Easy and Fast Chinese Candy Recipe: Fruits Inside a Crunchy Coating!
A sweet treat is the easiest way to win anyone’s heart. Instead of giving them store-bought candies, you can make fruit candy at home. It just takes some sugar to make awesome fruit candies. Today, I have a Chinese candy recipe for you. It can be made with various fruits, especially strawberries, grapes, blueberries, etc.
The final texture of these candies depends on how well you make the sugar syrup and how precisely you dip the fruits in the syrup. I will show you all the detailed steps so that you can make the perfect fruit candy with the least hassle. Let’s get started.
Table of Contents
Overview of Chinese Candy Recipe
Before I start the candy making process, I want you to take a quick look at the overview chart. It contains all the necessary information about the recipe, such as the preparation time, cooking time, serving size, calorie count, and more.
| Course: Snack | Cuisine: Chinese | Difficulty: Easy | ||
| Total Time: 20 minutes | ||||
| Serving | Preparation Time | Cooking Time | Calories | |
| 10 persons | 5 minutes | 15 minutes | 190 kcal | |
Ingredients Needed for this Recipe
You don’t need almost anything except for the fruits and sugar. Still, here is a list to make the preparation easier for you.
- Strawberry: 1 lb of fresh strawberries
- Grape: ½ lb of grapes
- Sugar: 2 cups
- Skewers: 10-12 bamboo skewers
You can use other fruits as well. I rest the decision on you. Remember, it is better to use fruits from the berry family because the sugar syrup sticks to their skin easily.
Chinese Candy Recipe: Step-By-Step Instructions
Making the perfect sugar syrup is the most critical step in making this fruit candy. Don’t worry, I have the detailed steps below.
Step 1: Make the Sugar Syrup
Place a pot over medium heat. Add two cups of sugar and one cup of water to the pot. Let the mixture boil and wait until the syrup has a light amber color.
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Step 2: Clean the Fruits and Skew Them
Wash the fruits in salty water and then pat them dry. Wash the bamboo skewers as well. Then, insert the skewer through the fruits. Each skewer should have about 3-4 fruits.
Step 3: Dip the Fruits in the Sugar Syrup
While the sugar syrup is still hot, hold the skewer on one end and dip the fruits into the syrup. Swirl the skewer so that the syrup layer on the fruits is thin.
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Step 4: Dip the Fruits into an Ice Bath
Quickly remove the skewers from the hot syrup and dip them into an ice bath. It will harden the sugary coating. Then, shake the excess water from the candies and let them dry properly. After that, you can enjoy crunchy fruit candies.
Chinese Candy Recipe
Ingredients
Method
- Place a pot over medium heat. Add two cups of sugar and one cup of water to the pot. Let the mixture boil and wait until the syrup has a light amber color.
- Wash the fruits in salty water and then pat them dry. Wash the bamboo skewers as well. Then, insert the skewer through the fruits. Each skewer should have about 3-4 fruits.
- While the sugar syrup is still hot, hold the skewer on one end and dip the fruits into the syrup. Swirl the skewer so that the syrup layer on the fruits is thin.
- Quickly remove the skewers from the hot syrup and dip them into an ice bath. It will harden the sugary coating. Then, shake the excess water from the candies and let them dry properly. After that, you can enjoy crunchy fruit candies.
Nutrition Facts of this Candy
As these candies have a lot of sugar, you should moderate the intake. Each serving of Chinese fruit candy has 190 calories. Besides, you get the following nutrients in Chinese fruit candy.
- Total Carbohydrates: 46.7g
- Protein: 0.7g
- Total Fat: 0g
- Saturated Fat: 0g
- Polyunsaturated Fat: 0g
- Monounsaturated Fat: 0g
- Total Dietary Fiber: 2.5g
- Total Sugar: 38.3g
- Cholesterol: 62mg
- Sodium: 383.3mg
- Potassium: 4.3mg
- Calcium: 20mg
- Iron: 1.3mg
- Vitamin A: 0IU
- Vitamin C: 0mg
It is usual for a candy to have a large amount of sugar, which is true for this fruit candy as well. Besides, the candy contains a lot of carbohydrates. But, the amount of protein in this candy is very low and it has no fat. Still, the candy has a notable amount of cholesterol and sodium.
Other minerals are scarce in this candy. So, there aren’t enough nutritional benefits of eating this candy. Moreover, the sugar present in this candy can be detrimental to your health.
Do’s and Don’ts of the Recipe
Making this fruit candy will be easier if you follow the tips mentioned below.
Do’s
- Add a few cardamom pods and some lemon juice to the sugar syrup if you want to make the candies more fragrant.
- Store these candies in a cool and dry place. If you keep them in a warm place, the sugary coating might melt down.
Don’ts
- Don’t swirl the skewers in the sugar syrup. Otherwise, the candies will be chewy instead of crunchy.
- Don’t boil the sugar syrup over high heat. The syrup can quickly change its color to a darker amber or even dark red.
Is There Any Other Name for the Chinese Fruit Candy?
Yes. These fruit candies are known as tanghulu. Sour hawthorn berries were first used to make these sweet candies. The first tanghulu or fruit candy was made about 800-1100 years ago in Northern China.
The then-Chinese emperor of the Song Dynasty is assumed to be the first promoter of this sweet treat. Today, people use different types of berries or other fruits.
Do I Need to Make Chinese Candy from Whole Fruits?
Not necessarily. You can cut larger fruits into small pieces and put them on skewers. Then, you can make this candy by coating those pieces in clear sugar syrup. For example, you can cut pineapple into cubes and then put them on skewers to make this candy.
But, small pieces of fruits will have a wet surface that might not retain the sugary coating well. So, using whole fruits is much better for the texture of the candy.
Can I Use Food Color to Make These Candies?
Food color isn’t necessary for these candies. The typical character of these candies is the transparent sugary coating. If you use food color in the sugar syrup, the candies will lose the transparent coating.
However, you can use food color if you want. In that case, it is better to use colors that match the natural color of the fruit. Also, you need to put all the same fruits on each skewer so that you can dip them into the same colored syrup.
What Type of Sugar Should I Use for This Recipe?
You should use white sugar for this fruit candy. If you use brown sugar or any other type of sugar, the syrup won’t be as clear as the white sugar syrup. So, your fruit candy won’t have that characteristic transparency.
If you use food color for this candy, then you can use brown sugar. For example, using red food color in brown sugar syrup won’t cause any problems.
Conclusion
Chinese fruit candy is a fun way to celebrate something. You take a bite of these sweet, crunchy candies to enjoy the fruity core covered in a sugary layer. People of all ages, especially kids, love these fruit candies a lot. So, you can make these candies at home to use them as treats. Follow the Chinese candy recipe I showed you to make the perfect fruit candy.
I want to warn you about one thing. These candies are too high in sugar. This much sugar isn’t good for your health, especially for people who have high blood sugar. So, you should be careful about how many candies you eat or serve to others.
