know this is leap year, I was thinking to roll the tang yuen on 21/12 night some more, lucky read your post, else really buta buta, other people celebrate liao, I will be a day late.
Grace said,
December 20, 2008 @ 9:22 am
eh…i made my own crushed peanuts before! So ma farn!!
the Razzler said,
December 20, 2008 @ 12:05 pm
Wow! Queen…
Miss those days when I helped my Mum to make the `ping pongs’…
Happy Winter Solstice Day!
constance said,
December 21, 2008 @ 10:51 am
oh that was educational…lol i made large and small ones as a young kid but didn’t know the meanings. thanks for sharing.
a-moms-diary said,
December 21, 2008 @ 11:01 pm
Good that you are keeping up the tradition and getting your children involved too.
jacss said,
December 22, 2008 @ 10:02 am
ahhh…..i wana report that i didn’t let the customary die in my hands….oredi roll my balls!!
didn’t know d actual steps to do d peanut fillings like that wan lar….so ma fan!! i just threw the nuts into the blender & treee…..treee…..die…..got oil came out!! I just added sugar & continued to use my oily & wet peanut as fillings…LOL!!
next time i better go buy ready made wan lar…..RM2 per pack….faint!!
happy holiday & wish u a Merry Xmas & Happy New Year!!