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Sesame seed balls are a sweet dim sum item, and are popular during the Chinese new year.

What you'll need:

2 1/2 cups mochiko (rice flour)
7/8 cup of warm water
1 cup of brown sugar
A cup or so of sesame seeds
1/2 cup of anko
Oil for deep-frying (I use canola)

 

In a wok or some other deep cooking pot, heat the oil for deep-frying to 350 F. Soak the sesame seeds in water for 15 minutes, then spread the seeds on a piece of wax paper.

Dissolve the sugar in the water. Put the mochiko in a mixing bowl. Make a hollow in the middle of the flour and pour in the sugar water. Stir it until it becomes a caramel-colored mass.

Pinch off a piece of dough roughly the size of an average golf ball. Work it lightly in your hands to even out the texture, but not too much, otherwise the dough will get too soft and pliable and likely to tear when you fill it. A few mooshes is generally enough. Make a ball, then poke a hollow in the center and insert a small amount of anko. A teaspoon is about right. Pinch the dough closed over the anko, then roll the ball very gently between your hands to even out the surface. Roll the ball over the sesame seeds to coat it. Repeat, repeat, repeat until you've used all the dough up. If you run out of soaked sesame seeds, just add more dry ones. Wet ones stick a little better, but dry ones will do in a pinch.

Add the balls, a few at a time, to the hot oil. When the seeds turn light brown and the balls start floating to the surface, gently squeeze them against the side of the cooking container with a long spoon or other such implement. Continue doing this until they turn golden brown and inflate to about the size of a kiwi fruit.

Take the sesame seed balls out before they turn too dark and drain them on paper towels before eating. These are best eaten warm. If you make them ahead of time and then refrigerate them, microwave them before eating to restore their texture and puffiness.