Jien Duy (Sweet sesame seed ball)

325ml (13 fl oz, 1 and a third US cups) water 
4 or 5 sticks Chinese brown slab sugar 
1 pound glutinous rice flour 
1 cup canned sweet red or black bean paste filling (or lotus paste) 
60g (2 oz, ½ US cup) sesame seeds 
oil for deep frying 

Bring water and sugar to the boil, stirring, until the sugar dissolves.

Put rice flour into a large bowl. While the sugar-water is still hot, slowly stir it into the rice powder to make a dough.

Turn out dough and knead until smooth. Roll into two 4cm (1½″) thick rolls. Cut each into 4cm (1½″) pieces.

Using the palms of your hands, roll each piece into a ball. Flatten ball and place a 1/2 inch piece of bean paste in the centre. Fold the dough round the bean paste and roll into a smooth ball to enclose the filling.

Wet and dip ball into sesame seeds to coat the surface. Press lightly to help the seeds to stick. Set aside, covered. Repeat with remaining dough.

Heat 7.5cm (3″) depth of oil to 170ºC (325ºF). Carefully slip a few balls into hot oil and fry gently for 3 minutes. Gently squeeze balls and turn them over with a pair of wooden cooking chopsticks. This helps the balls to expand. Carry on cooking for a further 12 minutes, squeezing and turning balls every few minutes in the same way until they are gold brown and feel full of air.

Drain on paper towels.

Cool before serving.