Purple Glutinous Rice Fan Tuan 臺式紫糯米飯糰

Commonly known as purple rice in Taiwan, whole-grain, black glutinous rice from the indica family has a delicious nutty flavor. Its high amylopectin content (a type of starch) and natural coloring make it the perfect base for purple fantuan rice rolls. 

Learn to make fan tuan, a common Taiwanese breakfast item, using purple glutinous rice grown in Yilan by rice farmer Lai Chin-Sung. To hear more about Lai and to watch a recipe demo, check out this video.

Purple Glutinous Rice Fan Tuan
臺式紫糯米飯糰

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 2 cups cooked purple glutinous rice
• 50g preserved radish (cai pu)
• 1 whole pickled mustard green
• 4 cloves garlic
• 1 chili pepper
• Sugar, to taste
• Salt, to taste
• 2 eggs
• 2 green onions
• 1 stick youtiao*
• Peanut powder, to taste
• Pork floss, to taste

*If you don't have youtiao, you can substitute with toasted bread that's been cut into strips for crunchiness.

Instructions

1. Rinse the preserved radish and mustard greens then soak for five minutes to remove excess salt. Dependent on desired taste and texture, they can also be soaked for longer.

Preparing the Egg

1. Finely chop the green onions into thin rounds. Set aside.
2. Beat the 2 eggs. Add a pinch of salt and the chopped green onions. Mix well.
3. Heat oil in a pan, then pour in and cook the egg mixture. It should resemble a flat omelette once fully cooked.
4. Cut the omelette into strips and set aside.

Preparing the Preserved Radish and Mustard Greens

1. Drain the preserved radish and squeeze out excess water.
2. Stir-fry the preserved radish in the pan until moisture evaporates and it becomes loose and dry. Add some sugar to balance the saltiness. Adjust to taste, then add a little cooking oil for additional stir-frying. Before turning off the heat, sprinkle in white pepper to enhance the radish's aroma. Remove from pan and set aside.
3. Prepare the garlic and chili by mincing them.
4. Drain the mustard greens and squeeze out excess water.
5. Finely chop the mustard greens. You can remove the leaves if you don't like their texture and chop the remaining stem parts.
6. Stir-fry the mustard greens in the pan until the moisture has slightly evaporated. Add sugar to balance the sourness. Adjust to taste, then add a little cooking oil, minced garlic, and minced chili.
7. Once fragrant, remove from heat and set aside.

Preparing the Youtiao

1. Cut the youtiao into thirds.
2. If the youtiao has lost its crispiness, you can restore it by heating in the oven.
3. Set aside.
4. Now that you've prepared the egg, radish, and mustard greens, you can assemble your fan tuan.

Assembling the Fan Tuan

1. Lay out a sheet of baking paper. Carefully spread the rice on the paper, making sure to flatten it. The layer should be roughly a quarter to half an inch thick.
2. First, add a strip of the sliced green onion egg.
3. Then, sprinkle some mustard greens and preserved radish. Optionally, you can also add some pork floss and sweet peanut powder for a sweet and savory flavor.
4. Top with a piece of youtiao for a crispy, crunchy texture.
5. Once all your ingredients have been added, add another layer of purple rice on top.
6. Starting from the bottom closest to you, carefully roll the baking paper away from you, so that the edges of the glutinous rice layers meat and encase the filling. Press firmly with both hands to form the fan tuan, ensuring that the glutinous rice is securely joined together.
7. Your Taiwanese-style purple glutinous rice fan tuan is now complete!

Recipe by: Siang kháu Lū Cultural Kitchen