These two are by far my favorite chinese snacks! Back home, we used to make them for the Chinese New Year and I remember helping mom to fry the Tien Ya Nehs and I had to constantly turn the sweet potato balls around in the pot of oil so that they would brown evenly. Today, in Port Louis, you can find them at food vendors and it's probably easier to buy them and they are just as tasty!
TIEN YA NEHS
Ingredients:
1lb of sweet potato (boiled and mashed with a little bit of the boiling water)
375g of sugar (always 3/4 of the amount for the sweet potato)
Glutinous rice flour (enough for the dough to be a little bit sticky but not too dry)
Sesame seeds
Oil for frying
How To:
Peel and cut the sweet potato into thick slices
Put in a pan, cover with water and boil until tender
Mash the boiled sweet potatoes until smooth (I use an immersion blender which only takes seconds)
Add the sugar
Let cool
Add the glutinous rice flour
Combine until it becomes a slightly sticky dough
Shape into balls and roll into sesame seeds
Deep fry
VOO YENS
Ingredients:
Taro
Minced garlic
Minced ginger
Stale bread
Salt
Fish sauce (optional)
Few tbsps of sugar
1 tbsp of bean paste
Cornflour
Oil for frying
How To:
Peel and grate taro
Add all the other ingredients
Stale bread should be softened in water first
Cornflour should be enough to make the taro become sticky
Shape into balls
Deep fry