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Charmaine Mok

Winter solstice, the shortest day of the year, falls on December 21 in the northern hemisphere this year.
While celebrated worldwide, it is of particular importance among Chinese communities, who spend the festival – known as dongzhi in Mandarin and dung zit in Cantonese – dining with loved ones.
In Hong Kong and southern China, the small glutinous rice dumplings known as tangyuan or tong yuen (literally “soup balls” in Mandarin and Cantonese respectively) are a staple at the winter solstice.
Their spherical shape is said to reflect the complete family unit – a belief reflected in the similar sounding saying, tuan tuan yuan yuan or tuen tuen yuen yuen, which refers to reuniting with loved ones. It is why the dumplings are also an essential item on the Chinese New Year table.

If you grew up in Hong Kong, chances are you are most familiar with tong yuen filled with sweet black sesame or peanut paste and served in a clear, ginger-tinged syrup.
The sweet soup is also common in parts of Southeast Asia, such as Singapore and Malaysia, where it is often flavoured with aromatic pandan leaf.
There is a lesser known yet equally delicious version of tangyuan eaten primarily by those of Taishanese heritage.
Taishan in Guangdong province prides itself as “the hometown of overseas Chinese” as there are more Taishanese abroad – particularly in the United States – than in Taishan itself, thanks to mass emigration in the 19th and 20th centuries.
The Taishanese version of tangyuan is a far cry from the sweet dessert that has been popularised around the world. For one, the dumplings are small, dense and chewy and have no sweet filling.

Instead, the chewy little balls of glutinous rice flour swim in a savoury broth simmered with umami-rich ingredients – typically dried shrimp, shiitake mushrooms and preserved Chinese sausage – and jostle for space with sliced cabbage, radish, and sometimes fishcake.
A smattering of chopped spring onions and coriander add colour and freshness to a deeply comforting dish.
Because so many Taishanese emigrated to places such as North America there are many recipes available in English, written by second- and third-generation Taishanese.
It’s part of our family’s identity, and I hope to keep it alive for future generations
Susanna Yu, an influencer who recently shared a savoury tangyuan recipe online
One of them is Randy Lau, the founder of popular Chinese cookery website Made With Lau, who says Taishanese tangyuan have a special significance in his life – not least because the dish reflects his family’s heritage.
“[Tangyuan] was actually one of the dishes that made me want to start Made With Lau because I always wanted to make sure that I preserved my dad’s recipe to pass down through the generations,” he writes in his introduction to the recipe.
“Because of our language barrier, I wasn’t always able to communicate on a deeper level with my parents, but tangyuan was always a reminder that I am loved.”
His – or rather, his father’s – recipe features quintessential ingredients such as dried shrimp and shiitake mushroom along with fresh shrimp, fish balls, Chinese sausage, chicken, mushrooms and vegetables. The broth is redolent with white pepper and sesame oil, and has a touch of fish sauce.
Lau’s tip for how to prevent the dumplings turning the broth cloudy is to “seal” them after boiling and before adding them, by draining and cooling them in iced water.
Former Post food editor Susan Jung has her own take on savoury tangyuan. “Our version is very simple – tong yuen (of course!) minced pork meatballs, into which I mixed a little preserved radish greens and all the usual seasonings, dried shrimp and mushrooms, and lots of white radish.”












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A post shared by Susan Jung (@susanjungfood)



Lisa Lin, who runs the cookery blog Healthy Nibbles, also has a recipe dedicated to a parent – in this case, her mother (aka “Mama Lin”), who prepares the dish every winter solstice in the spirit of their Taishanese heritage.
“Mama Lin typically prepares a broth that is flavoured with chicken stock, dried shrimp, Chinese sausage, shallots [or] onions, and sometimes lean pork,” Lin writes. “To serve, she’ll top the bowl of tangyuan with cooked daikon, fried fish cake, scallions, and cilantro. It is the ultimate winter comfort food!”
Lin has devised a vegan-friendly version of Taishanese tangyuan in which she increases the amount of dried shiitake mushrooms in the broth and adds kombu – a type of seaweed – with lemongrass for a fresh note.
She also adds crunchy toppings such as carrots, fried shallots and black sesame seeds.
As more content creators share their memories and recipes for savoury tangyuan, a relatively obscure recipe from outside the Taishan region has been pushed into the mainstream.
Jennifer Toy, one half of San Francisco-based content creators Crazy Thick Asians, recently published a video detailing her paternal grandmother’s tangyuan recipe that garnered thousands of likes.












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A post shared by jen and wes • crazythickasians (@crazythickasians)



“My grandma’s savoury tangyuan soup is much more than just food. It’s a connection to her love and the memories we shared,” Toy tells The Post. “Every time I make it I’m transported to my childhood in her kitchen and it makes me feel close to her.”
One reader thanked them for sharing the recipe, saying they would try making it for their mother, who cannot have sweet tangyuan because of health reasons.
Similarly, Susanna Yu, the creator of cooking platform Smelly Lunchbox, shared her family’s savoury tangyuan recipe last winter solstice. It has since garnered over 12,000 likes and ignited a dialogue about this under-represented tradition.












View this post on Instagram























A post shared by Susanna • smelly lunchbox (@smelly.lunchbox)



Yu says that it wasn’t until she shared the recipe on social media that she realised it was unique. “I grew up thinking every Chinese family ate this savoury version during winter solstice,” she says.
“Preparing this dish has always been a tradition,” she adds. “My brother and I rolling tangyuan to the rhythm of my dad’s cleaver chopping vegetables and my mom’s spatula scraping the wok. My dad preps the ingredients while my mom kneads the dough and simmers the broth.”
Yu says that once she learned how deeply rooted the dish is in Taishanese culture, she felt compelled to preserve and share it even more.
“It’s part of our family’s identity, and I hope to keep it alive for future generations.”


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Savory Taishanese tangyuan glutinous rice dumplings are gaining popularity as second- and third-generation Chinese influencers in the West share their parents’ recipes. The dumplings are a must at winter solstice and Chinese New Year. Photo: Getty Images

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Food & Drink

Sweet dumplings are common at winter solstice, but Taishanese savoury ones are trending on social media as influencers return to their roots


Sweet dumplings are common at winter solstice, but Taishanese savoury ones are trending on social media as influencers return to their roots.


Chinese culture

Chinese cuisine

Asian diaspora