Osmanthus Lotus Root with Sticky Rice 桂花糖藕
Osmanthus Lotus Root with Sticky Rice is featured among the local specialties of Hangzhou and Zhejiang.
Guihua tang’ou (桂花糖藕) is a sweet lotus-root dish with sticky rice packed into the root's holes. Sliced pieces show the filled channels, while osmanthus gives the sweet finish a floral aroma.
How it is prepared
The Hangzhou recipe describes filling the cleaned lotus-root channels with rice, cooking the whole root, slicing it and finishing the slices with sugar and sweet osmanthus. It is a different preparation from lotus-root starch dissolved into a bowl.
Flavour & texture
The rice filling is sticky and the lotus root gives each slice its structure. Sweetness and the firmness of the root depend on the recipe and cooking, so it should not be described as identical in every shop.
Local context & naming
This is a documented Hangzhou sweet dish and part of the wider Jiangnan repertoire. Neither the name nor a photograph guarantees that an individual serving uses lotus root harvested from West Lake.
Ordering this dish
Ask whether the serving is warm or cool and how large the plate is. A few slices can be a useful shared dessert after richer dishes; check added syrup or garnish before ordering if you prefer less sweetness.
At the table
Cut a small piece that includes both root and rice to taste the combination. Use a spoon or small fork if the syrup makes the slice difficult to hold with chopsticks.
Ingredients to check
Contains lotus root, rice and sweetening ingredients. Confirm honey, floral syrup, nuts or other additions in the particular version.
More dishes to compare
Explore related local specialties and compare their names, preparation notes and ordering guidance.
Rice Dumplings in Sweet Fermented Rice 酒酿圆子 →
Jiuniang yuanzi (酒酿圆子) is a sweet dish combining small rice dumplings with fermented rice. It is eaten from a bowl, rather than treated simply as a glass of rice wine.
Beijing Palace-Style Milk Curd 宫廷奶酪 →
Palace-style nailao (宫廷奶酪) is a soft, sweet milk dessert associated with Beijing's traditional dairy shops. It is often translated as cheese, but a spoonable set milk curd is a more useful expectation than a slice of hard cheese.
Questions before you order
Is this lotus-root starch pudding?
No. Tang’ou uses slices of the root filled with rice. Lotus-root starch pudding is a separate dish.
Sources & reading
Identity, the described preparation and local context checked against the linked sources on 8 September 2026. Where a home recipe is cited, it is a documented example, not a restaurant standard. Ordering and serving suggestions are editorial guidance. No recipe testing, exclusive origin, current venue availability or dietary certification is claimed.
Recipes and servings vary between kitchens.