Tomorrow is a public holiday forthe Dragon Boat Festival(Chinese: 端午节or Duanwujie). Although the English translation is closely related to the dragon boat, the festival itself, however, has something more to do with Zongzi, a kind of bamboo-covered sticky-rice dumpling, rather than the dragon boat. Now Chinese people make and eat it. Do you have any idea about how to wrap up your own delicious Zongzi? Let’s check it out!

Typical Zongzi Fillings

Zonzi fillings usually include steamed glutinous rice, egg yolk, lotus seeds, ham, red bean paste, chestnuts, diced pork, dates, peanuts, raisin, tea and so on, but you don’t have to use all of them to make one Zonzi. Yet, in average conditions, no matter what fillings you choose, you must include steamed glutinous rice in it.

Regional Differences in Making Zongzi

Zongzi differ in shape and taste from one place to another in China. There are mainly two kinds of tastes: sweet and savory. Nowadays people even make zongzi with mixed sweat and savory fillings. The sweet Zongzi usually are usually made of sweat steamed rice, dates, red bean paste, raisin, chestnuts or peanuts, while the savory diced pork or other salty fillings.

How to make a red bean Zongzi by yourself?

1. Wash some glutinous rice and put it in water until it thoroughly soaks.

2. Wash and soak the red beans for 1½ hours, and then mix them with the glutinous rice.

3. Wash and boil the bamboo leaves for half an hour or even longer and then put them into cold water to cool.

4. With three or four bamboo leaves on your palm, fold the leaves into a cone-shaped or pyramid-shaped container and use a spoon to fill it with the mixture of glutinous rice and red beans. Then finish wrapping it and tie it up with a pre-soaked length of straw.

Note: Each Zongzi must be bundled up firmly before boiling or steaming for two hours until they become fully bulged.

How to make glutinous rice and pork Zongzi?

Ingredients: bamboo or reed leaves and lengths of straw, streaky pork, glutinous rice, soy sauce, salt.

1. Cut the streaky pork into Zongzi-sized pieces, and add soy sauce and salt and let it sit for one night to pickle the pork.

2. Wash the glutinous rice and flavor it with salt and soy sauce.

3. Wash and boil the bamboo leaves for a few minutes until soft.

4. Fold two or three pieces of bamboo leaves into the shape of a cone, and first fill it with glutinous rice and then add a piece of the streaky pork on top. Then, cover it and wrap it into a pyramidal shape with the remaining length of the leaves, and bind it with a length of soaked straw.

5. Put bamboo leaves in a pot, then place the wrapped Zongzi on the leaves, and steam or boil for three to four hours.

How to make sweet tea Zongzi?

Main ingredients: glutinous rice, sweet tea, and dates

1. Stew the sweet tea.

2. Wash the glutinous rice and soak it in the tea.

3. Wrap up the glutinous rice and dates with bamboo leaves.

4. Put the Zongzi and the sweet tea together into a pot, add water, and boil for two hours.

How to make date jujube Zongzi?

Main ingredients: bamboo leaves and lengths of straw, glutinous rice, raisins, red dates (jujubes)

1. Wash and boil the bamboo leaves and straw for a few minutes until they are soft.

2. Wash and soak the glutinous rice.

3. Put the dates into a bowl and stone them after being steamed for a while.

4. Wash some raisin.

5. Put three bamboo leaves onto your palm, fold the leaves into a cone-shaped container and use a spoon to fill it with glutinous rice, dates, and raisins. Bind it in a triangular pyramid shape with a length of straw.

6. Put the wrapped Zongzi into a pot, add water and boil for two hours, then reduce the heat and simmer for another three hours.

How to make mung bean and duck egg Zongzi?

Main ingredients: glutinous rice, mung beans, peanuts, cooked salted duck egg yolk, bamboo leaves and straw

1. Wash and soak the glutinous rice and mung beans.

2. Put all of the ingredients into a bowl and mix.

3. Wash and boil the bamboo leaves and straw for a few minutes until soft.

4. Fold two leaves into a funnel and use a spoon to fill them with the mixture. Bind it up in a triangular pyramid shape with a length of straw.

5. Put the wrapped Zongzi into a pot, add cold water, boil for one hour, then reduce the heat and simmer for another hour.

Source: chinahighlights.com