Cantonese Fried Sesame Balls

Cantonese Fried Sesame Balls are crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, with a delightful sweet flavor and sesame evenly distributed! "Fried sesame balls roll and roll, bringing gold and silver to the house." During the Chinese New Year, people in Guangdong enjoy these sesame balls. The saying means fried sesame balls are round and can either be filled, making them solid inside, or hollow, expanding greatly when fried, symbolizing prosperity. They represent a bountiful harvest of wealth and good fortune! Though traditionally a festive snack for Chinese New Year, Cantonese sesame balls can be enjoyed year-round. A lump of glutinous rice dough inflates into a large sphere, symbolizing growth. In areas like Nanhai and Zhongshan, the preparation is mostly the same, but in places like Shaxi in Zhongshan, sesame balls often come filled, with both sweet and savory varieties, resembling Teochew-style kuih. There are many types of sesame balls in this "family," including Shiqi sesame balls, Jiujiang sesame balls, and hollow sesame balls. In many parts of Guangdong, sesame balls are filled with various ingredients such as popcorn, peanuts, coconut shreds, or even pork fat! However, I personally don't fancy the fillings as they're a bit too rich. Instead, I have a special liking for hollow sesame balls, or pure glutinous rice sesame balls without any filling!