The glutinous rice ball is a traditional Chinese snack during the Lantern Festival.

It is often filled with red bean paste or sesame paste. The sweetness of the filling is linked to happiness and the round shape of the balls are a symbol of family togetherness. Chinese people believe both the shape and the taste can bring happiness and good luck in the new year.

There are two major types of glutinous rice balls – one is called Yuanxiao, the other Tangyuan. Although they look very much alike, they are two different things.

'Roll' the Yuanxiao

Yuanxiao is popular in the northern area of China and is more complicated to make than Tangyuan.

The filling needs to be cut into little cubes, dipped into water and put in a shallow basket with sticky rice powder. Then comes the physical work of rolling the cubes until they become balls.

The process of sticking the powder layer by layer gives Yuanxiao a more chewy feel.

The fillings of Yuanxiao are relatively simple. Traditional Yuanxiao is mainly filled with white sugar, sesame and osmanthus flowers paste.

After cooking Yuanxiao, the soup is relatively thick and people usually drink it since it has the aroma of rice. 

Making Tangyuan as dumplings

The process of making Tangyuan is pretty much like making dumplings: Wrap pieces of sticky rice around the filling and make it into a ball with your hands.

The moisture content of Tangyuan's fillings is normally higher than Yuanxiao's. Traditionally fillings of Tangyuan are filled with lard oil.

Compared to Yuanxiao, Tangyuan has a much more delicate taste and is soft in texture. Tangyuan has also developed into many varieties, some of which are filled with meat, and some dough is colored. And now they are even made into many appealing shapes like pigs and giant pandas.

As a necessary food for the festival, people line up in front of the doors of the time-honored brands. Jinfang, a famous brand in Beijing, is crowded at six o'clock in the morning before Lantern Festival. People wait in lines for even three hours in order to get some freshly made Tangyuan. 

Since the main components of Yuanxiao and Tangyuan are glutinous rice, the high viscosity made them hard to digest. So don't be greedy although they are delicious.