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Shanghai ci fan tuan
Cí fàn tuán (粢饭团): sticky-rice breakfast rolls wrapped round crisp fried dough and pickles
Ci fan tuan is one of the 'four heavenly kings' of Shanghai breakfast, along with fried dough sticks, soy milk and sesame flatbread. Vendors spread warm sticky rice on a cloth, lay a crisp youtiao and pickles in the middle and squeeze it into a fat roll to eat on the way to work. The savoury version often adds pork floss; this one uses pickled mustard and sesame, and there's a sweet sugar version too. Soak the rice overnight. Chef's tip: wrap the rice tightly in cling film and a tea towel, so the roll holds without being squashed flat.
- Total time
- 50 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
For the rice
For the filling
Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Drain 10 ½ oz glutinous (sticky) rice and spread it on a damp cloth in a steamer. Steam over a high heat for 30 minutes, until each grain is translucent and sticky with no hard centre. Stir in ¼ tsp salt.
30 minStep 2: Meanwhile, bake 2 Chinese fried dough sticks (youtiao) at 400°F for 5 minutes, until crisp and they crackle when pressed. Cut each in half.
5 minStep 3: Lay a piece of cling film on a clean tea towel. Wet your hands and spread a quarter of the warm rice into a 15 x 12 cm rectangle about 1 cm thick.
Step 4: Sprinkle over a quarter of 1 ⅜ oz zha cai (pickled mustard tuber), 2 tbsp toasted sesame seeds and 1 spring onion (or 2 tbsp sugar and sesame for a sweet roll), then lay a piece of youtiao along the middle, folding it to fit.
Step 5: Lift the tea towel and roll the rice round the filling, squeezing firmly with the towel to seal it into a fat log. Common mistake: letting the rice cool first; cold sticky rice won't seal and the roll falls apart.
Step 6: Twist the cling film ends and eat warm, peeling back the film as you go. Repeat with the rest.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 420 kcal
- Protein
- 8 g
- Carbs
- 72 g
- Fat
- 11 g
- Fibre
- 2 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does shanghai ci fan tuan take?
- About 50 minutes in total: 15 minutes to prepare and 35 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
- What can I use instead of toasted sesame seeds?
- Poppy seeds or finely chopped pumpkin seeds, same amount.
- What can I use instead of spring onion?
- Chives, or a little finely sliced onion.
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