Are you ready for a taste of Japan? Let’s start with one of their traditional and tasty treats, Dango! This round and delicious Japanese dessert is perfect for satisfying your sweet tooth or impressing your friends and family with your culinary skills. With just a few simple ingredients and steps, you can create this mouth-watering dessert in no time.
Dango Dessert Recipe
Ingredients:
- 1 cup of rice flour
- 1/4 cup of sugar
- 1/2 cup of water
- Food coloring (optional)
- 1/2 cup of cornstarch (for dusting)
Instructions:
Step 1:
In a mixing bowl, combine the rice flour, sugar, and water. Mix well until it forms a smooth dough. Note that you can add food coloring to the mixture if you want to create a specific color.
Step 2:
Once the dough is smooth, divide it into 16 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a small ball shape.
Step 3:
Bring a pot of water to a boil and add the rolled balls into the pot. Cook for about 3 minutes or until the dango floats to the surface of the water.
Step 4:
Remove the dango from the pot and place them into a bowl of ice water. This will help keep the shape and texture of the dango.
Step 5:
Remove the dango from the ice water and place them on a plate lined with cornstarch to prevent sticking.
Step 6:
Now the dango is ready to be served! You can enjoy them as they are or with various toppings such as sweet soy sauce, red bean paste, or ground sesame.
But wait, there’s more! If you want to go beyond the traditional dango, try creating different variations such as Mitarashi dango or Anko dango.
Mitarashi Dango Recipe
Ingredients:
- 1 cup of rice flour
- 1/4 cup of sugar
- 1/2 cup of water
- 1/2 cup of cornstarch (for dusting)
For the sauce:
- 1/4 cup of soy sauce
- 1/4 cup of sugar
- 1/4 cup of sake
- 1/4 cup of water
- 1 tablespoon of potato starch
- 1 tablespoon of water (for potato starch mixture)
Instructions:
Step 1:
Create the dango using the previous recipe instructions.
Step 2:
In a small bowl, mix potato starch and water together and set aside.
Step 3:
In a saucepan, combine soy sauce, sugar, sake, and water. Cook on medium-low heat until the sugar dissolves.
Step 4:
Increase to medium heat and stir the potato starch mixture into the saucepan. Keep stirring until the sauce thickens.
Step 5:
Once the sauce is thick and smooth, remove it from heat.
Step 6:
Grill the dango over low heat until they are slightly golden brown.
Step 7:
Brush the sauce over the dango and enjoy while they are still warm!
Anko Dango Recipe
Ingredients:
- 1 cup of rice flour
- 1/4 cup of sugar
- 1/2 cup of water
- 1/2 cup of cornstarch (for dusting)
For the anko filling:
- 1 cup of Azuki beans
- 3/4 cups of sugar
- 1 teaspoon of salt
Instructions:
Step 1:
Cook azuki beans in a pot of water for about 30 minutes or until they are softened.
Step 2:
Strain the water and place the beans back into the pot. Add sugar and salt and cook on medium heat.
Step 3:
Stir frequently until the sugar has dissolved and the beans become a paste-like consistency.
Step 4:
Remove the paste from the pot and allow it to cool.
Step 5:
Create the dango using the previous recipe instructions.
Step 6:
Using your hands, flatten each dango into a small pancake shape.
Step 7:
Place a small amount of anko in the center of each dango pancake and fold the edges over to create a ball shape.
Step 8:
Boil the dango for an additional 2-3 minutes until the anko filling is warm and soft.
Step 9:
Roll the dango balls in cornstarch to prevent sticking and enjoy!
With these recipes, you can easily make dango at home and impress your family and friends with a taste of Japan. Enjoy these delicious, sweet treats and share the love with those around you.