Glutinous Rice Dumpling or in cantonese 糭 ("Zong"). That’s what I had for lunch on Friday. One thing about Zong is, I’ve always been curious about the birth of the "Zong". One place that’s best to start is of course, Wiki. Here’s some extract that was taken from there.
Zong is traditionally eaten during the Dragon Boat Festival which falls on the fifth day of the fifth moon of the Chinese calendar (approximately early- to mid-June), commemorating the death of Qu Yuan, a famous Chinese poet who lived during the Warring States period. Known for his patriotism, Qu Yuan tried unsuccessfully to warn his king and countrymen against the expansionism of their Qin neighbors. When the Qin Dynasty general Bai Qi took
Yingdu, the Chu capital, in 278 BC, Qu Yuan’s grief was so intense that he drowned himself in the Miluo river after penning the Lament for Ying. According to legend, rice dumplings were thrown into the river to prevent fish from eating the poet’s body.
The Zong I had on Friday was wrapped using bamboo leaves with fried glutinous rice and the filling of chestnut, mushroom and pork cubes marinaded with five spices. A typical Chinese style rice dumpling
Some interesting notes from Wiki.
- Due to their prolonged cooking times, doneness is a constant issue with cooking zong. An old superstition says that rice dumplings will not cook properly if a pregnant woman enters the kitchen while they are being steamed.
- In 2005, the earliest zong ever found in China was discovered in a 700 year old tomb in Dean County, Jiangxi Province.
- Chinese authorities issued zong health warnings for the 2006 Dragon Boat Festival due to copper compounds being used to enhance the color of the leaves used for wrapping in some factories.
Nice but fattening
Comment by superwilson — August 13, 2007 @ 11:35 am