Lü da gun, or donkey rolls, are spirals of soft steamed glutinous rice dough and sweet red bean paste, coated all over in toasty soybean flour. They are chewy, gently sweet and nutty, and cut into neat pinwheels. Makes 12 pieces in about 1 hr 5 min.
Prep25 min
Cook30 min
Cooling10 min
Total
1 hr 5 min
Yield
12 pieces
Ingredients
Adjust yield
pieces
Scales from a half to a double batch; give a bigger batch a little more time.
2 cups (250 g)glutinous rice flour
1 ½ tbsp (20 g)granulated sugar
1 cup (230 ml)water
2 tsp (10 ml)vegetable oil, for the dish and spatula
Make the rice dough: whisk the glutinous rice flour, granulated sugar and water into a smooth, thick batter. Brush the heatproof dish with half of the vegetable oil and pour in the batter.
Steam over boiling water on high heat for 25 minutes, stirring once with an oiled spatula after 12 minutes, until the dough is translucent throughout with no white streaks.
While it steams, toast the soybean flour in a dry skillet over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until light golden brown and nutty, 5 to 6 minutes. Tip onto a plate to cool.
Let the steamed dough cool in the dish until warm enough to handle, about 10 minutes.
Sprinkle half the toasted soybean flour over a sheet of parchment. Turn the dough out onto it, dust the top with a little more soybean flour and press or roll it into a rectangle about 30 x 22 cm (12 x 9 inches) and 5 mm (1/4 inch) thick.
Spread the sweet red bean paste evenly over the dough, leaving a 1 cm border along one long side. Using the parchment to help, roll the dough up tightly from the other long side into a log.
Dust the log all over with the remaining soybean flour and cut it into 12 pieces about 2.5 cm (1 inch) wide with a sharp, oiled knife. Serve the same day.
Tips
The dough clings to wood; a plastic rolling pin or oiled hands work best.
Check the label on the red bean paste: some brands use lard, which makes the rolls unsuitable for vegetarians.
Wipe and re-oil the knife between cuts for clean spirals.
Glutinous rice sweets are very chewy; cut them smaller for young children and older adults and eat slowly.
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How long does it take to make lü da gun (beijing donkey rolls)?
Plan on 25 minutes of prep and 30 minutes of cooking, plus 10 minutes to rest. The recipe makes 12 pieces.
How should I store lü da gun (beijing donkey rolls)?
Best the day they are made. Keep covered at room temperature up to 1 day; refrigeration makes the rice dough hard.
Can I make lü da gun (beijing donkey rolls) ahead?
It is at its best the day it is made; prepare it a few hours before serving.
Lü da gun is a traditional Beijing and northern Chinese snack, once made with glutinous millet and now usually with glutinous rice, that is steamed, rolled around red bean paste and coated in roasted soybean flour, which looks like the dust a donkey kicks up rolling on the ground. Serve it with jasmine tea.
Variations
Brown sugar filling: replace the red bean paste with 90 g (scant 1/2 cup packed) dark brown sugar mixed with 20 g (2 tbsp) toasted white sesame seeds, sprinkled evenly before rolling; times unchanged.
Millet version: use 250 g (2 cups) glutinous millet flour instead of glutinous rice flour, as in older Beijing recipes, and steam 30 minutes.
Peanut crunch: sprinkle 40 g (1/3 cup) finely chopped roasted peanuts over the red bean paste before rolling; times unchanged.
Estimated · per serving
Nutrition
Per serving = 1 of 12 servings this recipe makes.
165Calories / serving
1.2gFat
34.9gCarbs
3.1gProtein
10.0gSugar
Whole recipe (12 servings):
~1980 cal ·
14g fat ·
419g carbs ·
37g protein ·
120g sugar
Estimated values per serving, calculated from standard ingredient data. Not verified Nutrition Facts; actual values vary with brands, measurements, and preparation.
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