Tanghulu - Tidbits on a stick

If you get the chance to go to Beijing, be sure to try some of the delicacies sold in the local outdoor market places or street-carts. You should especially not miss out on the delicious sweet snacks on offer. Anyone who has been to Beijing cannot claim to have missed seeing the colorful skewers threaded with sugar glazed berries called tanghulu. Tanghulus are the absolute favorite snack of native Beijingers, easily besting other finger foods such as chips, popcorn and chocolate.

The sticks used to make tanghulu snacks are about 20 centimeters long. Different types of berries, such as red or yellow hawthorn berries or strawberries, and sometimes nuts, are speared on the stick. The colorful skewers topped off with a glistening sugar coating make the mouth water! The taste is a combination of sweet and sour flavors. Hawthorn berries are quite piquant, with a slightly coarse and tangy taste. The marriage of sweet sugar glazing and sour berries exhilarates the palate. A few of the journalists at Radio86 have tried out the different variations of this Chinese delicacy, and those who liked to have fresh berries with warm caramel sauce for dessert quickly found a new favorite in tanghulus.

Sweets with a long tradition

Radio86 journalist Antonia Ramsay gave tanghulus a try. (Image: Pirjo Hirvonen)In Beijing, sales of tanghulu generally go up when winter approaches and the temperature drops. During this season, these tasty snacks can be found at virtually every street corner. Although tanghulus are popular in many cities in northern and northeastern China, they have become the unofficial official snack of Beijing.

Tanghulus have been part of the Chinese food culture for centuries, and for Beijingers especially, New Year celebrations would be nothing without these scrumptious bringers of good luck. The tanghulus sold during the Changdian Temple Fair in the Xuanwu District have gained a reputation for being the most auspicious ones of all. The tradition of the temple fair spans centuries, but between the beginning of the 1900s and 2001, a total of 37 years passed without it taking place. Since being added to the annual events calendar, it has quickly become one of the most popular tourist attractions in Beijing. So, if you're looking for the most delicious tanghulus on the planet, Xuanwu District is your place! The local vendors sell skewers that are up to one meter long and decorated with colorful flags. Generally speaking, the tanghulus bought here are not eaten on the spot, instead, people take them home believing they will bring them good luck and prosperity, especially during the new year.

The legend about tanghulu

Candied hawthorn berries on a skewer. (Image: CRI)A traditional legend tells the story of how tanghulus came to be so popular in China. They are told to have been invented during the Song dynasty when one of the emperor's concubines became ill. The ailed lady of the court was miraculously cured when she followed a regime that included eating ten candied hawthorn berries before every meal. Word of the miraculous cure spread quickly and soon quick-thinking vendors began selling hawthorn berries on bamboo sticks. When they were dipped in syrup, they became the sweet snack that is still being sold today.

It is told that the very first tanghulu only had two berries: one small one on top and a bigger one on bottom, which is why its shape resembled that of a hulu, calabash in English. So, literally speaking, tanghulu means ”candy calabash.”