Written by: Mahnoor Fatima
Posted on: June 15, 2021 | 
Women Celebrating the Dragon boat Festival with Homemade Zongzi
This week marks the ‘Dragon Boat Festival’ in China and other parts of Asia. Celebrated on the fifth day of the fifth month of the lunar calendar, the festival commemorates the life and death of Qu Yuan, a poet, statesman, diplomat and reformer who lived in the latter part of the Warring States period (476 BC – 22BC). Banished for refusing the king’s alliance with an enemy state, Qu drowned in the Miluo River (now in the Hunan Province), and every year the people of China honor that river and its sacred mythology.
While the main event of the festival is the boat racing competitions that take place all over the country, people also take long walks, hang icons of historic figures, and wear perfumed medicine bags as per holiday tradition. Food, in particular, has been an important way in which Chinese people come together to celebrate and honor this ancient holiday. Below is a small list of foods traditionally consumed in the holiday by people all over China.
A Tang-Dynasty Dragon-Boat Race Attributed to Li Zhaodao, 7th century
Perhaps the most famous treat for the holiday are the zongzi dumplings packed in with sticky rice and enjoyed as a portable treat. According to the lore, when Qu Yuan was drowning in the river, the locals threw bags of zongzi wrapped in bamboo leaves to feed the hungry fish and buy time to save Qu Yuan. But zongzi have existed long before Qu Yuan, and were seen as sacrificial foods to the ancient gods more than 5000 years ago. High in protein and easily made, they are considered ancient fast food for farmers, as they were easy to make, and portable enough to be eaten on the go.
The Inside of a Savory Zongzi
The taste of the dumplings varies in taste between the north/south areas of China, and the different versions found across all regions. In the north, zongzi are sweet with red bean or date paste, and in the south they are savory with egg or meat fillings. While the people of Beijing enjoy a simple dumpling, the people of Guangzhou pack in a whole feast, with meat, salted eggs, chestnuts and bits of even shrimp/mushroom. In Guangyuan City of the southwest Sichuan province, zongzi are even made from wild strawberries, a popular summertime sweet treat. Nowadays, people have also been experimenting with new flavors to bring innovation to this popular and loved dish.
People of Nanching in the eastern Jiangxi Province celebrate the holiday with some tea eggs. To make them, one must boil an egg (either from a chicken, duck or goose), make a small crack and place in it another boiling pot of tea and spices. Also known as marble eggs due to their appearance, they are commonly seen as a snack for the Chinese, and are frequently sold by street vendors. But at home, tea eggs are a fragrant, pretty and delicious breakfast to start the day’s festivities. Some even hang the eggs around the neck of children to counter bad luck and misfortune.
Tea Eggs
Since the Dragon Boat festival marks a return to the summer, fluffy mung bean cakes are a favorite of the locals in Eastern Zhejiang to beat the heat. According to traditional Chinese medicine, mung beans can help with reducing body heat and quenching thirst. This light, and deliciously fragrant cake is often shaped in elegant molds with designs traditionally made out of old turtle shells. Turtles are seen as symbols of longevity, and the patterns on the cakes often carry prayers for a long and prosperous life. The dish comes together in a creamy, buttery treat that is just as fun to make as it is to eat.
Mung Bean Cake and the Traditional Mold
Finally, for the people of the northwestern Shaanxi province, the festival is incomplete without Saozi noodles. The thick, broad noodles are soaked in broth as well as tofu, carrots and garlic to make a colorful and savory composition (much like the traditional Japanese ramen dishes). The spicy sauce and fragrant meat has been consumed by soldiers, students and families as it is rich and filling. Those who have it, praise its combination of flavors and textures as well as its deliciously sour aftertaste.
Saozi Noodles
The Dragon Boat Festival marks the coming of the summer and the celebration of mythological figures in China’s long and fascinating history. It is no surprise that the food of this festival is delicious, fun to make and diverse in its tastes. It reflects the diverse regional delicacies and tastes of each province, as they join to commemorate a vibrant and historically rich holiday.
You may also like:
