one of the pumpkins i made

Chinese Craft

Last week Annie Kate and I went to the Chinese Branch Enrichment night at our church. It was so fun and the food was incredible. They had an artist there, Hui-chen Hsu, who taught us how to make these darling dough figures. She is an incredible artist who does many things at the Smithsonian. It was so much fun and I was amazed at how well all the kids did. She didn't speak much English but helped AK and I to make our little creatures.
I know the recipe may seem a little overwhelming and have a lot of ingredients, but this was like dough I had never seen before, it is worth the effort. They said it is a craft from 1500 years ago. If you have a cold rainy day, I suggest trying it.

Chinese Dough by Hui-chen Hsu

Preparing the dough
(no matter what measurement you use, the ratio of the amount of flour, rice flour, and water is always 4:1:2)

Ingredients: (for making 200 small figures)
Flour 10 cup
Glutinous rice flour* (increases the viscosity of the dough) 2 1/2 cups
Cold water 5 cups
Salt (prevents the dough from hardening) 4-5 TBS
Alum powder (protects against moisture and insects) you can find this at an Asian grocery
4-5 TBS
Water-based preservative (you can get this at a craft store) a pinch
liquid water color paint for coloring
shish kebab skewers 200

Procedure:

1. Add first six ingredients in a bowl, mix well into a paste like dough
2. knead the dough evenly in a pan until the dough has achieved a balance of flexibility and firmness. add some water if it gets too stiff, or add an appropriate amount of flour, rice flour and water (4:1:2) if it gets too soft.
3. Form the kneaded dough into lumps about the size of your palm.
4. Put them into a pot of boiling water and after they float to the surface, take them out and get ready to add colors.
5. Add the watercolors (paste like paint) to the dough while it is still warm and knead the dough until the color mixes evenly.
6. Now you are ready to make the dough figures
7. After you are done, insert a bamboo skewer through your finished dough figures.

Preserving the dough figures

1. paint the finished dough figures in a well ventilated place and let dry for 2-3 days.
2. paint a layer of clear varnish, or clear fingernail polish over the dough, and let dry for about 1 week.
3. Repeat the procedure 6 times to preserve the figure.