Almond jelly
Encyclopedia
Almond jelly, almond pudding, or almond tofu (杏仁豆腐) is a popular dessert in Hong Kong
, Taiwan
, Singapore
, Malaysia, and Japan
and often found in dim sum
restaurants worldwide, commonly garnished with wolfberries
.
The name is misleading – it uses apricot kernels
（杏仁）, not almonds – though the flavor is similar – and in most recipes does not use soy beans (as are used in tofu, 豆腐), though the consistency is similar.
is extracted, sweetened, and heated with a gelling agent (usually agar
). When chilled, the almond milk mixture solidifies to the consistency of a soft gelatin dessert
.
is also a common substitute for agar.
There is also an "instant" almond-flavored soy-based powder with a coagulating agent, which dissolves in hot water and solidifies into sweetened soft tofu
upon cooling.
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
, Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
, Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
, Malaysia, and Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
and often found in dim sum
Dim sum
Dim sum refers to a style of Chinese food prepared as small bite-sized or individual portions of food traditionally served in small steamer baskets or on small plates...
restaurants worldwide, commonly garnished with wolfberries
Wolfberry
Wolfberry, commercially called goji berry, is the common name for the fruit of two very closely related species: Lycium barbarum and L. chinense , two species of boxthorn in the family Solanaceae...
.
The name is misleading – it uses apricot kernels
Apricot kernels
An apricot kernel refers to the kernel of a species of Prunus, classified with the plum in the subgenus Prunus. It is known for containing amygdalin, a toxic cyanogenic glycoside....
（杏仁）, not almonds – though the flavor is similar – and in most recipes does not use soy beans (as are used in tofu, 豆腐), though the consistency is similar.
Traditional recipe
In the traditional recipe, the primary ingredient is southern Chinese almond (南杏, which is in fact apricot kernel) or sweet Chinese almond, soaked and ground with water. The almond milkAlmond milk
Almond milk is a milky drink made from ground almonds. Unlike animal milk, almond milk contains no cholesterol or lactose. Regular, unsweetened almond milk can be used as a substitute for animal milk in many recipes, and as it does not contain any animal products, is suitable for vegetarians and...
is extracted, sweetened, and heated with a gelling agent (usually agar
Agar
Agar or agar-agar is a gelatinous substance derived from a polysaccharide that accumulates in the cell walls of agarophyte red algae. Throughout history into modern times, agar has been chiefly used as an ingredient in desserts throughout Asia and also as a solid substrate to contain culture medium...
). When chilled, the almond milk mixture solidifies to the consistency of a soft gelatin dessert
Gelatin dessert
Gelatin desserts are desserts made with sweetened and flavored gelatin. They can be made by combining plain gelatin with other ingredients or by using a premixed blend of gelatin with additives...
.
Variations
Almond jelly can be made using instant mix or from scratch. Although the agar-based recipe is vegan, there are numerous nontraditional recipes that are not. Most of them are based on dairy products and a small amount of almond-flavored extract. GelatinGelatin
Gelatin is a translucent, colorless, brittle , flavorless solid substance, derived from the collagen inside animals' skin and bones. It is commonly used as a gelling agent in food, pharmaceuticals, photography, and cosmetic manufacturing. Substances containing gelatin or functioning in a similar...
is also a common substitute for agar.
There is also an "instant" almond-flavored soy-based powder with a coagulating agent, which dissolves in hot water and solidifies into sweetened soft tofu
Tofu
is a food made by coagulating soy milk and then pressing the resulting curds into soft white blocks. It is part of East Asian and Southeast Asian cuisine such as Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Indonesian, Vietnamese, and others. There are many different varieties of tofu, including fresh tofu and tofu...
upon cooling.
See also
- Southern Chinese almond (Prunus armeniaca L.) (南杏)
- Northern Chinese almond (Prunus armeniaca Linne var. ansu Maximowicz)Prunus maximowicziiPrunus maximowiczii, known as the Miyama cherry or Korean cherry , is a small , fruiting cherry tree that can be found growing wild in northeastern Asia and Eurasia.- Taxonomy :The species was first described in 1857 by Franz Josef Ruprecht...
(北杏) - Almond (Prunus amygdalus)AlmondThe almond , is a species of tree native to the Middle East and South Asia. Almond is also the name of the edible and widely cultivated seed of this tree...