THE Winter Solstice celebrations will take place at sunrise on December 21, 2024.
Historically, the winter solstice has been celebrated globally as a time of renewal and rebirth as it marks the return of light after a dark period.
When Sharon Ong was younger, she recalled each Winter Solstice as a familiar warmth for families to reunite and have Tang Yuan (glutinous rice balls) together after dinner.
Cooked in a sweet sugar water, the balls were often left uneaten by the children, she recalled.
“I still remember the elders telling the children that they will only grow one year older after eating the tang yuan, so it was a must to finish the bowl.
The children, with umhappy faces, ate the tasteless tang yuan nevertheless.”
But over the years, Ong’s elders learned that in order to attract the children to enjoy the traditional delight, sesames, crushed peanuts or red bean paste could be filled in the balls.
Even today, more is done to attract children to have a bowl of tang yuan each Winter Solstice as it is an important aspect of the Chinese’s tradition.
For homebaker Michelle Phang, her customers love the playful designs that she offers, especially children who can connect with the cartoon shapes.
“Traditions evolve as times change.
Many families like incorporating new, fun elements if they spark joy, especially for younger members.
If cartoon tang yuan create fond memories and draw people to the table, there’s every chance they’ll become a cherished part of the Winter Solstice in the future.”
“It’s a simple update: the same classic tang yuan taste, just presented in an imaginative way.
These little design nuances could very well blend into the broader Winter Solstice tradition over time,” she added.
While cartoon ones are much more challenging to do due to ensuring the dough’s consistency, and moulding the cartoon can be time-consuming, but it is enjoying the novelty without fearing the loss of cherished tastes and textures that Phang aims for.
Meanwhile, Merry Tan who creates tang yuan with a twist — crystal tang yuan, offering a new and different sensation to the traditional dessert.
Filled with real sweet potato jam, Tan shared that many of her customers enjoyed the modernised twist as they were curious to try new things.
Adding on, Ong said that while it was inevitable that the meaning and spirit of festivals were eternal, but the food enjoyed during festivals would gradually change, “mainly because of the saying ‘When in Rome, do as the Romans do’.
The ingredients and seasonings that can be purchased locally will change the appearance and taste of traditional food.”
The warmth of family this Winter Solstice Emphasising on kinship from scratch, the Winter Solstice day often sees Chinese families gathering to create tang yuan together.
Such memories remained embedded in Ong’s, Phang’s and Tan’s minds to this day.
Each reminisced about the days when there would be messes in the kitchen, shaping the dough together with their mothers, boiling them in sugar water and eating them with their families.
The sense of warmth that kinship brought upon has ignited a strong family value within the women and their family members. “Growing up, making tang yuan was a festive activity that brought everyone together around the kitchen table.
I wanted to build on that spirit by bringing a bit of whimsy and fun to the traditional tang yuan — primarily through shapes and colour — without changing the classic flavours people have come to love.
My goal is to keep younger generations engaged, ensuring that they continue to value and enjoy these timehonoured desserts,” shared Phang.
Meanwhile, Ong from ‘leklekdimsum’ revealed that growing up in Kuala Lumpur in a family that sold freshly made kuih like ‘chai kueh’, ‘angku kueh’ and others, her family also made tang yuan to sell each year.
“It was at that time that I learned how to make them from my mother.
I also loved being with my mother, talking and laughing, rolling the dough into round pieces together. It was warm and fun.
To this day, I still think of that time often.”
She enjoyed tang yuan with a sweet pandan syrup.
When she moved to Kuching after marrying her husband, she learned that osmanthus sauce could also be used as the syrup flavour too — “Which I thought was a unique flavour to eat tang yuan with.”
A delicate process Soft and supple, these tang yuan rolled in a swirl of sugar syrup soup.
Eating them may be simple, but these balls embody the deeply rooted connection from the culture’s roots.
The strong sense of heritage hits with every bite, bringing back memories from the past, whether from childhood laughter or stories from yesteryears.
Though tang yuan, like many other traditional delicacies, evolve as modernity seeps in, they remain as an important cultural aspect of the Winter Solstice festival.
Sharing on the processes to create them, Ong said that the basic ingredients were simple — glutinous rice flour and warm water.
“Slowly add warm water to the glutinous rice flour, knead the two together until a smooth dough that does not stick to your hands forms.
You can knead it into different sizes according to your preferences.
If you think the colour of the glutinous rice flour is too monotonous, you can add some colours.
For me, I don’t sell my balls with artificial colouring as I prefer natural colouring like green from pandan leaves, red is red rice, and blue is taken from the petals of the butterfly pea flower.”
For those who prefer flavours in their tang yuan can opt to add crushed peanuts, red bean paste or peanut butter to have a more enhanced taste.
“When cooking the syrup, you can add pandan leaves and some ginger slices, then put the glutinous rice balls into another pot of boiling water, stirring slowly to prevent the glutinous rice balls from sticking to the bottom of the pot, until the glutinous rice balls float on the water.”
“When the glutinous rice balls float on the water, it means that the glutinous rice balls are cooked.
Then add the cooked glutinous rice balls into the cooked syrup, and a bowl of sweet glutinous rice balls syrup is ready.”
Phang said introducing new characteristics to these tang yuan could keep this festive season exciting.
“The key is ensuring that the textures, fillings, and symbolic significance remain intact.
This approach preserves the comforting essence of tang yuan while inviting fresh curiosity from all generations.”
So have you had your bowl of tang yuan today?
