Firm strawberries
16 small, washed and fully dried
Desserts
Tanghulu.
Fruit skewers coated in a thin, hard sugar shell. Hot syrup requires close attention and a candy thermometer.
- Makes
- 8 small skewers
- Hands-on
- 25 minutes
- Total time
- 35 minutes
- Effort
- Some practice
GET WHAT YOU NEED
Your shopping list
For 8 small skewers.
White sugar
2 cups
Water
¼ cup
Ingredient is drinking water; use household filtered drinking water.
Light corn syrup
¼ cup
Amounts are what the recipe uses, not package sizes. Compare quantities and product details before buying.
KEEP IT SIMPLE
Tools & supplies
Heavy saucepan
Holds boiling syrup safely.
Candy thermometer
Measures the hard-crack stage.
Wooden skewers
Keeps hands away from syrup.
Parchment-lined tray
Lets the coating harden.
STEP BY STEP
Make it
Prepare
Skewer two dry berries per stick. Set out a parchment-lined tray before heating sugar.
Heat
Combine sugar, water and corn syrup in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, then lower to medium.
Measure
Cook until the thermometer reads 300°F. Remove pan from heat onto a stable heatproof surface.
Coat
Holding the dry end of each skewer, carefully dip and rotate fruit in syrup. Let excess drip back.
Set
Place on parchment and leave 5–10 minutes until fully hardened and cool. Eat promptly.
Good to know
- Do not microwave the syrup; hot sugar causes serious burns.
- Fruit size and coating thickness affect yield; some syrup will remain in the pan.
SAVE THE MAKING
Prefer it ready-made?
Compare these finished options with making your own.
Freeze-dried strawberries
A shelf-stable fruit snack alternative, without a tanghulu sugar shell.
Links go to the selected products. Availability and delivery vary by location; check the current listing and package size before ordering.
Sources & further reading
Independent instructions informed by the sources below. No affiliation or endorsement is implied. These instructions have not been kitchen- or workshop-tested by DIBuyIt.
- MSU Denver RED: Tanghulu Recipe — Syrup formula and hard-crack method; our batch specifies 16 small berries.