Eating your 5 a day shouldn’t be hard, but it is for many because working or studying instantly means having fresh fruit is not as easy as a packet of whatever you like to indulge in.
However there’s this delicious Chinese candied dish called Tanghulu which might just make eating your 5 a day a lot easier.
Plus it’s super yummy! (A great hack to get anyone you know who doesn’t like fruit to eat fruit)
Tanghulu is a traditional candy originating from China around a thousand years ago. And it didn’t start off as candy, but a healthy snack for good health!
Tanghulu is traditionally made with hawthorn, a fruit that’s highly regarded as a superfood (even today), but has a slight bitter sourness to it when eaten fresh. So, as the story goes, a doctor decided to coat the hawthorns with a melted sugar coating.
And wha-la! You have Tanghulu, a snack you can still find all over China. You get all kinds now, strawberry, kiwi, apple and tangerine are common versions, but in theory you can use any fruit you want.
INGREDIENTS
SERVES 4
4 bamboo skewers
4 strawberries
6 tangerine segments
3 apple slices
4 kiwi quarters
200g caster sugar
100g water
Baking paper
DIRECTIONS
Step 1: First prep your fruit by washing and cutting your fruit in appropriate size and shape. You can use any fruit you want but I find the above works the best.
Remove the stem and leaves from strawberries. Large strawberries can be cut into halves. Tangerines simply need to be peeled and then separated into separate segments.
Apples should be cut into small slices. You can peel you apple if you wish, but it’s not necessary. Kiwis need to be peeled or shaved to get the fuzz off the peel.
Step 2: Next, pat your fruit dry to get rid of excess moisture and then skewer your fruit onto your bamboo skewers.
Step 3: Place a pot on the stove and place your sugar and water in the pot. Stir continuously.
Step 4: Once your sugar water mixture is bubbling and thickens; you can start dipping your fruit in to coat your skewered fruit. Use a spoon to coat hard to reach places.
Step 5: Let your skewers dry by placing them on a sheet of baking paper.
Step 6: Enjoy!
Cooking Tips
- Remove excess moisture from fruit so the sugar glaze coats without cracking.
- Start melting your sugar into the water on high heat, then continue on medium-low heat to avoid burning.
- Your sugar glaze won’t harden unless your mixture is heated right. Get the right consistency by dripping a little bit into ice-cold water. If it harder instantly, you’re ready to dip you fruit!
