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–+ servings
A skewer of orange, strawberry, and grape tanghulu.
5 from 1 vote

Tanghulu

Tanghulu is a traditional Chinese street food candy snack usually made with hawthorn berries and olives and coated in melted sugar coating. This version is made with strawberries, grapes, and oranges, fruits that are much more accessible and super delicious candied! For more street food inspirations, also try our scallion pancakes and Taiwanese fried chicken recipe!
Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time10 minutes
Total Time25 minutes
Yield: 8 servings

Ingredients
 

  • 2 cups granulated sugar
  • 1 cup water
  • Fruits like strawberries, grapes, and orange

Instructions

  • Prepare the fruits:
    Wash and dry the fruits thoroughly. If you have the time, let them air dry. Skewer your desired amount of fruits onto each skewer. It can be all the same fruits on a skewer or a mix of fruits. One, two, and three fruits on a skewer is the optimal number to work with. The less fruits the easier. This recipe is best for up to 8 skewers with 2-3 pieces of fruits each. Set the fruit skewers aside on parchment paper until needed.
    For strawberries, trim off the ends with the leaves. If you're only putting one strawberry per skewer, you can skip trimming the leaves. Grapes should be kept whole, just pluck them off the stems. Oranges should be peeled and sectioned into segments.
  • Make the syrup:
    In a saute pan, add the sugar and water and heat on medium high heat. Shake the pan if needed to flatten the sugar. Once the sugar is mostly dissolved, reduce the heat to medium. Let the sugar syrup cook until it reaches 300°F (hard crack stage). Take the pan off the heat immediately because the syrup will continue to cook. Immediately start coating the fruits with the syrup.
  • Coat the fruits:
    Working quickly, roll the fruit skewers in the syrup. Let the excess syrup drip off by gently shaking. If need to, tilt the pan to gather the syrup in one area. Place the coated skewered fruit back onto the parchment paper and repeat with the remaining skewers. Do note that as the syrup cools, it'll harden and most likely crystalize. So make sure to work quickly.
  • Serve:
    Enjoy immediately or up to a couple of hours because the heat from the sugar syrup kind of cooks the fruits, making them soft. But don't refrigerate the tanghulu! The hardened sugar will melt from the humidity.
  • The ultimate tanghulu:
    This tanghulu is on a total different level. We recommend making this in an open space or somewhere that will easy to clean up afterwards.
    To make it, prepare the fruits as you would for the normal version. Then place them onto a plate or sheet pan lined with parchment paper and freeze the fruits for at least 2-4 hours or overnight. The fruits need to be completely frozen.
    The sugar syrup is prepared the same way, heated to 300°F (hard crack stage).
    When ready to coat, take the fruit skewers out of the freezer. Work quickly as usual, making sure to coat the entire fruit. Let the excess syrup drip off for a moment then hold the tanghulu by the skewer upside down, flat between your palms. Then rub your palms back and forth to rotate the tanghulu in a swift motion. Candy threads should appear. If not, spin the tanghulu faster and do so before the syrup hardens.

Notes

Please refer to the post above for step by step photo reference, tips, and FAQs!
Keywords: fruit snacks, streetfood
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