Easy Chinese Almond Cookies (Vegan)- 4 ingredients!

These homemade Easy Chinese Almond Cookies for New Years are a traditional Chinese New Year cookie. They're simple to make- no mixer needed & only 4 ingredients- but still delicious, perfect for 2026. I've tested them at least 4 ways to find the best Chinese Almond Cookie Recipe - crunchy on the outside but soft inside and given 2 versions below- the better version and the acceptable-only but cheaper version (under Variations.) (Naturally Vegan and gluten free.)

You only need a few simple ingredients for this popular Chinese New Year cookie:

• almond meal: not to be confused with almond flour. Almond Meal has a coarser texture.
• neutral vegetable oil: traditionally people used lard but are moving away from it now due to health/ cholesterol reasons. Note that the amount of oil needed can change depending on how dry your flour is and the humidity where you are (so you may need more or less than 2 Cups- I would suggest adding 1.75 Cups first, mixing, and then adding more bit by bit till you have a nice dough that you can shape.)
• icing sugar: you can use caster sugar instead BUT the texture of the cookie will change AND the amount of oil you need will also be different.
• salt: salt enhances the flavor so don't omit it!
• halved or whole almond nuts to top each cookie: if you want to do something different, you could press the top of each cookie down, and fill it with almond butter or dark chocolate spread.
• Vegan Milk: optional cookie wash- it makes the cookie look MUCH more appetising (see below) so I highly recommend

Note: most of the recipes online mix almond meal and all purpose flour. However, I find that the resulting cookie is less flavourful (albeit prettier to look at and cheaper to make) compared to using 100% almond meal. As one tester said: "I would pay for the 100% almond meal cookie but not the flour-almond meal cookie!" (However, she still prefers the traditional Chinese peanut cookies.) Times are tight though so if you want to bake the flour-almond version, the recipe is under Variations below- I've added a touch of almond essence to boost the flavor. See more about the recipes I tested below.

Testing

I tested:

• 100% almond meal: widely rated as the best by my recipe testers
• mix of almond meal and almond flour: I had high hopes for this version as there should be almond flavor, but it was actually the worst of the lot. Using a mix of almond meal and almond flour made the quantity of oil needed quite volatile AND it did not improve the flavor
• mix of almond meal and all purpose flour: this cookie looked the best but had a mild flavor. (Recipe given below.)
• 100% almond flour: the cookie is a bit too soft. The texture of the almond meal makes it taste better.

• American Chinese Butter Almond Cookies (top right): These almond cookies are more crunchy and crispy than the traditional version. To be honest I actually prefer them- click through for the recipe!
• Gluten Free Almond Cookies (top left): only 3 ingredients needed and both dairy free and gluten free
• Almond Cookie with All Purpose Flour & Almond Meal: mix:
  • 100g all purpose flour
  • 50g almond meal
  • ¼ teaspoon of salt
  • ½ teaspoon of almond extract
  • 50 g icing sugar
  • 80-90 ml of neutral vegetable oil. (The exact amount of oil will change depending on how oily your almond meal and how dry your flour is.)
• Once you have a dough, form into 13 round balls. Press an almond into the top of each cookie, then milk wash and bake for 12-15 minutes at 350F/180C/ 160C F.

🥗 Other Chinese New Year Cookie Recipes

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