Kitchen Recipe Collection
Candied Hawthorn Sticks (Tanghulu)
The iconic Northern Chinese winter street snack. Tart, bright red hawthorn berries skewered on bamboo sticks and coated in a shatteringly crisp, transparent shell of hard sugar candy.
- Prep
- 20 min
- Cook
- 15 min
- Total
- 35 min
- Servings
- 4
- Difficulty
- medium
- Cuisine
- Chinese
Ingredients
Scaled for 4 servings
- 20 fresh hawthorn berries (or strawberries, grapes, mandarin segments if unavailable)
- 2 cups white granulated sugar
- 1 cup water
- Long bamboo skewers
Equipment
- Small saucepan
- Parchment paper or greased marble slab
Instructions
- 1
Prepare Fruit
Wash the hawthorn berries (or alternative fruit) and dry them COMPLETELY with paper towels. Any moisture on the fruit will cause the sugar shell to melt.
- 2
Skewer
Carefully thread 4-5 berries onto each bamboo skewer.
- 3
Prepare Station
Lay out a sheet of parchment paper or lightly grease a baking tray right next to your stove.
- 4
Make Syrup
In a small saucepan, combine the sugar and water. DO NOT STIR.
- 5
Boil Syrup
Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat. Let it boil vigorously.
- 6
Test the Sugar
After about 10-15 minutes, the bubbles will get smaller. Test the sugar by dipping a chopstick into the syrup and plunging it into ice water.
- 7
Hard Crack Stage
The sugar is ready when it reaches the 'hard crack' stage (300°F/150°C). When dropped in ice water, the sugar should instantly harden and shatter like glass when bitten. If it is sticky or bends, it needs more time.
- 8
Turn Down Heat
Once the sugar reaches the hard crack stage (and just begins to turn slightly yellow), turn the heat to the lowest setting to keep it liquid.
- 9
Dip the Fruit
Take a skewer and quickly, carefully dip it into the bubbling syrup. Tilt the pan and rotate the skewer so all the fruit is coated.
- 10
Drain Excess
Let the excess syrup drip off for 2 seconds. The coating should be very thin.
- 11
Harden
Place the coated skewer on the parchment paper. The sugar will harden into a glass-like shell within minutes.
- 12
Eat
Eat immediately. Bite through the sweet, shattering sugar glass into the tart fruit beneath.
Cooking Tips
- Never stir the sugar while it is boiling, or it will crystallize and become grainy.
- Traditional hawthorn berries (Shan Zha) are extremely tart, similar to cranberries, which perfectly balances the thick shell of pure sugar.
Variations
- Modern Fruits: In modern cities, strawberries, green grapes, and cherry tomatoes stuffed with plum are incredibly popular Tanghulu variations.
Nutrition Estimate
250 calories · 0g protein · 65g carbs · 0g fat · 3g fiber per serving
