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Chinese Almond Dessert

by · · 44 comments
This almond dessert is not too sweet with a creamy texture. It’s good for wrapping up your dinner or as a snack throughout the day.

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This is my childhood dessert that I often enjoyed with my dad in a little dessert shop in Hong Kong. The Hong Kong version of it yields those almonds for making Chinese soups, sweet almonds (南杏) with a little bit of bitter almond (北杏).

The fragrance of the almond is so strong that makes you love it or hate it, similar to the case of celery and coriander. I love it very much. Well, it’s not the cup of tea for my family though.

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Almond is recognized as a healthy food. It helps lower LDL-cholesterol and reduces the risk of heart disease. I have been trying to add some almonds in my family menu.

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This time I opted for using the large Australian almond kernels. The smell is not as strong as the traditional almond dessert I used to enjoy. I like its mildly sweet taste with a cleansing feel. My family was very pleased and took a large bowl.

Chinese Almond Dessert Recipe

(Printable recipe)

Prep time:
Cook time:
Yield: 2 to 3 serves

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Ingredients:
  • 1 cup (about 150 gm) almonds
  • 800 ml water + plus extra for soaking
  • 40 gm rice
  • 40 gm rock sugar
  • 1 egg white

Method:
  1. Soak the almonds with enough water to cover them in a bowl for overnight. If the weather is too warm, keep it in fridge with cover. The next day, bring the 800 ml of water to boil and let it slightly cool down for later use. Soak the rice for 1 hour.
  2. Remove the almonds from fridge. Discard the water and rinse the almonds. Peel off their skins.
  3. Place the almonds, rice and the warm water in a food processor. Blend until liquified. Press through a fine sieve. You might like to use a cheese cloth if you want finer texture.
  4. Drain into a small sauce pan. Cook for about 15 minutes over medium heat. Stir occasionally. Add sugar and cook until it’s completely dissolved. Remove from heat. Stir in the egg white. Serve hot or cold.

Notes：
  • The consistency of this dessert depends on the amount of rice used. You might adjust the amount to your liking.
  • You can increase or decrease the amount of sugar according to your preference.


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44 comments :

  1. ruesedaineJanuary 13, 2015 at 7:27 AM

    Can I replace the rice with rice flour?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Christine HoJanuary 14, 2015 at 5:39 AM

      Don't use rice flour. The texture will be very different.

      Delete
    2. ruesedaineJanuary 14, 2015 at 6:23 AM

      Christine,thank you for your great advice and your generosity for sharing your great recipes.

      Delete
    3. Christine HoJanuary 14, 2015 at 2:02 PM

      You're welcome. Hope you like this dessert as much as we do.

      Delete
  2. EvaJanuary 13, 2015 at 10:05 AM

    Hi Christine! Looks delicious! Can you tell me what type of almonds you used? What's the difference between regular almonds, sweet almonds (南杏) and bitter almonds (北杏). I've seen recipes online where people only use sweet almonds while others use a mix of both bitter and sweet.

    I hope to hear from you soon! Thanks! :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. EvaJanuary 13, 2015 at 10:06 AM

    Never mind! lol... I just noticed you explained it at the beginning.

    ReplyDelete
  4. UnknownJanuary 13, 2015 at 2:42 PM

    Thanks for the recipe. Will try to find the milder Australian almond to try. Good to include in our diet.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Flora from MAJanuary 14, 2015 at 12:32 AM

    This looks pretty tasty, I'm going to have to try this. Thank you!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Angie's RecipesJanuary 15, 2015 at 5:36 AM

    Very creamy and delicious! I need to make myself a large portion too.

    ReplyDelete
  7. SytJanuary 19, 2015 at 12:17 PM

    This is so good! I could eat this all day! Thank you so much!

    I also can use white almonds, isn't it? I made a double portion, because i knew it would be a hit:), but peeling off the skins of so much almonds took me quite long. But in the end it was really worth it!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Christine HoJanuary 19, 2015 at 4:20 PM

      Hi Syt,
      You can use the peeled almonds for sure. Very handy. :)

      Delete
  8. Jessie ngJanuary 19, 2015 at 7:17 PM

    Awesome, I would like to give a try, but wondering why the need to add egg white, for smoothness? thanks:)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Christine HoJanuary 20, 2015 at 4:03 AM

      You're right. For adding smoothness and more proteins. The older generations told us this dessert could help women keep beautiful skin.

      .

      Delete
  9. AnonymousMarch 20, 2015 at 6:36 AM

    Awesome recipe . Has been trying twice but the second attempt which is double portion. The consistency was lumpy , why is that so?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Christine HoApril 1, 2015 at 6:11 AM

      If your food processor is large enough to handle double portion, it shouldn't be any problem.
      Some people might use less liquid to process the almond, then it'd be a problem. The almond will turn into a paste. It create lumps in the dessert.

      Delete
  10. EstherApril 23, 2015 at 10:56 PM

    I did it just now, really yummy. May I know why my dessert crack around the bowl? What to do with the leftover blended almond, wish to use in cooking, please advice. Thanks.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Christine HoApril 27, 2015 at 7:24 AM

      Hi Esther,
      Not quite sure what you meant by "crack"?
      The dessert should be a bit runny, not like custard at all.
      The leftover blended almond can be added to oats for breakfast or make another dessert.

      Delete
  11. AnonymousJune 27, 2015 at 7:01 PM

    Hi Christine,
    If I use Chinese almond, do I follow the same proportion as the western type? Can I boil the almond for a while so that it is easier to blend? Some recipes recommend frying the almond beforehand. What do you think?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Christine HoJune 30, 2015 at 6:57 AM

      You may use the Chinese almond. Get the sweet ones (南杏) or mix a little bit of bitter ones (北杏) if you like.
      Simply soak them beforehand and follow the same steps.
      If you fry them, you can bring up some more fragrance. It's up to you.

      Delete
  12. UnknownJuly 26, 2016 at 5:28 AM

    Hi Christine,

    How to make Hongkong version of almond paste? Is it with Australian almonds & sweet & bitter almonds?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Christine HoJuly 26, 2016 at 5:57 AM

      Hi Cheryl,

      In HK, sweet & bitter almonds are often used in cooking. Yet, not sure what kind of almond paste you're after. Sorry.

      Delete
  13. UnknownJuly 26, 2016 at 7:00 AM

    Hi christine,

    Do u think is ok for me to mix Australian almonds with some bitter almonds instead?

    No need say sorry. What i m referring is making almond dessert.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Christine HoJuly 28, 2016 at 5:33 AM

      Hi Cheryl,
      I suggest you might use a small amount of bitter almonds. Otherwise, the dessert will taste bitter and weird.

      Delete
  14. UnknownJuly 29, 2016 at 8:17 AM

    Too hassle to peel off the skin. Took me 2 hour to peel it off. Hope the almond dessert will turn out well. I m using Australian almonds. Now cooking.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Christine HoAugust 7, 2016 at 7:49 AM

    Hi Cheryl,
    Sorry to hear that it took you 2 hours to peel the skins.
    It's strange. I also used Australian almonds, found it quite easy to get rid of their skins after soaking.

    Could it be not enough soaking time? Just curious.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. RachelOctober 31, 2016 at 4:12 PM

      Hello, it took me two hours to Peel off the skin too. I was using Blue Diamonds regular almonds... In the end, the almond was not as fragrant as j had expected it to be; I wonder if it is because I was not using the Chinese variety?

      Delete
    2. Christine HoNovember 1, 2016 at 5:58 PM

      Hi Rachel,
      Really? Oh, what a tedious job you have done.
      You're right. The fragrance of Chinese almonds are much stronger. That's why they put some people off, others are attracted.

      Delete
  16. HuiwanAugust 26, 2017 at 1:54 AM

    Hi Christine, thanks for sharing this! As for the rice, is it cooked or uncooked rice?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Christine HoSeptember 1, 2017 at 7:14 AM

      Hi Huiwan,
      The rice should be uncooked in a food processor. After you ground the almond and the uncooked rice, you have to cook them for 15 minutes.

      Delete
  17. AnonymousAugust 5, 2018 at 1:40 AM

    I'm looking this dessert thanks to missmiss Christine ho

    ReplyDelete
  18. sarahAugust 21, 2019 at 7:08 AM

    May I use almond meal for this recipe?

    ReplyDelete
  19. Christine HoAugust 22, 2019 at 6:30 AM

    Hi Sarah,
    I haven't tested with almond meal. Sorry, can't tell. :p

    ReplyDelete
  20. JulieNovember 3, 2019 at 3:43 PM

    Hi Christine, thanks for the recipe. I am confused with the water: 800 ml water + plus extra for soaking. However in step2: Remove the almonds from fridge. Discard the water and rinse the almonds. So in step 3, Place the almonds, rice and the warm water in a food processor, how much warm water should I put in the food processor?

    ReplyDelete
  21. Christine HoNovember 6, 2019 at 3:50 AM

    Hi there,
    Sorry for the confusion.
    The water for soaking almonds is discarded. So, in the recipe, it is not counted.

    In step 3, the 800 ml warm water is made from step 1.
    Simply add the peeled almonds, rice and the 800 ml water in the food processor.

    Hope this explanation could help.

    ReplyDelete
  22. JulieNovember 7, 2019 at 1:02 PM

    Thank you so much Christine! So the 800 ml water is just the water that you boiled in step 1, and that you let it cool down. Would it be ok to just use cold water then? would there be any difference in the taste? Thanks so much again.

    ReplyDelete
  23. Christine HoNovember 9, 2019 at 12:11 AM

    Hi Julie,
    Sure you can.
    I just found warm water will help facilitate the blending and enhancing the flavours. You might adjust the step to suit your needs though.

    ReplyDelete
  24. SamueleOctober 12, 2020 at 2:42 AM

    Hi Christine,
    what can I do with blended almonds and rice that I've strained? Maybe mooncake filling?

    ReplyDelete
  25. AnonymousAugust 16, 2022 at 6:28 AM

    Hi Christine,

    Can I ask if we can use baked almonds ?

    ReplyDelete
  26. Christine HoAugust 22, 2022 at 11:07 PM

    No reason that you can't experiment with baked almonds. Happy cooking!

    ReplyDelete
  27. AnonymousMay 4, 2024 at 8:35 PM

    Hi Christine
    May I replace white rice with brown rice for the almond paste dessert? All I have at home.is brown rice, rice flour and glutinous rice flour.
    Thanks

    ReplyDelete
  28. Christine HoMay 13, 2024 at 10:54 PM

    I'm afraid this recipe won't work with brown rice. The colour and the texture won't be the same as expected.

    ReplyDelete