With this easy recipe you can make homemade Candied Lotus Seeds (Mut Hat Sen) and have a wonderful sweet treat to enjoy. This delicious confection is a popular food for celebrating Lunar New Year / Tet. Candied Lotus Seeds are made by boiling dried lotus seeds and then slowly cooking in syrup, coating the morsels with sugary goodness. The candies are small, about the size of a peanut M&M and perfect for indulging your sweet tooth. They also make tasty treats to offer to visiting guests or make into treat bags for gift-giving. Are you ready to make a batch?
Watch the video for instructions.
Notes on the Candied Lotus Seeds (Mut Hat Sen) Recipe, Tips and Tricks
Purchase dried lotus seeds at an Asian grocery store. They’re usually stocked with other dried food products. If your store has an herbal section, this is where you’ll find them. Also look for dried lotus seeds in apothecary shops in many Chinatowns. They’re popular ingredients in herbal and homeopathic remedies.
Pomelo essence adds lovely aroma to this delightful candy. Look for Pomelo essence in the bakery section of your Asian grocery store. The essence is concentrated, so use just a little bit. If you don’t have pomelo essence, substitute with 1/4 tsp vanilla extract, 2 tsp vanilla sugar or another flavoring you like. Do not use fresh pomelo juice. The citrus will prevent the sugar from re-crystallizing.
This is a candy so it’s really sweet. Of course, if you’d like it less sweet, reduce the sugar. Also as I mentioned in the video, if you want to use the soaking syrup instead of tossing it out, make the cooking syrup by combining just 1/2 cup sugar with 2 Tbsp water.
Candied Lotus Seeds / Mut Hat Sen
Candied Lotus Seeds / Mut Hat Sen
With this easy recipe you can make homemade Candied Lotus Seeds (Mut Hat Sen) and have a wonderful sweet treat to enjoy. This delicious confection is a popular food for celebrating Lunar New Year / Tet. Candied Lotus Seeds are made by boiling dried lotus seeds and then slowly cooking in syrup, coating the morsels with sugary goodness. The candies are small, about the size of a peanut M&M and perfect for indulging your sweet tooth. They also make tasty treats to offer to visiting guests or make into treat bags for gift-giving. Are you ready to make a batch?
Ingredients
- 7 oz dried lotus seeds , 1 1/2 cups
- 1 1/2 cups sugar , divided
- 3 Tbsp water
- 1/8 tsp pomelo essence , or vanilla extract
Instructions
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Transfer the dried lotus seeds into a colander and bowl. Inspect the seeds and remove any that are completely black or mis-shapen.
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Wash the seeds by swirling in warm water for 30 seconds and then pouring out the rinse water. Repeat this process 1-2 more times or until the water is no longer cloudy.
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Bring a medium saucepan to a rapid boil. Add the lotus seeds and stir gently. Let the water come to a rapid boil again. Skim off the foam and discard. Cover the saucepan and cook on Low heat for 20 minutes. Stir the lotus seeds halfway through the cooking time.
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Add a cup of ice cubes into a large bowl filled with cold water. Transfer the lotus seeds into the ice bath and swirl gently in the cold water. Let soak for 2-3 minutes. Drain the water.
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Transfer the lotus seeds into a large bowl. Add 3/4 cup sugar, sprinkling a little at a time and then tossing together to combine. Cover and let rest for 1 hour.
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Strain the lotus seeds separating the liquid from the syrup. Discard the soaking syrup. Making the cooking syrup by combining the remaining 3/4 cup sugar with 3 Tbsp water and pomelo essence.
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Heat a large skillet over Medium High heat. When hot add the cooking syrup and bring to a vigorous boil (takes approximately 2 minutes). Add the lotus seeds and spread out into a single layer. Cook over Low heat.
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Every 5 minutes, gently rotate the lotus seeds and then spread out again. Continue cooking over Low heat, gradually cooking-off the liquid. After 20-25 minutes the sugar should start to recrystallize. Stir more frequently now (but still gently) to prevent the candy from burning. Cook until the candy is completely dry and coated with sugar crystals, another 10-15 minutes.
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Transfer the Candied Lotus Seeds onto a wire cooling rack. Allow to cool for 10 minutes before enjoying.
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Store the candy in a jar or container and leave at room temperature. Enjoy within one month.
Recipe Video
Notes, Tips & Tricks
- Substitute pomelo essence with 1/4 tsp vanilla extract or 2 tsp vanilla sugar. Do not use fresh pomelo juice. The citrus will prevent the sugar from re-crystallizing.
- Cook the candy in small batches if using a small skillet. During cooking, keep the lotus seeds to a single layer for faster drying.
- Avoid using too much heat, this burns the sugar.
If you enjoy this Candied Lotus Seeds (Mut Hat Sen) recipe, you may also like:
Candied Orange Peels
(Mut Vo Cam)
Piggy Mooncakes with Lotus Seed Filling
(Banh Trung Thu Nhan Hat Sen)
Tools I Love and Use in My Kitchen
Hi Trang,
This is so exciting and I am excited to make it for my elders.
How would we adapt this for the pressure cooker/ instant pot? I’m assuming we can do the boil part in IP or also try how to use my dehydrater. Always looking for shortcuts!
Hi Tay,
This is a wonderful sweet treat for your family to enjoy. Instead of boiling the lotus seeds on the stove, use the Instant Pot and pressure cook on High for 8 minutes and do a quick release. Some lotus seeds may split open during High pressure cooking. You can also cook on Low Pressure for 12 minutes. Good Luck!
Thanks Trang for the recipe. I will try to make it tomorrow. Look so tasty! Have a googd day Trang!
Thanks Sue! I hope you enjoy this delicious candy and find the recipe super easy.
Thanks You Co^ Trang, I will make this on New Year, with your method is so easy.
Hi Hoa Kim,
You’re welcome! Enjoy the recipe and plus stop back to share your results. Happy Lunar New Year! 🙂
Hi Trang, I will do it that’s my favor one. Thanks a lot. Happy New Year to you & family.
Hi Lynn,
You’re welcome. Thank you for stopping by and Happy New Year to you and your family! 🙂