Last Friday, 7 June 2019, many people celebrated "Duanwu Jie" (端午节 or 端午節) to commemorate the famous scholar Qu Yuan. One item that was eaten during this day is ZongZi (粽子) - glutinous rice dumplings wrapped in bamboo leaves. There are many types and I managed to buy 2 types to eat on that day from a teenager who is helping her mother to sell these dumplings on a makeshift stall by the roadside.
For the savoury types, there are 3 different prices - MYR 4.50 nett, MYR 5.50 nett and MYR 7 nett for those with different ingredients. I bought the one priced at MYR 7 nett which has a large piece of fat at its tip - can you spot it in the photo above? I had to remove and throw it away. Good that it is at the tip and not spread around the dumpling for easy removal.
The ingredients are glutinous rice, pork, pork fats, goat peas, mushroom, chestnut and salted egg yolk. Other than that large piece of fat, I like the taste of this dumpling because of its soft but not soggy rice and its ingredients especially for the nice salted egg yolk. I also like mung beans as one of the ingredients but no one puts mung beans and goat peas together in one dumpling for sale unless one make one's own dumplings for self consumption, then one can put whatever that one wants in them.
This smaller dumpling is sweet with red bean fillings and costs MYR 2.50 nett only.
I like to eat these sweet dumplings because the rice is softer and it has the "kansui" (alkaline water) taste that I like. I know for those plain "kansui" dumplings with no red bean fillings in them, some people will dip them into kaya or sugar before eating them but I don't do that as I prefer those with red bean fillings. The plain "kansui" dumplings cost MYR 2 nett each but I did not buy any. I am lucky this time because these two dumplings that I bought taste very good. I will keep a look out for this teenager next year to buy these dumplings again.
I like savory dumplings but I don't mind those plain dumplings that dip in kaya or sugar to eat too, yums!
ReplyDeleteyums!
DeleteLooks really good - that bit of fat makes the dumpling more oily and a whole lot nicer! My late mum loved those red bean ones - used to buy those for her.
ReplyDeletered beans ones are tasty!
DeleteIt's good that you found dumplings that you like. I bought some the other day and they were not that great.
ReplyDeleteare you going to write about why they were not that great?
DeleteI prefer dumpling with mix of fats and lean meat.
ReplyDeleteThis one has lean meat too but not together with the fats.
DeleteI like savoury dumplings. Took few that day. Still have few more in the freezer.
ReplyDeleteyou don't like the sweet ones?
DeleteI prefer the savoury dumplings especially those with lots of ingredients. I will also remove the fat if it is by its own.
ReplyDeletesometimes the ingredients are more than rice.
DeleteNot easy to find good dumplings. Those from places like Canton-i aren't really worth the price.
ReplyDeleteYou are right. A few years ago, I have tried some from Canton-i and/or Dragon-i and never again. Will just buy from roadside stalls and see whether lucky or not. Do you make your own?
DeleteNope, I can't see how to wrap a triangular dumpling out of straight narrow leaves! Very high risk of failure.
DeleteI think youtube got teach how to wrap.
Delete