Tang yuan – glutinous rice balls typically served in sweet soup – is a traditional Chinese food that symbolises togetherness. They are most commonly eaten during Winter Solstice Day and Chinese New Year, but now, they are enjoyed all year round.
Due to regional differences, there are several varieties of tang yuan. In Singapore, the most traditional versions are peanut and sesame-stuffed rice balls served in sweet soups flavored with brown sugar or pandan and rock sugar. In recent years, ginger and peanut soups have become popular as well.
Locally, tang yuan is also known as “ah balling”, which is how the Teochews refer to this dessert. This week’s Tried & Tested hunts down the best tang yuan or ah balling in Singapore. Who is our winner?
Hai Sing Ah Balling EDITOR’S PICK!
335 Smith Street, #02-059 Chinatown Complex Food Centre
Opening hours: Tue-Wed, Fri-Sun: 12pm-9pm, Thu: 12pm-6pm, closed on Mon
Price: $2.50 (5 pieces)
Rating: 5/5
Since its days at the now-defunct Ellenborough Market, Hai Sing Ah Balling has specialised in Teochew-style tang yuan for more than 30 years, and they are still the gold standard to beat!
They hand-make everything on the spot, from the dough to the fillings. You can choose from peanut, sesame, yam, red bean, and mung bean, or opt for a mix of these five. Durian is also available at a higher price. The homemade fillings are firmer, chunkier and more fragrant than the usual pre-packed type.
What blows their competitors away is their gorgeous dough. Silky smooth and melt-in-the-mouth, the skin achieves the perfect balance of being thin, soft, and elastic. Best of all, it doesn’t stick to your teeth. Also, they make the rice balls in small batches to prevent them from turning soggy.
Only one kind of soup base is served here: a clear, pandan-infused broth. Wonderfully fragrant and refreshing, it has just the right touch of sweetness. Why bother with options when there’s already such a perfect bowl of tang yuan?
Zhen Jie Dessert Ah Balling BEST VALUE
7 Maxwell Road, #02-113 Amoy Street Food Centre
Opening hours: Mon-Fri: 10am-3.30pm, closed on Sat, Sun & PH
Price: $2.00 (4 pieces) / $2.50 (6 pieces)
Rating: 4/5
They offer up to seven soup bases and five fillings, though not all may be available on the same day. Wide variety and hearty portions makes Zhen Jie the best value tang yuan in this round-up!
We tried two most popular soups: ginger and peanut. Both were well executed. Although the ginger soup had a distinctive scent of ginger, it tasted very mild. Those who dislike the spicy taste of ginger would like this. The soup had a lovely scent and wasn’t too sweet.
Similarly, the peanut soup was executed with finesse. The peanuts retained their shape, but were soft and powdery to the bite. The broth is beautifully smooth and fragrant.
Perhaps the rice balls were cooked and left standing for a little too long, for our tang yuan had skin that was a tad soggy. Thankfully, the dough wasn’t too thick. The fillings were typical of the pre-packed variety.
101 Upper Cross Street, #02-48 People’s Park Centre
Opening hours: Daily: 11am-7.30pm
Price: ginger soup (4 pieces for $2.50), peanut soup (3 pieces for $2.50)
Rating: 3.5/5
Of the three eateries here that offer ginger soup, Dessert Hut’s version has the most kick. Its warm ginger flavor lingers without overwhelming one’s tastebuds.
Rich and cloudy, the peanut soup is also rather robust. The peanuts were nicely al dente, but some stray ones were still a little firm. Both ginger and peanut soups had the right sweetness level, but could be more aromatic.
For the rice balls, they offer only peanut and sesame fillings, both of which were competently done. The molten fillings were fragrant, and the dough has the right balance of softness and elasticity. Consistent standards here make this a dependable choice for a quick fix of tang yuan.
Dessert First MOST CREATIVE TANG YUAN
8 Liang Seah Street, #01-04
Opening hours: Tue-Sun: 12pm-11.30pm
Price: original tang yuan with peanut/sesame filling (4 pieces for $3.00), pumpkin skin/taro skin tang yuan with red bean/chocolate filling (4 pieces for $3.50)
Rating: 3.5/5 for pumpkin/taro tang yuan, 2.5/5 for original tang yuan
Skip the original tang yuan, for the true stars here are the pumpkin skin and taro skin tang yuan!
A mixture of glutinous rice flour dough and mashed pumpkin or taro, the dough looks thick but is pleasantly soft with a nice bite. It goes nicely with red bean paste, but the most unforgettable flavour is definitely the chocolate tang yuan. As you bite into each rice ball, the molten filling explodes and fills your mouth with rich, bittersweet chocolate. Absolutely sublime!
Comparatively, the original tang yuan – with its overly soft and floury skin – was disappointing. Also, the soup was bland. On the upside, the peanut and sesame fillings were finely ground, but still failed to save the overall dish.
505 Beach Road, #01-75 Golden Mile Food Centre
Opening hours: Daily: 9.30am-9.30pm
Price: $1.60 (4 pieces), $2.00 (5 pieces)
Rating: 2.5/5
75 Ah Balling is proof that handmade tang yuan need not necessarily equate quality.
Overly thick and chewy, the glutinous rice flour skin will give your jaws an intense workout. It’s also of uneven thickness and sticks to the teeth. As for the five various kinds of fillings – peanut, sesame, red bean, yam, and green tea – they are of the pre-packed variety. No complaints, but neither is there any wow factor.
They offer two kinds of soup base – ginger and peanut. The former is cloudy, with a bare hint of ginger. The latter has very soft-cooked peanuts in a not-too sweet broth. Both are passable, but could clearly benefit from more fragrance.
inSing.com made anonymous visits and paid for its own meals at the eateries featured here.
