Jian dui
Jiandui or sesame balls are a type of fried Chinese pastry made from glutinous rice flour. The pastry is coated with sesame seeds on the outside and is crisp and chewy after immediately being cooked. Inside the pastry is a large hollow, caused by the expansion of the dough. The hollow of the pastry is filled with a filling usually consisting of lotus paste, or alternatively, sweet black bean paste, or red bean paste.
Depending on the region and cultural area, jiandui are known as matuan in North and Northwest China, mayuan in Northeast China, and zhendai in Hainan.
Origin
The origins of jian dui can be traced back to the Tang dynasty as a royal food in Chang'an, known as lüdui. This food item was also recalled in a poem by the Tang poet Wang Fanzhi. With the southward migration of many peoples from central China since the An–Shi Rebellion, the jian dui was brought along and hence became part of southern Chinese cuisine.Across Asia
East Asia
In Hong Kong, it is one of the most standard pastries. It can also be found in most Chinatown bakery shops overseas.In Japan, it is known as. It is often sold at street fairs, in Chinese districts, and at various restaurants.
In Korea, it is called jungguksik chamkkaegyeongdan, to avoid confusion with the Korean-style sesame rice ball cake with sesame coating. As the Chinese jian dui is first coated with sesame seeds then deep-fried, while the Korean gyeongdan is first boiled then coated with toasted sesame seeds, jian dui is also called twigin chamkkaegyeongdan.
Southeast Asia
Cambodia
The pastry is called num kroch or nom kroch in Khmer and was introduced in Cambodia by Chinese migrants.Indonesia and Malaysia
In Indonesian cuisine, it is called onde-onde or kue moci, filled with sweetened mung bean paste. People usually eat it as a snack. This pastry is also popular and widely available in Indo, Indonesian, and Vietnamese outlets in the Netherlands.In Malaysia, it is known as kuih bom, which is usually filled with shredded sweetened coconut, or nuts. Occasionally, it may be filled with red bean paste. Among the mainly Hakka-speaking ethnic Chinese in the state of Sabah, jian dui is more commonly known as you chi.
Philippines
In the Philippines, jian dui is called butsi. Due to hundreds of years of Chinese settlement in the Philippines, the integration of Chinese cuisine to local dishes has made buchi quite popular. To an extent, it has already been considered an icon of Chinese Filipino culinary tradition, sometimes associated with auspiciousness. As it is well known among ethnic Chinese and other Filipinos alike, local restaurants which are sometimes not even Chinese and fastfood chains such as Chowking have added the delicacy to the menu. Aside from the usual lotus and red bean paste, non-Chinese and indigenous ingredients have also been used for variety, such as ube-flavored butsi. Unlike jian dui, Filipino buchi and derivates can also be boiled or steamed, in addition to being deep fried.Vietnam
In Vietnamese cuisine, two very similar dishes are called bánh cam and bánh rán, both of which have a somewhat drier filling that is made from sweetened mung bean paste. Bánh rán is scented with jasmine flower essence.Bánh rán can be sweet or savory. It is typically made with red bean. The sweet one is filled with mung bean. The savory one is filled with chopped meat, cassava vermicelli, mushroom, and a variety of other typically Vietnamese ingredients. It is usually served with vegetable and dipping sauce.