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Easy Dango Recipe

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4.2 from 12 reviews

This Easy Dango Recipe offers a delightful and colorful Japanese sweet treat made from a blend of glutinous and non-glutinous rice flours. These chewy rice flour dumplings come in three beautiful colors—pink, white, and green—each symbolizing the seasons and perfect for enjoying during spring cherry blossom celebrations. With a simple boiling method and optional sweetening, this recipe yields tender, slightly sweet dango balls that can be served plain or with traditional toppings like sweet soy glaze or red bean paste.

Ingredients

Dango Dough

  • 1 1/3 cup Joshinko non-glutinous rice flour (150 g)
  • 1 1/2 cup Shiratamako glutinous sweet rice flour (200 g)
  • 3/4 cup powdered sugar (optional, 75 g)
  • 1 1/3 cup hot water

Coloring and Flavoring

  • 1 teaspoon matcha powder
  • 1 teaspoon water (for matcha paste)
  • 1 drop pink food coloring
  • 12 small bamboo skewers (soaked in water)

Instructions

  1. Soak Skewers: Soak 12 small bamboo skewers in water to prevent burning later when skewering the dango.
  2. Mix Dry Ingredients: In a large bowl, combine 150 grams of non-glutinous rice flour (joshinko) and 200 grams of glutinous sweet rice flour (shiratamako). Add 75 grams of powdered sugar if you want a sweeter dango.
  3. Add Hot Water and Form Dough: Pour 1 1/3 cup hot water into the flour mixture. Start mixing with a spoon, then use your hands to knead the dough until it reaches a soft, clay-like consistency. Adjust flour or water as needed for the perfect texture.
  4. Divide Dough and Add Colors: Portion the dough evenly into three bowls. Add one drop of pink food coloring to one bowl and knead to incorporate.
  5. Prepare Matcha Paste and Add: Mix 1 teaspoon matcha powder with 1 teaspoon water to form a paste. Add the paste to the second bowl of dough and knead to combine.
  6. Leave One Dough Plain: Leave the third bowl of dough white without any additions.
  7. Shape Dango Balls: Using a kitchen scale, shape the dough into round balls weighing about 20 grams each. You should end up with around 36 balls total.
  8. Boil White Dango: Bring a pot of water to a boil. Cook the white dango balls first. Once they float to the surface, boil for 2 more minutes.
  9. Cool Boiled Dango: Transfer the cooked dango using a slotted spoon immediately into a bowl of ice water to stop cooking and firm up texture.
  10. Cook Pink and Green Dango: Repeat boiling and cooling steps with the pink dango next, followed by the green dango last to keep the water clear and colors vibrant.
  11. Skewer the Dango: Thread the dango onto soaked bamboo skewers starting with green balls, then white in the middle, and pink last. This order represents seasonal elements: green for summer grass, white for winter snow, and pink for spring cherry blossoms.
  12. Serve and Enjoy: Enjoy the dango as is, or add toppings like sweet soy glaze, red bean paste, or matcha paste for extra flavor.

Notes

  • Soaking bamboo skewers prevents them from burning during serving.
  • Adjust the dough texture by adding a little more flour or water as needed for soft, pliable dough.
  • Cooking the dango by color prevents color bleeding in the boiling water.
  • Use a kitchen scale to ensure uniform dango ball sizes for even cooking.
  • Optional toppings such as sweet soy glaze or red bean paste enhance flavor but are not necessary.

Find it online: https://bitezly.com/easy-dango-recipe/