How to make Peach Resin

Peach resin is a delicious, jelly-like ingredient used in traditional Chinese medicine and touted in skin care for anti-aging and collagen boosting effects. Peach resin is simple to make and a versatile ingredient to add into desserts and drinks.

What is peach resin?

Peach resin (also called peach gum) is literally the resin that comes from peach trees! It’s edible and tastes like jelly once soaked and cooked. In its dry form, it looks like amber. (Fun fact – did you know that amber is also tree resin?)

Peach resin is eaten in Chinese cuisine. It is often (but not always) used in desserts and sweet soups (糖水). It’s one of those foods which Chinese people believe to be beautifying (美容). Specifically, peach resin is said to be very good for the skin due to its collagen-building effect (see below).

Peach resin is the “poor person’s bird nest”.

Although peach resin is sometimes likened to bird’s nest due to its jelly-like and collagen boosting properties, not only is peach resin plant-based, but it is also much easier to cook and easier on the wallet! In fact, peach resin is sometimes called “peasant’s bird’s nest”.

Here in Toronto, one bag of peach resin is around 10 CAD (2024). Note that one bag of peach resin will make a LOT of peach resin jelly once cooked. I only use around one handful of dried peach resin whenever I make a batch of peach resin jelly. One handful of dried peach resin can absorb 1 litre or more water!

Peach resin helps prevent collagen loss and other health benefits.

Peach resin has been used in traditional Chinese medicine for the spleen and stomach.

If you ask a Chinese auntie, they’ll tell you that peach resin is good for the skin. Recently, peach resin has even made its way to skin-care products.  According to this research paper published in 2023, peach resin has “antioxidant and anticancer properties”, promotes cell growth repair, improves collagen degradation and skin photoaging. In other words, peach resin really is good for the skin!

Where to buy peach resin?

If you live in a metropolitan area with a substantial Chinese population – most likely you’ll be able to find peach resin at your local large Chinese or Asian supermarket. Here in Toronto, I’ve seen peach resin sold at T&T as well as many other independent Asian grocery stores in the GTA.

At the supermarket, you’ll most likely find peach resin with all the other dried herbs and traditional Chinese medicine ingredients. I often see peach resin next to other ingredients used in sweet soups such as dried lotus seeds and snow fungus.

If there are no large Chinese or pan-Asian supermarkets in your area, you can buy peach resin online on Amazon or at specialist online stores.

How to eat peach resin

Peach resin is very versatile – it doesn’t really have a flavor, so it’s more of a textural ingredient. Though most often served sweet, it’s not unheard of to use peach resin in savoury applications such as broth-type soups and other savoury dishes.

Again, since peach resin doesn’t really by itself have much flavor, it adds textural dimension to whatever you add it to.

The simplest way to serve peach resin is with some sweetener, and/or with some milk. Peach resin with milk and fruit makes a lovely snack or a light dessert that is fun to slurp. If you like jelly, you’ll love peach resin. You can use any kind of milk and fruit you like: how about peach resin jelly with coconut milk and mango?

Here are some more serving ideas:

• In drinks. Use peach resin like you would with boba, sago or macapuno. You can also use it like a thickener by blending into drinks.
• In sweet dessert soups (糖水， 甜汤). Perhaps the most common way to prepare and serve peach resin.
• As a topping. Add to yogurt, oatmeal, ice-cream.

How to prepare and cook peach resin

Soak peach resin for 2-8 hours. The size will increase a lot – like eight times in volume.

At this point you can remove any black “impurities”. These small black things you see are bits of tree bark that have stuck to the peach resin. The impurities should be removed for safety because parts of the peach tree, including the bark, contain cyanide-producing compounds and can be potentially toxic.

After soaking, peach resin is ready to be boiled. This is the time to add any other ingredients and flavourings to be cooked with the peach resin.

Some traditional and common pairings include:

• Goji berries
• Dried red dates / jujubes
• Dried longan
• Pears
• Lotus seeds (requires soaking + relatively long cooking time)
• Gingko nut
• White snow fungus (requires soaking + relatively long cooking time)
• Ginger

For sweeteners, rock sugar is common. You can also use black sugar, which is caramelly in flavor and traditionally used for its nutritional benefits such as high iron content. Alternatively, use another form of unrefined sugar (jaggery, panela etc) or natural sweetener such as honey. Of course, you can also leave the peach resin unsweetened.

Cover the soaked and expanded peach resin with water, add your sweetener and/or add-ins if using, bring everything to a boil, then simmer for at least 30 minutes. The peach resin should become tender and jelly-like. This may take longer if there are bigger chunks of peach resin. You may also need to add more water halfway through the cooking time depending on how much water is absorbed and evaporated. You can break any bigger peach resin chunks apart to encourage faster cooking if you like. Any bigger chunks of peach resin may be more chewy in the middle. The peach resin particles will become more jelly-textured and gooey the longer they are cooked.

@hellenshouse

Have you every tried peach resin? Literally the resin harvested from peach trees, this jelly like ingredient is sometimes touted as an “ancient Chinese beauty secret” and also known as “peasant’s bird’s nest” 😮– but plant based of course! Peach resin tastes like jelly but has collagen boosting and other health properties. Turns out the Chinese aunties were right. Peach resin is actually quite easy to find here in Toronto and really simple to prepare. Go to my blog for more information about peach resin – an affordable superfood delicacy. #peachgum #peachresin #peachgumdessert #collagen #beautytips #traditionalchinesemedicine #chinesefood

♬ original sound – Hellen Chan – Hellen Chan

Did you make this recipe? I would love to hear your thoughts. Leave a rating and comment below. If you share on socials, tag me on Instagram @hellenshouseblog or Tiktok @hellenshouse, or hashtag #hellenshouse. Cheers!