tha candied fruit (how ta make it)
Thanks to dancingupastorm for finding this recipe for the candied fruit I wrote about two days ago. I made it this afternoon with excellent resultz. Maybe I should start my own street stall!
The recipe calls for 10kg of sugar and 3kg of water. I took it down to 1.0kg sugar and .3kg water (note: 1g water = 1mL). Sugar melts into liquid at a low temperature- you do not need a lot of water for this recipe.
Put the sugar and water into a wok and heat it over a low flame. (A wok is best because its sloped sides will allow you to better coat your skewers of fruit when dippin' time rolls around). Let it simmer for a good 20 minutes- it needs to get to the "hard crack" temperature. Obviously, I ain't dickin with no candy thermometer; I was checking my syrup by dipping a chopstick into it.
Dip your skewered fruit into the syrup. In China, the guy at the stall wraps the skewer in a fluttery piece of edible rice paper to keep it from sticking, then slides it into a paper bag. The online recipe recommends you set the dipped skewers on a greased surface. I weighted down my cheese grater and propped them up to dry.
In the absence of skewers: disposable chopsticks.
Kumquat and strawberry.
Kumquat, kiwi, strawberry.
In other news, Chinese New Year is in two days, fireworks are poppin', red lanterns are dangling everywhere, and my 'hood is practically deserted as everyone has returned to their home provinces. But still enough cosmopolites hanging around to create a body-to-body crush at this decorations bazaar downtown!
The recipe calls for 10kg of sugar and 3kg of water. I took it down to 1.0kg sugar and .3kg water (note: 1g water = 1mL). Sugar melts into liquid at a low temperature- you do not need a lot of water for this recipe.
Put the sugar and water into a wok and heat it over a low flame. (A wok is best because its sloped sides will allow you to better coat your skewers of fruit when dippin' time rolls around). Let it simmer for a good 20 minutes- it needs to get to the "hard crack" temperature. Obviously, I ain't dickin with no candy thermometer; I was checking my syrup by dipping a chopstick into it.
Dip your skewered fruit into the syrup. In China, the guy at the stall wraps the skewer in a fluttery piece of edible rice paper to keep it from sticking, then slides it into a paper bag. The online recipe recommends you set the dipped skewers on a greased surface. I weighted down my cheese grater and propped them up to dry.
In the absence of skewers: disposable chopsticks.
Kumquat and strawberry.
Kumquat, kiwi, strawberry.
In other news, Chinese New Year is in two days, fireworks are poppin', red lanterns are dangling everywhere, and my 'hood is practically deserted as everyone has returned to their home provinces. But still enough cosmopolites hanging around to create a body-to-body crush at this decorations bazaar downtown!