Tang hulu (糖葫芦, literally sugar gourd) are the iconic Beijing and northern Chinese street snack of tart hawthorn berries (shan zha, 山楂) threaded on a bamboo skewer and dipped in a crackling, crystalline sugar glaze. The candied coating — a hard-crack sugar syrup — creates a glass-like shell that shatters when bitten, revealing the intensely tart, slightly astringent fruit beneath. Tang hulu are sold in winter on hutong (alleyway) streets and at festival markets; the seller carries a large bundle of skewers anchored in a straw bale. Modern versions may use other fruits — strawberries, mandarin segments, grapes, kiwi — but the traditional hawthorn version is the standard.
The fruit preparation: Use fresh hawthorn berries (shan zha) when in season (October-December in northern China). Remove the stems and bottom calyx. Thread 5-8 berries firmly on each bamboo skewer, pressing them together slightly so they form a single solid column. The sugar syrup: Combine 200g white sugar + 100ml water in a small saucepan. Heat without stirring until the sugar dissolves. Increase heat and cook rapidly without stirring until the mixture reaches 150-160C (hard crack stage — a drop of syrup in cold water should form a rigid, brittle thread that snaps cleanly). Test the temperature visually: the syrup should be a very pale gold and produce no bubbles. The dipping: When the syrup reaches hard crack, remove from heat. Working quickly, dip each hawthorn skewer into the syrup, tilting the pan to fully coat. Rotate the skewer briefly to let excess syrup drip off. Lay on an oiled surface. The sugar glaze will harden in 30-60 seconds.
Fuchsia Dunlop, Every Grain of Rice (2012)