Crispy Fried Glutinous Rice Cakes with Sweet Red Bean Paste
东北油炸糕（糯米粉豆沙馅儿）不翻车很简单 · northern cuisine · Northeast
The author grew up eating these fried glutinous rice cakes and prefers them to sugar-filled dough fritters made with all-purpose flour. Using a good water-milled glutinous rice flour, a moderately soft dough, and a switch from high to low heat for frying keeps the cakes from cracking or bursting.
Dottie LangfordRetired schoolteacher in Ohio who lives for church-potluck casseroles and my grandma's butter rolls. If it bakes in a 9x13 pan, I've probably made it twice.Nutrition & allergens
No supported allergens detected from surveyed ingredients.
Some ingredients are not yet allergen-surveyed; this label is not exhaustive.
Per serving (8 servings)
- Energy (kcal)
- 11.9(Main ingredients only; seasoning not counted)
- Protein (g)
- 0.7(Main ingredients only; seasoning not counted)
- Fat (g)
- 0.1(Main ingredients only; seasoning not counted)
- Carbs (g)
- 2.5(Main ingredients only; seasoning not counted)
- Sodium (mg)
- 124.6(Main ingredients only; seasoning not counted)
Estimated from verified ingredient data for the original formula — not lab values, and one dish is not a full meal.
0.53 cup
sweet red bean paste (store-bought, pre-sweetened)豆沙馅儿（我买的袋装的太甜了）
as needed
0.18 oz
yeast酵母
0.05 oz
as needed
Techniques you'll use
- Deep-frying ↗
Cook food fully submerged in hot oil for crisp crust and moist interior.
Steps
- 1
Step 120 min
Add the sugar and yeast to the glutinous rice flour, then mix with warm water into a moderately soft dough (yes, warm water — failures may come from a different brand of flour). Smooth a little oil over the surface of the dough, cover, and let it rest for about 20 minutes.
✅ Done when: The dough is smooth, moderately soft, and has rested covered for about 20 minutes.
- 2
Step 2
Off heat
Oil the work surface and your hands. Knead the rested dough until it is very smooth and fine — otherwise it will crack during frying. Divide it evenly into 8 pieces, roll each into a ball, flatten it in your palm, and wrap in a small amount of red bean paste (use less if you prefer it less sweet; taste the paste to judge).
✅ Done when: The dough kneads out silky with no lumps and all 8 pieces are filled and shaped.
- 3
Step 310 min
Seal each cake well, roll it into a ball again, and gently flatten it slightly, making sure no filling shows. Cover with plastic wrap and rest for another 5 to 10 minutes.
✅ Done when: All cakes are sealed with no exposed filling and have rested 5 to 10 minutes.
Heat the oil over high heat. Hold your hand about 10 cm above the oil — when it feels very hot, turn the heat down to low (frying continuously on high or medium heat will burn the cakes and make them burst). Lightly oil your hands, pick up each cake, smooth over any exposed filling, and lower it slowly into the oil. The oil may spatter, so be careful not to burn yourself. Don't crowd the pot — the cakes stick together when they first go in.
✅ Done when: The oil is hot enough that a hand held 10 cm above feels very hot, and the cakes are in on low heat without crowding.
The cakes float after about 5 seconds. Fry about 2 minutes on one side, flip, and fry 2 minutes more. When both sides are golden and puffed, lift them out and drain the oil.
✅ Done when: Both sides are golden and the cakes are puffed.
- 6
Step 6
The finished crust is extremely crisp while the inside stays soft and chewy — as good as it looks.
✅ Done when: The exterior shatters crisply and the interior is soft and chewy.
- 7
Step 71 min
These keep well: fried at noon, the cakes were still crisp enough to flake by evening. By the next morning they firm up; a 10 to 15 second turn in the microwave restores them — even the author's son says they're just as good.
✅ Done when: Reheated cakes are warm and crisp again after 10 to 15 seconds in the microwave.